U.S. State Politics

Florida Bong Ban Bill Passes Senate 31-2 But Now Doesn't Actually Ban Bongs

A day after a bill that would ban the sale of bongs and certain pipes in Florida overwhelming passed the Florida House, its sister bill found similarly broad support in the Senate. The bill passed the legislative body 31-2 today, and will now head to Gov. Rick Scott. Though, the bill has been cons ... More >>

If Your Facebook Pic Is Red Today, Maybe Take Five Seconds to Let Your State Legislators Know You Support Domestic Partnerships

If you've been on Facebook in the past 24 hours, you've surely noticed the explosion of people using a red version of the Human Rights Campaign's logo to express their support for gay marriage as the U.S. Supreme Court hears two potentially landmark cases. That's very nice and all, but the Supreme C ... More >>

Charlie Crist and Rick Scott Tied in Latest Gubernatorial Race Poll

It might have seemed that Rick Scott's defeat in the 2014 gubernatorial race was pretty much a done deal a year before the campaigns even really began, but the latest poll shows Scott might not be such a pushover. The poll of 600 registered voters conducted earlier this month shows Sc ... More >>

Jim Greer: Racism and Dead Bodies Ahead

Floridians Prefer Rubio Over Bush for Prez in 2016, But Like Hillary Clinton Even More

Another day, another poll that shows that while Marco Rubio is the clear early frontrunner for the Republican nomination in 2016, he can't quite match up to Hillary Clinton in a general election yet.The latest poll from Public Policy Polling was only of Florida voters, and shows that Rubio would bea ... More >>

Poll: Charlie Crist Has 14-Point Lead Over Rick Scott in Gov. Race

If recent Democrat convert Charlie Crist decides to run for governor, as he's widely rumored to do, he'd wipe the floor with incumbent Republican Rick Scott 53 percent to 49 percent. Though, several other possible Democratic candidates also beat Scott in head-to-head match-ups, Crist leads Scott by ... More >>

Charlie Crist Officially Became a Democrat Today in Full Out Media Spectacle

Charlie Crist was officially wed to the Democratic party today in a quiet ceremony attended only be close friends and family. The pair had announced their engagement over the weekend at a White House Christmas party.Just kidding. The former Republican governor turned a Pinellas County elections offi ... More >>

Barack Obama Loves Rick Scott's Tweet

Politics make strange Tweetfellows. While Mitt Romney has tried to claim Florida's economy under Barack Obama has been lagging, Florida Governor Rick Scott has maintained, for his own political future, that the economy in the state is improving.So, while it might be strange that the Barack Obama cam ... More >>

Sorry Charlie: Alex Sink Actually Democrat's Favorite In 2014 Gov Race, According to Poll

Earlier this week, we brought to your attention to an odd poll that claimed 61 percent of Democratic voters wanted former Republican Charlie Crist to be the Dem's gubernatorial candidate in 2014. The numbers seemed way off, and now a new poll is out showing that actually Alex Sink, who ran for gover ... More >>

Miami-Dade August 14 Election: A Haters Guide

Obama Has a Chance: Federal Judge Blocks Florida Voting Restrictions

A federal judge in Tallahassee this afternoon blocked some of the most severe restrictions of a voter registration law passed last year by the Republican Florida legislature. The law has been severely criticized by opponents as an attempt to limit minority participation this fall's election. It was ... More >>

Mitt Romney Likes Rick Scott's Controversial Drug Testing Laws

Mitt Romney may preach smaller government, but he doesn't mind the government getting all up in your body fluids. The Republican presidential candidate said today that he "doesn't disagree" with Florida Governor Rick Scott's controversial plan to drug test state workers.

