World Politics

Cuban punk rockers Gorki and Gil used music to take on Castro

Hamid Karzai likely had Louis Maxwell killed

Alex Sink to Pick Boring Rod Smith as Running Mate

​According to two state papers, Florida gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink is set to announce Rod Smith as her running mate this Thursday at an event in West Palm Beach. Yawn. A former state senator, Smith lost the 2006 Democratic primary for governor to similarly boring Jim Davis. The move seems t ... More >>

If Republicans Lose Both Governor and Senate Races, Is the Tea Party to Blame?

via OnePennySheet​Back in early 2009 it seemed that Charlie Crist was a guarantee to win the Senate race as a Republican, and Bill McCollum had the edge in the Governors race. Now the latest Quinnipiac poll shows that GOP candidates are trailing in both the Senate and Governors race. What happened ... More >>

World Hunger: Good News, Bad News

​First, the good news: The number of chronically hungry people in the world has dropped for the first time in 15 years, according to "The State of Food Insecurity in the World" report that will be jointly released by the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and ... More >>

Marco Rubio to Appear with Sarah Palin This Weekend

Tea Party dreams do come true! Two stars of the conservative movement, Florida's Republican senate candidate Marco Rubio and right wing queen bee Sarah Palin will share a stage this weekend in Orlando. Somewhere an eagle is surely weeping with joy.

Sore Loser Maurice Ferré Endorses Rick Scott To Spite Dems

Maurice Ferré, who 25 years ago was the mayor of the City of Miami, thinks he didn't get a fair shake in his long shot run for Senate in the Democratic primary. Somehow he's claiming this is "an insult to every Hispanic voter in our state." So what does he do to get back at the Democratic party? He ... More >>

Operation Streamline treats migrants like cattle

Maurice Ferré, who 25 years ago was the mayor of the City of Miami, thinks he didn't get a fair shake in his long shot run for Senate in the Democratic primary. Somehow he's claiming this is "an insult to every Hispanic voter in our state." So what does he do to get back at the Democratic party? He ... More >>

Former Argentine President Nestor Kirchner Dead

​Nestor Kirchner, the former president of Argentina and husband of current president Cristina Kirchner, has died this morning due to heart failure at the age of 60. The leftist-Peronist politician was widely expected to mount another presidential campaign in 2011.

Christian Family Coalition Asks Rick Scott to Stop Selling Pornography to Latinos

The Christian Family Coalition, a Miami-based group that hems way to the right on social issues, is calling Gov-elect Rick Scott to stop selling pornography to Latinos. So when reviewing Scott's business past they weren't, like every other sane person, so much concerned that he ran a company that wa ... More >>

FAIR-y tales: The immigration saga continues

The Christian Family Coalition, a Miami-based group that hems way to the right on social issues, is calling Gov-elect Rick Scott to stop selling pornography to Latinos. So when reviewing Scott's business past they weren't, like every other sane person, so much concerned that he ran a company that wa ... More >>

Latin American Round-Up: Hugo Chávez Gets Decree Powers, Raúl Castro Gets Depressed

Cheer up buddy. I've got decree powers!​Hugo Chávez won't be making any Obama-like compromises in 2011. The Venezuelan National Assembly is expected to pass a ley habilitante today that would allow the bombastic president -- best known for his twitter histrionics -- to pass laws by decree for 12 ... More >>

Will Gay Voters Save the Republican Party?

