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Tampa Bay area mayors say affordable housing remains their top issue
While Ron DeSantis was once again declaring that Florida is the state where “woke goes to die,” the mayors representing the three biggest cities in the Tampa Bay area discussed what they see as their biggest challenge: affordable housing. That’s a problem the governor neglected during his inauguration speech on Tuesday. “We still need cooperation with […]
Committee meetings kick off this week in the Florida Legislature
It’s a big week in state government this week in the Capitol. In addition to Gov. Ron DeSantis being sworn in for a second term in office, state lawmakers will convene for their initial meetings for the 2023 legislative session. Six Senate committees and 16 House subcommittees are scheduled to meet on Wednesday. Three Senate […]
Former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn pushes for DeSantis to stay 4 years as governor
Following a pardon from then-President Donald Trump, former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn has emerged as a conservative culture warrior, getting involved in local politics in Sarasota County and speaking to audiences around the country. Flynn moved to Englewood in south Sarasota County in 2021 and has since become active in the Sarasota Republican Party. […]
After a scathing report on sexual abuse at FL’s female prison in 2020, has anything changed?
Two years after a Dec. 22, 2020 report revealed “notorious acts of sexual abuse, including rape, against prisoners” at the state’s largest and oldest women’s prison, federal officials made a return visit last week at Florida’s Lowell Correctional Institution to see if conditions have improved. The answer was no, according to prisoner rights advocates and attorneys […]
Five Proud Boys (or ex-Proud Boys) on trial in D.C. related to Jan. 6 attack; two are from Florida
Jury selection began this week in Washington D.C. in the trial of Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the Miami-based former national chairman of the Proud Boys organization and four of his associates. All five men have been charged in an (at least) nine-count indictment involved with their association with events on and before Jan. 6, 2021 at […]
Atty General Ashley Moody pushes President Biden to elevate drug czar position
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody says that with the fentanyl crisis showing no signs of abating, now is the time for President Joe Biden to restore the director for the Office of the National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) position to a Cabinet-level post. Currently, Dr. Rahul Gupta, a medical doctor, is director of the White […]
Poll: Majority of GOP voters in Miami-Dade oppose carrying concealed weapons without a permit
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday that he expects the GOP-led Legislature to pass a bill next year that would allow people to carry guns without a concealed-weapons permit, but a new poll of voters taken in Miami-Dade County shows that the public – particularly Hispanic voters – strongly oppose that measure. The proposal is known […]
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio’s proposal to ban TikTok gains momentum
Two years after former President Donald Trump called for a ban on TikTok, Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio this week introduced legislation that would impose a national ban on the Chinese-owned social media platform that has become immensely popular with young Americans. “I want to ban TikTok for a very simple reason,” Rubio said in a […]
U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor’s Select Committee on the Climate Crisis closes shop
With a GOP-controlled House of Representatives poised to take power next month, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor of Tampa and other members of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis released their final report on environmental policies already enacted by Congress over the past four years and the next steps required to combat climate change in […]
On top of homeowner premiums, policyholders could face a new tab coming soon: Flood insurance
When State Rep. Dianne Hart heard details about a requirement for flood insurance — part of legislation in the special session on property insurance reforms — she saw right away what would happen: “If I gotta buy flood insurance, that means I have to add a premium to my already exploded premium,” said Hart, who […]
Former Green Beret soldier, Oath Keeper member Jeremy Brown found guilty on six of 10 counts
Jeremy Brown, the self-described Oath Keepers member and lauded 20-year U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, was found guilty Monday in six of ten counts related to possessing illegally registered guns, explosives and classified Defense Department documents. In the federal trial in Tampa, he was found not guilty on four other charges related to possession of […]
Case against former Oath Keepers member Jeremy Brown to go to jury on Monday
Jeremy Brown is one of the more than 900 people arrested by the U.S. government surrounding the riot that took place on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but that incident wasn’t mentioned once in his federal trial in Tampa, which will go to the jury Monday. Testimony in the four-day trial ended on Friday […]