St. Petersburg Times

Public Has Three More Days to Comment on Possible New Wildlife Refuge

Coming to a cattle ranch near you.​The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has extended the public comment period for a proposal to turn 150,000 acres of savanna ranch land north of Lake Okeechobee into the "Headwaters of the Everglades National Wildlife Refuge." The acquisition would cost $700 million ... More >>

Boobs Ban: Florida's Prisons Boss Prohibits State Inmates From Possessing Porn

icanhascheezburger.com​Centerfolds are now contraband in Florida prisons, thanks to state prison boss Edwin Buss.According to a memo from Buss to all state Department of Corrections facilities, any inmate found "introducing, possessing or passing pornographic material shall be punished to the maxi ... More >>

Where Was Rick Scott This Weekend? Possibly Trysting With the Koch Brothers

Have you seen this man?​Eric Jotkoff, the Florida Democratic Party Communications Director, has a question: Where was Gov. Rick Scott this weekend?"Anyone else concerned that Rick Scott left the state during hurricane season during wildfire emergency and not tell anyone?" Jotkoff posted on T ... More >>

Stephanie Kraft, It's Time to Plead Guilty

The most resounding message sent by the conviction of former Deerfield Beach Commissioner Steve Gonot is this: Not this time, Stephanie.​Juries, at least those in Broward County, don't buy politicians' convoluted explanations for apparent wrongdoing. So those of you now facing corruption char ... More >>

Mercy for Animals Farm to Fridge Tour Stop in Fort Lauderdale April 7

The Mercy For Animals' mobile movie against factory farming.​Mercy for Animals, a nonprofit group best-known for its undercover investigations into practices used at factory farms, will be hitting South Florida just in time for spring break, though beaching and boozing don't really seem to be on t ... More >>

Felon Voting Laws, Racism, Rick Scott, and Pam Bondi, Part II

Florida Attorney GeneralYou really think justice is colorblind, Ms. Bondi?​The Florida Clemency Board's decision last week to reinstate an archaic felon voting ban has set off a storm of protest. The new rule, which requires nonviolent felons to wait five years after completing their sentences to ... More >>

Rick Scott, Nixing High-Speed Rail, Cedes Talent and Economic Benefit to the Muslim World

​"I didn't fight to become Gov. of the greatest state in nation to settle for a status quo that doesn't promote the potential of our people," tweeted Rick Scott in a typical bout of unsubstantiated braggadocio. See also: "Florida can become the most innovative and effective place in the country to ... More >>

Gov. Rick Scott Light Rail Saved More Than $300 Million, but That's Chump Change Compared to These Budget Sinkholes

spike55151Gov. Rick Scott last week turned down $2.4 billion in federal money to build high-speed rail in Florida, saying it could cost the state $300 million in cost overruns. And that got us thinking: Doesn't the state blow $300 million-plus like it's pocket change? So we searched for other simila ... More >>

Ari Porth Caves In To Radical Idiot

State Rep. Ari Porth agreed to speak this weekend at a convention of the Islamic Society of North America in Fort Lauderdale. Porth with Crist​But Porth bailed out yesterday, canceling his speech. Why? Because of pressure from a local extremist named Joe Kaufm ... More >>

Taxi Cab Drivers Must Wear Socks

Taxi drivers should just say NO to toe socks. ​The St. Petersburg Times reported recently that an independent taxi agency in Hillsborough County has a weird requirement: Drivers must wear socks.And that is evidently not an option.The agency, the Public Transportation Commission, basically regulate ... More >>

Quiet Exit for Former Palm Beach Post Editor

JBart leaves two years after the layoffs began.​Two years ago, Editor John Bartosek stood before his employees at the Palm Beach Post and warned of the impending bloodbath of layoffs and buyouts. Now, after slashing more than 300 jobs at the paper, Bartosek is leaving too."JBart," as he is known i ... More >>

Coral Springs Teen Part of a Sex Crime Trend in USF Dorms

The University of South Florida residence halls have been the sight of two bizarre, terrifying sex crimes in the past three months, both involving young men who were visiting the school. Last week a 23-year-old woman was allegedly raped in her sleep by a man who was a friend of a friend. This while ... More >>

Morning Juice: Rothstein Links Threatening Sink Campaign; McCollum the Anti-Crist?