​After their success in the midterm elections, many Republicans probably think their party is in pretty good shape and doesn't need to be saved. But one local GOP group is thinking long term. It argues that the party needs to moderate itself on social issues and attract gay voters in order to rema ... More >>

Palin and Beck killed 'em in Tucson

​After their success in the midterm elections, many Republicans probably think their party is in pretty good shape and doesn't need to be saved. But one local GOP group is thinking long term. It argues that the party needs to moderate itself on social issues and attract gay voters in order to rema ... More >>

Marco Rubio Doesn't Really Want to Join the Senate's Tea Party Caucus

​Last year, Marco Rubio ended up on the cover of The New York Times magazine with the headline "The First Senator from the Tea Party?" Well, there's no question anymore about whether or not he's a Senator, but now that he is, he's not so sure he wants to join the actual Tea Party caucus. It's not ... More >>

You Can Now Buy Mike Haridopolos' Crappy Book for $9.99 on Your Kindle

​So, this weekend the Associated Press published a story on some crappy book Florida Senate President and likely US Senate candidate Mike Haridopolos got $152,000 in taxpayer money from Brevard Community College to write. Besides being of questionable quality, only one copy of the book existed. We ... More >>

Tea Party Claims Victory in Alvarez Recall ...Uh, Wait, What?

Fox News declares a Tea Party Revolt​"Tea Party Revolt: Miami Mayor Recalled," proclaims Fox News' Fox Nation website, while other Tea Party segments of the world wide web take glee in the ousting of Carlos Alvarez. True some of the politics involved share similarities: raising property taxes was ... More >>

Conservatives Outraged as Hispanic Republicans Water Down Florida's Arizona-style Immigration Bill

​Florida's so-called Arizona-style immigration bill, which Governor Rick Scott campaigned on, is looking less and less Arizona-style as it makes it way through the state legislature. Republican state Senator Anitere Flores, who had authored the original Senate version of the bill, helped approve a ... More >>

Bay of Pigs 50 Years Later: Miami Mourns, Cuban Gov Celebrates - But for How Long?

via Wikimedia CommonsBay of Pigs Memorial in Little Havana.​They landed silently in the pre-dawn darkness: small groups of armed men seeking to overthrow Fidel Castro and his young government. Then everything went wrong. Two days later, the mission was in flames.This Sunday marks the 50th annivers ... More >>

Rick Scott Had His Facts Wrong When He Trashed High Speed Rail

​Perhaps Rick Scott's biggest action during his first 100 days in office was the killing of Florida's federally-funded high speed rail project. It would have revolutionized our transit system and had an effect on the economy like no other project in recent Florida history. So, you would have hoped ... More >>

Rick Scott's Administration Really Hates Sunshine Laws

​"Are there things we don't want you to know? Yes," Brian Burgess, Rick Scott's communication director (or misdirector in many cases) tells the Times/Herald's Tallahassee Bureau. "There are things we don't want to broadcast to our opponents."Florida's Sunshine Laws are supposed to foster an o ... More >>

Florida's Attempt at Arizona-Style Immigration Bill is Likely Dead

​It generated one of the most controversial and heated debates of the legislative session and is a key agenda item for Governor Rick Scott, but it seems likely that conservatives' efforts to pass an Arizona-style immigration bill in Florida is dead, despite the fact both houses are controlled by R ... More >>

Will Any GOP 2012 Candidate Even Want Rick Scott's Endorsement?

​Here's a fun game to watch play out as several announced and potential candidates for the Republican's 2012 presidential primary start visiting Florida: will any of them meet with Governor Rick Scott let alone seek his endorsement? Former Utah Governor and ambassador to China John Huntsman is ... More >>

Rick Scott's Plummeting Popularity: 57 Percent Disapprove

​Gov. Rick Scott's popularity continues to plummet after the legislative session. Only 29 percent of Floridians approve of the way he's handling his job according to a new Quinnipiac poll. While a whopping 57 percent disapprove. That's down from an already dismal 35/48 split back in April. Mos ... More >>

Marco Rubio Tricked The Tea Party

​Uncle Luke, the man whose booty-shaking madness once made the U.S. Supreme Court stand up for free speech, gets as nasty as he wants to be for Miami New Times. This week, Luke reassesses Sen. Marco Rubio's Tea Party credentials.I need to thank Marco Rubio. He really stuck it to the Tea Party. He ... More >>