Tea Party Disappointed Rick Scott Hasn't Been a Bigger Tea Party Wingnut

Reality, or something sort of like it, has finally caught up to Gov. Rick Scott. The Tea Party activists that help elect him? They're apparently not so enamored of Scott any longer. The leaders of what remains of the movement are not too pleased with Scott's performance as governor thus far, even th ... More >>

The Ten Worst Bills On Their Way to Rick Scott's Desk This Year

Today is one of our least favorite times of the year: the final day of the Florida legislative session. It's like the dying moments of a drunken high school party, when everyone makes hasty, poor decisions that they will come to regret. So, how have our duly elected representatives spent the past fi ... More >>

Marco Rubio Tops Vice Presidential Poll

Marco Rubio has certainly been mentioned several times by Republican candidates as a possible running mate, and it appears that GOP voters agree. Fairleigh Dickinson University released the findings of a poll today in which they asked 799 registered Republicans across the country who they'd like to ... More >>

Mississippi Pol Wants to Rename Gulf of Mexico "Gulf of America"

​The Gulf of Mexico may soon be known as the "Gulf of America," at least in the state of Mississippi if a recently introduced bill in the state's legislature passes.Sure, in a world where Republicans on the federal level actually succeeded in renaming "French fries" as "freedom fries" at governmen ... More >>

Dumb Florida Legislator Accidentally Tried to Make Lobbyist Group's Mission Statement a Law

​Citizens decry the involvement of shadowy special interests and lobbying groups in our politics, so it's quite surprising that Rep. Rachel Burgin, a Republican from Tampa, tried to pass the actual mission statement of such a group into law.It's not exactly a secret that lawmakers often don't actu ... More >>

Is Rick Scott The Real-Life Slender Man?

​We expected the Republican primary to be a horror show. But we didn't know it would come to this.If you're an Internet dweeb (like, uh, this friend we have, yeah, that's how we know about this stuff), you've already heard the legend of Slender Man. He's an evil shape-shifter that first appeared o ... More >>

Occupy Florida Interrupts Rick Scott's "State of the State" Entrance (Video)

The Occupy movement made its debut at last night's opening of the legislative season in Tallahassee with a move carefully calibrated to resonate with ordinary Floridians -- they yelled some stuff at widely loathed Gov. Rick Scott.As Scott made his way into the House, protesters lined the hallway yel ... More >>

Rick Scott is Not Familiar With This Strange Term "Tampa Bay"

​How well does Gov. Rick Scott really know Florida? Apparently not well enough to know that the area including St. Petersburg, Tampa and Clearwater -- you know, the second biggest metro area in his state -- is pretty commonly referred to as "Tampa Bay." We don't like to pull the "real Floridian" c ... More >>

Gambling Addiction in Florida Is On the Rise as Genting Eyes Giant Downtown Miami Casino

​The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling reports it has seen a large uptick in calls to its help line in the past year, indicating that gambling addiction may be on the rise in the Sunshine State. The report comes after Governor Rick Scott slashed the program's budget, and as state lawmakers mu ... More >>

Rick Scott Still Trying to Figure Out Exactly What His Campaign Promises Meant

Back when he was running for Governor, Rick Scott promised that he'd add 700,000 jobs in Florida over seven years in addition to what the economy would produce regardless of who was Governor. It seemed like a simple enough promise at the time, but now ten months into his term he's still ap ... More >>

Carole Crist Privately Asked if Charlie Should Run for Governor As a Democrat

​Florida's own Lady Macbeth, Carole Crist, apparently isn't a big fan of being just a simple trial lawyer's wife. She married a superstar politician after all, so maybe it's no surprise she's privately asking about the possibility of hubby Charlie Crist making a return to politics -- this time, ho ... More >>

Miami-Dade County Commission Unanimously Asks Florida Legislature to Chill Out on Crazy Immigration Laws

​It's hard to get the Miami-Dade County Commission to agree on anything, but every single member voted today for a resolution that asks the state legislature to cool it on all those crazy conservative immigration bills they've been trying to pass. The Florida Legislature will, more than likely, to ... More >>

Rick Scott's Office Just Got an $80,000 Upgrade Thanks to Taxpayers

​Florida taxpayers are stuck munching on some carpet bills. Even while their cutting budgets, the offices of state lawmakers are getting costly upgrades to their carpets and other amenities. Governor Rick Scott's office just got a near $80,000 facelift. Two hundred thousand dollars has been spent ... More >>

