Ron Klein

LIVE BLOG: Rumble in Boca 2012, Obama and Romney Presidential Debate!

We're live-blogging tonight's debate right here, on this page. Bookmark the link and follow our updates after the jump. 

Boca Raton's Lynn University Scores the Final Debate in the 2012 Presidential Election

cosmicsmudge.wordpress.comThe Pulp goes with "over."​President Obama will debate some guy (don't pretend like Michele Bachmann is in contention) at Lynn University in Boca Raton next year, according to an announcement from the Commission on Presidential Debates.The debate, scheduled for October 22 ... More >>

Obama Banking on Florida Fundraisers, Including Eight From Broward and Palm Beach

herrodooky.tumblr.com​President Obama's reelection campaign released its list of 351 volunteer fundraisers who have helped him rake in the big bucks -- more than $50,000 -- with 29 of them coming from Florida and eight of them from either Broward or Palm Beach counties.None of the GOP presidential ... More >>

Democrats Call on Allen West Censure and Apology, Neither of Which Are Likely

​Patrick Murphy, the Democrat who wants to take over Rep. Allen West's seat in 2012, says West's attack on Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz shows he's "incapable of controlling himself," and says he should face a censure.Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith today demanded an apology from West, ... More >>

Allen West Interview: Florida Tea Party Favorite Talks About Islam and Donald Trump (Part 1)

Photo by Michael McElroy​The light is dim and smoky inside the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8182 in Pompano Beach. Red, white, and blue slogans brighten the low walls and ceilings, urging patrons to "Thank a Vet" and to remember "Freedom Is Not Free." At the far end of the small, bunker-sized roo ... More >>

A Ken Keechl Comeback Attempt? Also: The Infamous Otter Attack

Before the fall: Keechl with Gloria Stein.​After weeks of silence, ousted Broward County Mayor Ken Keechl has finally given an interview. To the Miami Herald? No. The Sun-Sentinel? No.   The Daily Pulp? Hell no. He gave it to the tiny gay Wilton Manors publication Florida Age ... More >>

French Railway Launches Sensitive Website to Address Its Nazi Past

Before and after.​The state-owned French railway company that hopes to supply Florida with high-speed trains launched a publicity campaign recently to help combat criticisms of its Nazi past. The campaign includes a web page titled "Heritage" that claims to detail the Societe Nationale des Chamins ... More >>

Ritter Has Date in Tallahassee Over Election Allegations

I hate to say it, but James Stokes -- the new School Board attorney who quit this morning before he even started -- probably made a good decision. Who would want to jump into the dysfunctional soup that is the Broward County School Board? It's a little surprising that he decided it "didn't feel rig ... More >>

Head of Florida Dems Thanks Supporters for "Brighter Future"?

Where were the Dems while this guy won?​Yes, a wave of anti-Obama, pro-Tea Party sentiment swept the country Tuesday. But even considering the national trend, Florida Dems took a beating that can't simply be blamed on the miserable economy or a knee-jerk desire for change.Going into Election Day, ... More >>

What $9 Million for the West-Klein Race Could Have Bought

Allen West raised $5.5 million to win the race.​The cash poured in from all over the country, as unions, Christian conservatives, Tea Party ideologues, Big Pharma, and Big Oil opened their pockets. With at least $9 million raised in the Ron Klein-Allen West congressional contest, it was one of the ... More >>

Ken Keechl Campaign Manager: We Tried To Make LaMarca "Unacceptable"

In lieu of the silence from losing candidate Broward Mayor Ken Keechl, I spoke with his campaign manager, Eric Johnson, today. Johnson of course had made a little news recently with his negative "Convicted Criminal" mailers on Chip LaMarca, who prevailed in the race despite being outs ... More >>

One Blog, One Vote

I'll be writing more about the infamous crusher handshake later, but a few people have asked me who I'm voting for (or would vote for if in a certain district). I got it a lot in the primary too. So I thought I'd go ahead and spit it out. Don't call these endorsements. I wo ... More >>