​Let's skim through the headlines for this Tuesday morning in Broward and Palm Beach:Shortly after Scott Rothstein's law firm made a $200,000 donation to the Florida Democratic Party, gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink's chief of staff helped the firm to be placed it in consideration for lucrative ... More >>

UPDATED: Lake Worth City Manager Susan Stanton Makes "Biggest Stories of the Decade" List

sptimes.comLargo Town Manager Steve Stanton leaving contentious city meeting​Lake Worth City Manager Susan Stanton joins the likes of Sami Al-Arian, Terri Shiavo, and the 2000 Florida Recount as one of Creative Loafing's end-of- the-year winners: "Ten Biggest Stories of the Decade in Tampa Bay."In ... More >>

[UPDATED] "Toothless" Commission on Ethics Gives Legislators Something to Chew On

Flickr: simplelogikThat's the kind of arsenal you need to get a jaw-full of Florida corruption​The political scandals in Broward County have roused the Florida Commission on Ethics from its comatose state. An outfit derided as "toothless" is asking the Florida Legislature to give it a new set of c ... More >>

Morning Juice: Pats Sent Packing; Palm Beach Commissioner's Daughter Gets County Business

​News from over the weekend:These Fins have some fight in 'em! Yesterday in Land Shark Stadium, they knocked off the Patriots, 22-21, thanks to New England's two turnovers in the red zone. Now the Dolphins have playoff hopes and the Pats have a losing streak. [NFL.com]Former Palm Beach prosecutor ... More >>

Note to Charlie Crist: In Making Case to Party's Right Wing, Best to Avoid Quoting Daily Kos

Flickr: delusion256A baby performing its Crist impression.​Anxious to break Marco Rubio's momentum in their Senate race, Charlie Crist gave one of those "wide-ranging" interviews to the St. Petersburg Times yesterday, during which he invoked the sacred ancient text of The Gipper: I believe in Reag ... More >>

Morning Juice: Insider's View of the Rothstein Scam; Crist Given New Game Plan for Victory

​Today's news in Broward and Palm Beach:In a three-part series, a Rothstein investor describes to New Times' Bob Norman exactly how the attorney made his treacherous pitch. [Daily Pulp]Teachers in Palm Beach County say that a new academic program in the district demands much more work within the h ... More >>

Oh, Snap! George LeMieux Compares Marco Rubio's Campaign to Obama's (Which Was Victorious)

lemieux.senate.govGeorge LeMieux​In Washington, D.C., the St. Petersburg Times politics blog Buzz button-holed Sen. George LeMieux, who's holding that seat for his benefactor, Charlie Crist. Here's what LeMieux had to say about young, handsome, impeccably conservative Marco Rubio, who's been hamme ... More >>

Trump Towers Plan Down the Tubes

PhotobucketThe Donald, in legal hot water​With mega swindlers like Madoff and Rothstein running rampant, a rapacious capitalist like Donald Trump is almost a sweetheart in comparison. But he does not come without flaws. The Donald faces litigation in Tampa and Fort Lauderdale for allegedly falsify ... More >>

Shakeup at Muvico: Executives Leave Lauderdale-Based Theater Chain

Flickr: Visit Chicagoland​I didn't see this in the local dailies, but the St. Petersburg Times is reporting that Muvico's CEO, Michael Whalen, and two of his closest associates have left the chain to form a new one, called Paragon Entertainment.Muvico's been struggling mightily. Back in March, it ... More >>

Eviction Notice: Rush Limbaugh Will Leave if Florida Raises Taxes

Flickr​Whattaya say, Broward Dems? Are you willing to pay higher taxes purely for the sake of watching the portly pontificator pack his bags and move to Texas? Am I hearing a yes? Thought so.A recent St. Pete Times article cited a portion of Rush Limbaugh's radio show in which he declared that the ... More >>

Novel Character Is Former Broward Sheriff's Detective Accustomed to Night Monsters

jimswain.com​Jack Carpenter is the protagonist of Night Monster, a novel released Monday by Florida writer James Swain. An excerpt posted on Swain's website begins with Carpenter's fielding a call about a college student, Naomi Dunn, being assaulted at a condo. I tested the door's handle. It w ... More >>

Man From Broward Found Dead in Tampa Bay Area

A 49-year-old man named Scott Michael Barry, whose last known residence was in Broward County, was identified yesterday as the man found dead this weekend in a Pasco County lake. From the St. Petersburg Times: Neighbors along Wagon Wheel Lane found the body floating face down in the lake Saturday mo ... More >>

Florida's U.S. Senators: Which One's Tweedle Dee?