Poll: Rick Perry Leads Florida GOP Primary, Even Though He's Not Running

​Florida Republicans don't seem to know what to make of the rag tag bunch seeking the Republican presidential nomination, so much so that a recent poll shows that the favorite nominee in the state is a guy that's not even running. Yep, apparently Florida GOPers can't get enough of various Governor ... More >>

Report: Rick Scott Pushed to Completely Eliminate Florida Highway Patrol

​Rick Scott wants to be known as the job creation governor, but almost seven months into office he's become more known for what he's destroyed, or tried to. After killing Florida's federally funded high-speed rail program, and reports that he attempted to do away with Citizens Property Insurance, ... More >>

Miami-Dade Election Results: Julio Robaina and Carlos Gimenez Heading to Runoff

​With all precincts reporting, former Hialeah mayor Julio Robaina and former county commissioner Carlos Gimenez will be heading to a runoff election to determine Miami-Dade's next mayor, to no one's great surprise. Meanwhile, the noble campaign of our own columnist Luther "Uncle Luke" Campbel ... More >>

Rick Scott should show his birth certificate

Where's Rick Scott's Birth Certificate, Hmmm?

​Despite little evidence to the contrary, President Barack Obama offered further proof today that he is in fact a natural-born American citizen by producing his long-form birth certificate. With that issue sorted out, we now call on the American media to investigate the circumstances of Rick Scott ... More >>

Rick Scott Will be Holding "Facebook Townhall" Tonight

​Back in January Gov. Rick Scott tried to connect with the people of Florida through Twitter. He, of course, got called a "jackass" and decided to sign off shortly after. Now he's giving this whole interwebs thing another try and will be hosting a Facebook Townhall tonight.

Rick Scott's Staff Gets Bitchy With Reporters

Why must Rick Scott's Coffee Talk be ruined? ​Former Gov. Charlie Crist gave out his personal cell phone number to journalists and kept their favorite beers stocked in his office. In stark contrast, current Gov. Rick Scott and his staff seem to have an unhealthy amount of disdain for the press cor ... More >>

Even Republicans are Angry Rick Scott Declined High-Speed Rail Funds

Even some Elephants prefer to travel by train. ​Rick Scott's decision to decline $2.4 billion in federal funds to build a state-of-the-art high-speed rail system in Florida continues to draw anger, ire and confusion today even from many Republicans. Today, a veto-proof majority of 26 state senator ... More >>

More Than One in Five Floridians Seriously Considering Moving Out of State

Well, it could help create jobs in the moving industry. ​Despite the fact the rest of the country has been a veritable snow hell recently while Florida has remained largely frost free, a new poll finds that more than one out of every five Floridians is thinking about moving out of state. That's pr ... More >>

Rick Scott's Budget is a Political Mess

​Rick Scott introduced his budget this Monday to cheers at a Tea Party event inside a Eustis, Florida, church. Back in the reality of Tallahassee, though, the new governor's plans haven't been greeted with much enthusiasm. Even Republican lawmakers aren't sure it's a workable budget. Scott is faci ... More >>

Journalists Abhorred That Rick Scott Won't Let Them Wear Flip Flops To His Press Conferences

Governor Rick Scott and the press corp that covers him are now in a full out war, according to Politico. The press isn't happy at the perception that Scott is trying to limit their access to a state Government, that in principal at least, has traditionally tried to be transparent and open. Scott and ... More >>

Justin Bieber Will Not Perform at Rick Scott's Inauguration, Just to Clarify

via WikiCommons​Maybe there's little value in reporting a rumor that's already been proven false, but this one is so bizarre we can't pass it up. Apparently, last night at a meeting of the capital city commission, Tallahassee Police Department Maj. Lewis Johnson said that teen pop superstar Justin ... More >>