Allen West: Following the Money

Allen West has raked in the dough.​Congressional candidate Allen West has gained national attention for his enormous campaign haul -- he'd raised $4 million by August, compared to $2.5 million raised by his opponent, U.S. Rep. Ron Klein. It's time to examine the origins of all that dough. Some of ... More >>

Allen West and Ron Klein Face Off in Debate

​As hard as Ron Klein kicks, he's just an itch to the illogical juggernaut that is Allen West's campaign. Recent attack ads from Klein play a video clip in which West says to a gathering, "I'm just honored to be here today with all my fellow right-wing extremists." There it is, on camera! Incrimin ... More >>

Ron Klein Gives Obama Sloppy Seconds; West and Boehner in West Palm

time.com​It's a complicated ballet in South Florida today as politicians warily stump for one another, hedging bets all around. The Palm Beach Post's George Bennett minds the choreography: First off, it's Ron Klein, who's campaigning with the president in Coral Gables later today. Lest too much of ... More >>

Ron Klein Wants to Ban French Company From Rail Project for Holocaust Involvement

​If Allen "Higher Security Clearance Than the President" West wasn't formidable enough, Ron Klein has a new enemy in his sights: the French national railway company. And now Klein, like West, is talking about Nazis.Société Nationale des Chemins de fer, or SNCF, is basically France's version of A ... More >>

In See-Saw Battle of Internal Polls, Allen West Claims 6-Point Lead

FlickrAllen West​A day after Congressman Ron Klein released a poll that found he had an 8-point advantage in his race against challenger Allen West, the West campaign is publicizing its own poll, which declares that West is up by six points, 48-42.The West poll, by Wilson Research Strategies, had ... More >>

Klein Campaign: Allen West and Christine O'Donnell Are "Two Peas in a Pod"

FlickrMama Grizzly Sarah Palin wants to help a couple of her cubs into office.​Don't bring a knife to a gun fight. And if you're in a congressional fight that will be decided by moderate voters, you don't bring a polarizer like Sarah Palin. Nor do you want her witchcraft-dabbling protege, Christin ... More >>

Allen West's Tough Campaign Talk Makes It Hard to Claim Victimhood

FlickrDid a Democratic blunder put Allen West at the mercy of identity thieves?​A Florida Democratic Party hit mailer about Allen West's personal financial history failed to redact the congressional candidate's Social Security number. If it really is an "oversight," as the Democrats are claiming, ... More >>

Internal Poll Gives Ron Klein an Eight-Point Lead in Race Against Allen West

FlickrRon Klein's campaign is feeling good about his chances of being sworn in again in 2011.​We've been waiting for one of the two campaigns in the 22nd Congressional District to release the findings of an internal poll -- typically, candidates withhold those findings until they've got good news ... More >>

Campaign Flashback: In 2008, Allen West Feared Kidnapping Plot by Al Jazeera

Flickr photo by Gage Skidmore​Considering all the national story lines in the Ron Klein-Allen West showdown for Congress, it's surprising that no one has revisited the most bizarre episodes of the pair's 2008 clash. I'm referring to the moment in July 2008 when West, who was then an obscure candid ... More >>

The Man Show: What Does Allen West Mean When He Appeals for "Manliness" in American Politics?

Flickr​Allen West is doing his very best to make manliness an issue in the campaign for the 22nd Congressional District. He recently challenged his opponent, Rep. Ron Klein, to "man up" and to talk "how men talk." In a video I've posted after the jump, from last March, West bemoans the rise of wha ... More >>

Klein Challenges South Florida Seniors to Choose Between Social Security and Allen West

FlickrRon Klein​For seniors who enjoy Social Security checks and Medicare coverage, Congressman Ron Klein has a message: Vote for me if you want to keep those entitlements. Vote for Allen West if you're willing to lose them. That's the theme of an ad Klein's campaign released this morning. It quot ... More >>

[UPDATEDx2] Lien on Me: Allen West Calls for "Personal Responsibility" Undermined by Personal Financial Record; Will Tea Party Protest Him?

