A House panel rejected a request Thursday from former Speaker Ray Sansom that it suspend its investigation into his conduct while criminal charges against him are still pending. ...more

November 6, 2009

A House panel has rejected a request from former House Speaker Ray Sansom that it suspend its investigation into his conduct while criminal proceedings against him are still pending. ...more

November 5, 2009

The Florida Legislature returned to Tallahassee last week to make the budgetary reductions necessary to meet our state's constitutional requirement for a balanced budget. ...more

January 13, 2009

WHAT'S IN: •Budget Cuts. Lawmakers in both chambers now anticipate cutting recurring costs by roughly $1 billion. That likely means cutting into health, education and public safety and other vital services, which could trigger layoffs and jeopardize the welfare of some of Florida's neediest residents. ...more

January 3, 2009

Because of the age difference between the two major party candidates for president, it may be important to examine some statistics. ...more

June 23, 2008

Most improvements make matters worse because most new ideas are regrettable, including this not-quite-new one from John McCain's speech depicting how improved America will be after four years of him: "I will ask Congress to grant me the privilege of coming before both houses to take questions, and address criticism, much the same as the prime minister of Great Britain appears regularly before the House of Commons." ...more

May 30, 2008

In his eight years in the governor's mansion, Republican Jeb Bush only got to appoint two justices to the seven-member Florida Supreme Court. As a result, the court remains significantly to the left of the state's political mainstream, which has drifted from moderately liberal to moderately conservative over the last couple of decades. Fate and the state constitution are giving Bush's successor, Charlie Crist, a chance to reshape the court. ...more

May 28, 2008

The session is scheduled from Wednesday through Oct. 12. The House, Senate and Gov. Charlie Crist are staking out their positions. Here is a look at what may be in store in major areas of spending. ...more

September 30, 2007

The state's brain trust of economists meets regularly to assess Floridians' spending habits and estimate how much revenue is coming in to state coffers. The news in early August was bleak: The $72 billion spending plan approved for the fiscal year that began July 1 would come up about $1.1 billion short, largely due to the slowdown in the once-red-hot housing market. Other collections have also been lighter than expected, from the sales taxes on purchases related to homes to corporate income taxes. State lawmakers return to the capital this week in a special session to slice and dice. A balanced budget is a constitutional requirement in Florida. It's not an easy process. Lawmakers already pushed back the session when House and Senate leaders decided they were too far apart to waste time in Tallahassee at a cost to taxpayers of about $40,000 a day. The session is scheduled from Wednesday through Oct. 12. The House, Senate and Gov. Charlie Crist are staking out their positions. Here is a look at what may be in store in major areas of spending. ...more

September 30, 2007

So the Democratic National Committee has decided that Democrats in Florida won't be allowed to have their votes count in the primary. Too bad. But as an independent voter, I have never been allowed to have a vote in the primaries here in Florida. ...more

September 5, 2007