Sexting Your Girlfriend While Stuck in Traffic May Soon Be Illegal

State Senator Evelyn Lynn (Republican) wants to protect us from our text-message-addicted selves​If state senator Evelyn Lynn has her way, there will be no more rush-hour digital hankypanky on Florida highways. In fact, there would be no more digital anything allowed while driving in the Sunshine ... More >>

Rod Smith Will Be the Next Chair of the Florida Democratic Party

​Hey, looks like Rod Smith will finally win an election. The failed candidate for Governor in 2006 and Lt. Governor in 2010 is all be guaranteed to be the next chair of the Florida Democratic Party. Supposedly Smith's record of astounding personal failure in statewide races and wishy-washy moderat ... More >>

Arizona-Style Immigration Bill Introduced in Florida Senate

​Well, with Rick Scott set to take the Governor's chair and Republicans with super-majorities in both houses of the legislature, it was only a matter of time before the Florida GOP got cracking on delivering Arizona-style immigration laws in the sunshine state. Senate President Pro Tempore Mik ... More >>

Rising Star Andrew Gillum, 31, Enters Race for Florida Democratic Chair

​Florida Democrats desperately need a Marco Rubio of their own, and 31-year-old Andrew Gillum, a commissioner for the City of Tallahassee may be the answer. He's not running for statewide elected office (yet, anyway), but has entered the race to replace Karen Thurman as the chair of the Florida De ... More >>

Election Day Recap: A Real Life Montgomery Burns Poised to Lead Florida

Florida's new governor: Rick Scott​Watching last night's election results pour in, Banana Republican could only take solace that Dorrin Rolle is no longer a Miami-Dade County commissioner and that state legislators will no longer have the ability to draw their own districts. Other than that, the 2 ... More >>

Report: Kendrick Meek May Drop Out of Senate Race

Democrat Kendrick Meek may drop out of the senate race giving a independent Charlie Crist an big boost in his chances of defeating conservative Republican Marco Rubio, according to an explosive new report from The Wall Street Journal. Whoa, but is the candidate who just yesterday refused to share an ... More >>

Legalize marijuana in Florida

The Sunshine State has the nation's stiffest pot penalties, but everyone seems to be lighting up.

Crist backer Gary Kompothecras bullies Florida health officials

Jeff Zucker Resigns as Chief of NBC Universal: Are Florida Politics in His Future?

​After months of speculation, Jeff Zucker has involuntarily resigned as head of NBC Universal. The Homestead native and graduate of North Miami Senior High who did time as a freelancer for The Herald, was largely believed to have "failed upward" into his role President and CEO of NBC Universal. Hi ... More >>

Meet Jennifer Carroll: Even Rick Scott's Likely Running Mate Didn't Think He Should Be Governor

​According to several sources, Rick Scott is expected to announce state Rep. Jennifer Carroll as his running mate today. Looking just at her identity and life story, she's an explosive pick: the first African American woman elected to the state legislature as a Republican, an immigrant from Trinid ... More >>

Lawton "Bud" Chiles III to Run for Governor as an Independent

Three way action seems to be all the rage in Florida politics this year, and now the Governor's race is about to get a some-what high profile third wheel. Lawton "Bud" Chiles III, the son of former Democratic Governor and Senator Lawton Chiles says he plans to run for Governor with no party affiliat ... More >>

Random Kennedy Clan Member Reportedly Eyeing Governor Race

via Best Buddies​A Kennedy cousin is apparently mulling the idea of entering the family business by making a bid for Florida's Governor's mansion and challenging Florida CFO Alex Sink in the Democratic primary, according to Naked Politics. Anthony Shriver -- son of VP candidate Sergeant Shriv ... More >>

News Roundup

Early turnout for local elections has been very light. [Herald]The fight to save Miami Marine Stadium after 17 years of neglect is still on. [CBS4]Police are investigating the death of a 3-year-old boy who was found at the bottom of a swimming pool in Southwest Dade. [Herald]PoliticsState Sen. Paula ... More >>