FlickrAllen West addresses tea partiers at their July 2009 rally.​Ha ha, just kidding about the tea party protest. Not likely these folks turn on one of their own "patriots," even if the recent revelations suggest that West has done exactly what he and his tea party allies have pilloried the gover ... More >>

Allen West Beats Out Bee-Crapping Dog for Dubious Cable TV Honor

​​Producers for liberal MSNBC pontificator Keith Olbermann have been following our extreme conservative candidate for Congress, Allen West, since April when the host devoted his "Special Comment" segment to the campaign comments where West encouraged supporters to make incumbent Ron Klein "scare ... More >>

Allen West Offers Glimpse of His Netflix Queue

Allen West definitely approves this message.​Congressional candidate Allen West has entered the home stretch of his campaign against incumbent Democrat Ron Klein, but it appears he's still finding time to unwind with the occasional Netflix DVD. Based on the speech he gave this week at the ope ... More >>

Allen West Sniffs Out Diabolical Conspiracy Between Ron Klein and the Juice

"Yo quiero Ron Klein?!?"​It took a while, but Congressman Ron Klein has finally figured out that the best way to beat Allen West is to let Allen West beat himself. By talking. This morning, Klein's campaign released a highlighted transcript of West's remarks during a talk radio appearance last wee ... More >>

Want More David Eller Stimulus? Elect Allen West

The Ellers have contributed generously to West's campaign.​One might assume the $7 million stimulus contract that Deerfield Beach businessman J. David Eller recently won for his family's manufacturing company, MWI Corp., was the result of some successful schmoozing or campaign donations to his con ... More >>

Allen West Slinging Drinks for Forgotten Soldiers

If you noticed that the service at the Fort Lauderdale Blue Martini was really, really slow on Sunday, that's probably because it was amateur hour behind the bar. YouTube celebrity and congressional candidate Allen West was mixing drinks as part of the bar's Forgotten Soldiers Outreach event.That "R ... More >>

[CORRECTED] Allen West Continues Torrid Fundraising Pace

FlickrAllen West​The race between incumbent Congressman Ron Klein and challenger Allen West keeps narrowing, with the West campaign claiming to have raised nearly twice the amount of campaign money as Klein during the first quarter of 2010.West reports $838,449 in fundraising totals between Januar ... More >>

Allen West Gets "Special Comment" Treatment by Keith Olbermann

We showed you the offending video a few days ago, and it landed right in the wheelhouse of MSNBC's fire-breathing liberal Keith Olbermann. This moment of infamy should help West burnish his right-wing ideologue credentials, but the former Army lieutenant colonel will need to move toward the center ... More >>

Allen West Stokes the Hate in Jupiter

A video being circulated by the Florida Democrats, apparently from a speech that Congressional candidate Allen West gave last night to supporters in Jupiter. Making a congressman -- West's opponent Ron Klein -- "scared to come out of his house"? OK, so West hasn't explicitly asked his supporters to ... More >>

Ron Klein to President: Stop Hurting Israel's Feelings

FlickrRon Klein​It's not enough that the United States gives spectacular sums of money to Israel. Nor is it enough that the U.S. takes Israel's side in virtually every political issue that crops up between that nation and the Muslim world. No, according to Congressman Ron Klein, the U.S. also must ... More >>

Allen West Getting Jingo With It

Col. Allen West, candidate for Congress in Ron Klein's coastal South Florida district, has another YouTube clip for his trophy case. This one comes from last month's "Reclaim American Liberty" conference in New York City. West gave a blunt answer to a question about why Islamic jihadists hate us nic ... More >>

Morning Juice: Standoff With Palm Beach Deputy in Delray; Canes Lose to World's Finest University

​As we wind down 2009, a glance through the local headlines:In the Acreage, the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office had a lengthy standoff with one of its own, 41-year-old Gary Gionnatti, who deputies feared had weapons and allegedly made threats to use them on himself. [Palm Beach Post]Not even the Coral ... More >>

Pretty Speech, Barack, But What Will You Do About the Robots Who Will Eat Our Pills?