Neither Gimenez nor Robaina Has Much Nice to Say About Rick Scott

​No matter who becomes Miami-Dade's next mayor, don't expect him to have the rosiest of relationships with deeply unpopular Florida Gov. Rick Scott. The race is nonpartisan, but both Carlos Gimenez and Julio Robaina are registered Republicans. However, at a debate this morning, both made it clear ... More >>

Marco Rubio tricked the Tea Party into thinking he was part of the clan

​No matter who becomes Miami-Dade's next mayor, don't expect him to have the rosiest of relationships with deeply unpopular Florida Gov. Rick Scott. The race is nonpartisan, but both Carlos Gimenez and Julio Robaina are registered Republicans. However, at a debate this morning, both made it clear ... More >>

Could Charlie Crist Take on Rick Scott in 2014 As a Democrat?

​Gov. Rick Scott's leadership hasn't given Floridians much to celebrate. He's the most unpopular governor in America, and his poll numbers don't appear to be getting any better. But Democrats see a silver lining in the dark cloud. Scott's deep unpopularity gives them renewed electoral hope. I ... More >>

2012 Poll: Mitt Romney Leads Republicans in Florida, Bachmann and Palin Tie for Second

​Mitt Romney is the man to beat in Florida as the 2012 Republican primary horse race heats up. Romney holds a ten-point advantage over second place finishers Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin. Romney also benefits from incredibly low support for similar candidates like John Hunstman and Tim Paw ... More >>

Poll: Rick Scott's Unpopularity Could Help Obama in Florida

​Fresh off of its Republican primary poll yesterday, Public Policy Polling, a democratically-aligned polling firm, has released new numbers showing that large numbers of Florida voters are less likely to vote for a Republican presidential candidate in 2012 thanks to the actions of Rick Scott. ... More >>

Florida Tea Party Group Thinks Saving Manatees Is Part of Mass Godless Conspiracy

​Members of Florida Tea Party groups are so upset with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's efforts to save manatees that they are claiming that new rules to possibly be imposed in famous Kings Bay would not only go against the Bible, but also are part of a vast United Nations conspiracy ... More >>

Rick Scott's dirtiest deeds

​Members of Florida Tea Party groups are so upset with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's efforts to save manatees that they are claiming that new rules to possibly be imposed in famous Kings Bay would not only go against the Bible, but also are part of a vast United Nations conspiracy ... More >>

Allen West Tells Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Shultz to "Shut the Heck Up"

​Republican Congressman Allen West, everyone's favorite Iraqi-torturing politician from the 22nd district, has given us another lesson in the statesmanship he holds so dear.West sent an email to fellow Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz late yesterday after she made remarks on the House floor th ... More >>

Cuba gets high-speed Internet

​Republican Congressman Allen West, everyone's favorite Iraqi-torturing politician from the 22nd district, has given us another lesson in the statesmanship he holds so dear.West sent an email to fellow Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz late yesterday after she made remarks on the House floor th ... More >>

Poll: Romney and McCallister Lead Florida GOP Primaries; Debt Deal Hurts Obama

​We're still in that uncertain season of the 2012 election cycle where every poll will show some different and somewhat surprising result. Quinnipiac is the latest to crunch the numbers and shows that Mitt Romney is the favorite to get the presidential nod from Republican voters in Florida. Meanwh ... More >>

Fidel Castro's Birthday Present: A Big Transsexual Wedding

​Fidel Castro turned 85 this past Saturday, and the celebrations were mostly typical. Supporters held a giant concert featuring dozens of musical acts, but Castro himself spent the day in seclusion, which prompted rumors he might have been too feeble for a public appearance. Miami exiles, meanwhil ... More >>

Eligio Cedeño: A banker battles Hugo Chavez

​Fidel Castro turned 85 this past Saturday, and the celebrations were mostly typical. Supporters held a giant concert featuring dozens of musical acts, but Castro himself spent the day in seclusion, which prompted rumors he might have been too feeble for a public appearance. Miami exiles, meanwhil ... More >>

