Author Archives: Kartik Krishnaiyer
While CNN sleeps Putin moves
Often times in the past I’ve found fault with Florida pols during Legislative Session who have no idea what is going on abroad when US interest at stake. During the 1999 Legislative Session when the US and NATO went to war in Kosovo, I found fellow legislative staff and legislators themselves mostly unaware that we […]
Flashback Friday: Racial Backlash among Democrats and 1968 Presidential and US Senate Election in Florida
In 1968, Alabama’s Democratic former Governor George Wallace who had become a national figure with his “stand in the schoolhouse door” ran for President on the ticket of the “American Independent Party.” The candidacy despite coded words like “crime,” “law breakers,” and “patriotism” was about one thing- race. Wallace had been a populist earlier in […]
Despite legislative progress public school advocates can never rest easy
The school “choice” movement suffered a significant setback in the Florida Senate yesterday when the companion bill to HB 7099 was withdrawn by its sponsor Senator Bill Galvano (R-Bradenton). We have devoted much of our space in recent weeks to galvanizing progressive opinion against HB 7099. Much like the initial “A+ plan” pushed by Governor […]
Tracking gun legislation in Florida
I must admit that we see so much unnecessary pro-gun legislation in front of the Florida House these days that when a prominent Democratic State Representative contacted me this morning about the two gun bills on the floor today, I was more interested in speaking about vouchers, gambling and immigrant tuition. Our views on guns […]
Has Jeb Bush become the 2016 GOP front runner? Larry Sabato thinks so
Larry Sabato, one of the foremost political analysts and prognosticators around has elevated Governor Jeb Bush to the top of his rankings for Republican Presidential contenders who are possible nominees in 2016. Senator Marco Rubio is now considered a “second-tier” candidate, though Rubio as had been reported widely in the national press in recent days […]
Videos: Voucher supporters concede they are doing a run around the Constitution
In a video obtained by The Florida Squeeze, the CATO Institute’s Andrew Coulson concedes that voucher programs are potentially doing a run around serious constitutional questions both on the state and national level. AMCSC Clip2 from Nozo Media on Vimeo. In the following clip Coulson expounds upon his premise.
Thursday Bookshelf: The History of the GOP
Purchase Grand Old Party: A History of the Republicans from Amazon.com Professor Lewis Gould wrote this concise history of The Republican Party right in the middle of the Bush Administration as the US was embroiled in two wars of choice in the Middle East. Gould’s work takes the party from its inception as a vehicle […]
Committee Democrats close ranks and oppose voucher expansion
Today, Democratic members of the House Choice and Innovation Committee (aka the voucher committee) closed ranks and opposed the HR 7099 which would deliver the largest expansion of the voucher program in the state’s history. Both Reps. Shevrin Jones (D-Hollywood) and Randolph Bracy (D-Orlando) who had voted on the pro-voucher side of a much more […]
Sanctions alone won’t curb Russian aggression & debunking some myths floating on the left
President Obama’s decision to levy sanctions on Russia following Vladimir Putin’s aggressive stance towards Ukraine and illegal annexation of Crimea, was well-received by the media. But economic sanctions have long proved to not be a solution to aggressive militaristic behavior by despotic regimes. The President must do more and do it quickly. A theory exists […]
Videos: Voucher groups admitting to squeezing Democrats and using low-income children as the “face” of program for political purposes
HB 7099, the largest potential expansion to date of school vouchers in Florida will pass the House Choice and Innovation Committee today (aka the voucher committee). The Florida Squeeze obtained two videos where Florida pro-voucher leader Doug Tuthill, himself a one-time liberal Democrat talking about how political contributions and playing in Democratic primaries has moved […]
The Florida Squeeze 