Seriously, that classic SNL sketch above is only slightly more absurd than the kind that are being circulated by Boca Raton's state legislator and House Leader Adam Hasner. In tonight's speech, Obama took on the "death panel" myth and the socialism myth and remembered to shave the Hitler mustache th ... More >>

Morning Juice: Nearly a Wrap for Dunbar Village Case, While Case Against Commissioner Warms Up

​This morning's news contains hope for justice and renewal.It's traumatic just to read about the Dunbar Village trial, which Susan Spencer-Wendel is covering for the Palm Beach Post. I can't imagine what it's like to be at the trial and for the victims to have to re-live that terrifying night. Her ... More >>

Morning Juice: For Murder Investigators, One Cold Case Heats Up While the Trail on Another Begins to Cool

​Here's a rundown of the hot topics in Broward and Palm Beach this Thursday morning:WPLG-10's Rob Schmitt reports that Broward Sheriff's deputies are close to charging a suspect in the murder of 17-year-old Melissa Karp seven years ago. Here's the video. Karp's father told Schmitt there's a DNA ma ... More >>

Wagging the Dog at the Klein Forum

OK, so maybe it's not the most riveting video of this month's clashes between congressional Democrats and health care reform opponents, but this is a perfect illustration of the media echo chamber we've entered. Below, a woman shooting a video after yesterday's Ron Klein forum in Boynton Beach.  ... More >>

Will Tea Party-Types Take Their Show on the Phone?

Photo: house.govWasserman Schultz​As the district staff of Congressman Ron Klein learned this week, South Florida legislators are at risk of having their town hall meetings mobbed by people who think Glenn Beck is sane. This group's current source of hysteria is the Democrats' health care reform p ... More >>

Member of (Allegedly) Unruly Crowd Offers Firsthand Report of Kleinstock

Flickr stream: dbking​Yes, we'll call it Kleinstock: The groaning / chanting droves of patriots who monopolized yesterday's town hall meeting that Congressman Ron Klein's staff has each month with constituents.Of course, you can't trust the liberal media to report accurately on that meeting. So un ... More >>

An Offer You Might Rather De-Klein

Among the many and varied indulgences that South Floridians must forgo in this era of financial dieting, the least of them, I would guess, is junk mail. Like the piece pictured at the left from Congressman Ron Klein, the Fort Lauderdale Democrat.Not that people in Klein's district aren't interested ... More >>

Lauderdale Congressman Sharpens Sword for AIG

Today in Washington, D.C., members of Congress are taking turns pummeling AIG Fat Cat Edward M. Liddy. His woefully mismanaged company needed billions of tax dollars to save it from failure, and yet AIG still handed out millions in bonuses to its management. It is fashionable -- and appropriate -- t ... More >>

New Poll: Crist in Pole Position

A "double" what? Sorry, I don't speak French. Just check out the Strategic Vision poll released yesterday on Florida's 2010 U.S. Senate race. It attaches numbers to some obvious truths, such as Gov. Charlie Crist getting 54 percent of the votes against other prospective candidates in a Republican pr ... More >>

Eating Cookies With Congressman Wexler

On Monday, Democratic Congresspersons Robert Wexler, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Ron Klein held a "dessert reception" to welcome folks to the inauguration. They walked from their offices in the Capitol: directly across the lawn to the Library of Congress: where attendees had to wait in line to go ... More >>

A Few Election Eve Headlines

Ahoy, Yacht Lovers

The Boat Hustle Is Alive and Well

Former Football Star Charged With Rapes

Vote Evangelista Straight Up

Jer-ry! Jer-ry!

Democratic Extravaganza