Supposed Tea Party Leaders Support Resorts World Miami Casino

​Recent research seems to suggest that the Tea Party is just the old, trusty religious right wrapped up in a shiny new package. Apparently, South Florida Tea Partiers didn't get the memo. Two Tea Party leaders in the area, which neither appear to be very powerful, have voiced their public support ... More >>

Former Florida Gov. Claude Kirk, "a Tree-Shakin' Son of a Bitch," Dies at 85

After leaving office, Kirk held up a dead chicken during a speech to protest "chicken government."​Former Florida Gov. Claude Kirk has died at the age of 85. Taking office in 1967, Kirk was Florida's first Republican governor since Reconstruction and the first Republican governor elected in a Sout ... More >>

Rick Perry: Awful politician, genius campaigner

After leaving office, Kirk held up a dead chicken during a speech to protest "chicken government."​Former Florida Gov. Claude Kirk has died at the age of 85. Taking office in 1967, Kirk was Florida's first Republican governor since Reconstruction and the first Republican governor elected in a Sout ... More >>

George Weah, South Florida's Secret Soccer Legend, Could Be Liberia's Next Vice President

wikimedia commonsGeorge Weah, retired soccer star, lives near Miami and is running to be vice president of Liberia​South Florida is the adopted home of all types of international men and women of mystery: from Latin American strongmen to drug runners, movie stars to criminals on the lam. It's wher ... More >>

Castro Death Meter: Fidel More Dead Than Kim Jong Il's Dead Body, Say Medical Experts

​Pobre Fidelito. Being a dying dictator was his idea. But now Hugo Chavez has fat cancer, and Kim Jong Il went to ride his giant rabbits in the sky. Nobody's paying attention to the totally dead antics of Fidel Castro. He's like the fourth-grade girl who wore Silly Bandz before it was kewl. ... More >>

Mitt Romney Takes the Slightest of Leads in Latest Florida Poll

​The story of the 2012 presidential primary seems to be one of surging candidates quickly falling down to earth, with one, Mitt Romney, remaining consistently stable. It's beginning to look like Newt Gingrich might join Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry, and Herman Cain as a discarded frontrunner. Aft ... More >>

Mitt Romney Retakes Big Lead in Florida, Floridians Really Don't Like Ron Paul

​After a brief spell where Florida Republicans seemed to favor Newt Ginrgrich as their GOP flavor of the month, Mitt Romney is firmly back on top in the Sunshine State after his Iowa caucus victory. Gingrich remains second, while Rick Santorum has seen his fortunes rise somewhat but is still a dis ... More >>

Newt Gingrich Calls for New Cold War With Cuba, Ron Paul Says One Was Enough

15 years out of government and Newt's still crazy​The 3 a.m. phone call has struck again. In tonight's GOP primary debate, NBC anchor Bryan Williams asked the candidates what they would do if told that Fidel Castro had finally died and "half a million Cubans" were on their way to the United States ... More >>

Drunk Miami Republicans Rally For Santorum and Rick Scott

Jacob KatelRick Santorum vs Victor Gonzalez​Alcohol impairs your judgment? Screw it, we'll have a shot of whiskey, a beer, and a Latin Builders Association membership application.Starting early Friday morning in downtown Miami, the LBA invited guests to drink their way to Decision 2012, offering 2 ... More >>

Newt Gingrich Robocall Claims Mitt Romney Took Kosher Food Away From Holocaust Survivors

​Newt Gingrich is all but certain to lose today's Florida Primary, but he's not going out without a fight. In a last-ditch effort to secure the Jewish vote, Gingrich's campaign is running Robocalls in Florida claiming that as governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney literally took Kosher food out of ... More >>

Strippers Skrawberry and Tip Drill evaluate the Republican contenders

​Newt Gingrich is all but certain to lose today's Florida Primary, but he's not going out without a fight. In a last-ditch effort to secure the Jewish vote, Gingrich's campaign is running Robocalls in Florida claiming that as governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney literally took Kosher food out of ... More >>