Yearly Archives: 2014
Why Have Democratic Statewide Candidates Botched Public Money Opportunities?
Through the years, Republicans have vocally opposed public funding of campaigns at all levels. This year Rick Scott has opted not to abide by public financing limits and will spend as much as needed to retain his hold on the Governor’s seat while Democrat Charlie Crist agreed to take matching funds. No Republican statewide candidate […]
ANALYSIS: Congressional Districts Must Be Re-Drawn Before November
#Mappageddon is certainly deserved after Judge Lewis threw out all congressional Districts this morning and ordered new maps be redrawn. This is one of the biggest announcements in the history of Florida politics. The fallout could be huge for a variety of reasons. Above all, this is uncharted territory for all interested parties. I wrote […]
National Squeeze: Did President Obama Just Take The Fall For Bush’s War Crimes with “We Tortured Some Folks” Comment?
In case you missed it, President Obama gave a statement centered mostly on the economy. The subsequent press conference that followed, centered on the other major issues of day including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalation given the alleged kidnapping of an Israeli Defense Force (IDF) solider by Hamas and the apparent gradually increasing US-Russia tensions. Just […]
Southwest Airlines Dumps Sea World Sponsorship
If you’ve flown around the country in the last decade you have undoubtedly seen Shamu One (pictured) parked or taxiing on an airport runway. Or perhaps you have seen one of the other three Southwest planes painted in Sea World regalia. Sea World, which operates a large amusement park complex in Orlando has long been […]
Flashback Friday – Tampa Bay Rowdies vs Fort Lauderdale Strikers: The Florida Derby
This Saturday night the Fort Lauderdale Strikers will host the Tampa Bay Rowdies in what has long been among the premier rivalries in American soccer. I am honored to be the TV/Video play-by-play announcer for tomorrow night’s match at Fort Lauderdale’s Lockhart Stadium. I would encourage everyone in Southeast Florida to attend. The rivalry which […]
TFS Endorsement – Geraldine Thompson for State Senate District 12
Only one State Senate primary merits an endorsement write-up from TFS. That is the Orlando-based 12th District where Former Senator Gary Siplin is seeking a return to his old seat by challenging Senator Geraldine Thompson. Senator Geraldine Thompson was a strong progressive voice as a member of the Florida House of Representatives and that continued […]
The Plague of Write-In Candidates on Florida’s Closed Primary System
While we at the Squeeze released our endorsement list this morning, I wanted to highlight something that we don’t talk about much about write-in candidates. There are 16 write-in candidates on the ballot in November and in a few cases, they are the only alternative to the incumbent. Write-in candidates do not appear on the […]
TFS State House Primary Endorsements
As we have lamented a few times, there are very few actual competitive races in the legislature and the same is true for the primary season. Competitive primaries can help season candidates, can get the electorate fired up, and generally can cause a more substantive debate on issues that impact the state of Florida. This […]
Thursday Bookshelf – American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune, and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush
With Jeb Bush sniffing around a bid for the Presidency in 2016 now is the perfect time to discuss a timeless classic. Kevin Phillips, who was dubbed in 1995 by one of my Political Science Professors at the University of Florida as “the smartest Republican around,” is widely viewed as the chief architect of the […]
A Dangerous World Needs American Adult Leadership – President Obama Can Provide This
President Obama is quite possibly the best US President on domestic affairs since Franklin Roosevelt. Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson would be the other contenders for that honor (though it must be stated that some of Obama’s domestic successes have been due to a degree of Executive overreach something we can discuss another time). But […]
The Florida Squeeze 