Flickr: Meeko_Your health care is in their hands. Feeling queasy yet?​At tonight's joint session of Congress, Florida will have two senators in the audience in a position to make good on a policy -- health-care reform -- that is the subject of tonight's speech and that was a major part of Barack O ... More >>

Crist's Bulldog in Lipstick

George LeMieux: Looks better in a skirt than in a U.S. senator's seat.​Citing a Marco Rubio campaign ad, St. Petersburg Times politics blog Buzz earlier today asked whether Charlie Crist had "pulled a McCain" -- committing a tactical blunder that gives his opponent evidence that he's out of touch ... More >>

Fished In? Disciple of St. Pete Faith Healer Tells of Rescue by Lauderdale Fish

Flickr: fleurannaIn the prequel to Finding Nemo, the fish protagonists help a barge worker to the surface.​Bruce Watters is a jeweler and "pillar of the community" during the week and a faith healer on the weekend. That's right -- the kind who summon the Holy Spirit, lay their blessed hands upon t ... More >>

Editorials Lambaste LeMieux, a Week Too Late

Flickr: oddball7​The editorial sections of major Florida newspapers are furious about Crist's pick of George LeMieux for U.S. Senate. But in their rage -- or maybe it's modesty -- they forgot to mention how complicit their papers are in LeMieux's selection.After all, Crist's office was playing by ... More >>

Schiavo Alert: The Rifqa Bary Case

Take a look at that video, evangelicals and anti-Muslim crusaders. Are you really, really sure you want to risk your credibility on the Fathima Rifqa Bary case? Y'all remember how the Terri Schiavo thing backfired, right? Actually, this one is the media mutation of the Schiavo story and Elian Gonzal ... More >>

State Trooper Claims He's Victim of Ticket Quota

Flickr: gdoolittle​Former Florida Highway Patrolman Christopher Maul tells the St. Pete Times he was fired in June because he "didn't write enough tickets." FHP supervisors say that was one among other productivity issues. They deny that there's a quota.Though there's no mention of Maul's filing s ... More >>

In Turbulent Times, State Digs Deep for Crist

Flickr User: Michelle LylesIn an era of unprecedented financial insecurity for the state that Charlie Crist governs, the aspiring U.S. Senator achieved an unprecedented financial windfall. During his campaign's most recent 50 days he raised $4.3 million.That combination isn't lost on Adam Smith, pol ... More >>

Martinez Bowled Over by Sotomayor

Republicans like Newt Gingrich are pretty sure that Sonia Sotomayor is racist against white men, but just to make sure, the U.S. Senate's only Hispanic Republican, Mel Martinez, went in for a closer look. As you can see in the video above, the Florida senator exchanged some awkward Spanish with the ... More >>

The True Cost of Protecting Crist's Family

The St. Petersburg Times ran an intriguing expose today about the thousands of dollars it costs to provide state security to Gov. Charlie Crist's wife and her children. It's worth reading not so much because of what it says, but how much was left unsaid--namely, why anyone would care about this, if ... More >>

It's Unanimous: Florida Legislature Flunked

Flickr User: MonteCristoScene of the crime: the state capitol in TallahasseeSure, it's unfair to focus entirely on what did not happen in a legislative session, and with all the economic troubles, this one was going to be grueling no matter what. But even grading against a curve of extremely low exp ... More >>

Just 'Cause He Doesn't Give "Handouts" Doesn't Mean Hasner's a (R-Word)

Flickr user: Atomic PopcornA cyborg sent from the future to terminate your unemployment benefits. You're welcome.I s'pose the guy who recently accused House Majority Leader Adam Hasner of "race-baiting" (and that would be me) should resist giving lectures about decorum. But I did not question the le ... More >>

Breaking With Boredom

Shak On Lam, Back Story Here

All right I've been gone from here for a little while doing my day job (journalism) and I'm none too pleased. I had the damn Shak Dhanji fugitive scoop two days ago and got so caught up in another story I was working on and the Miami Herald layoffs that I let myself get beat. I really should have br ... More >>

Stacy Ritter Voted For Company That Renovated Her Home

While serving as a state representative in 2004, Broward County Mayor Stacy Ritter voted on legislation that benefited the fraudulent company that paid her husband $20,000 a month, renovated her Parkland home at a cost of $100,000, docked her family's boat, and provided ... More >>

Green Eyeshade Award Winners

Charlie on the Town

Crist and a former beauty queen are "a confirmed item" — at least in some newspapers

Julie Kay at the Daily

Hey Lady

Down On Florida

Support A Fellow Journalist

Miami Herald Comes Clean A Little

St. Pete Times Chickened Out On Foley Story

Blog Hijacking

Gamblin' Men

Big-ticket casino deals plus a messy internal power struggle equals even more legal woes for the Seminole tribe

Big Chief Moneybags

Part CEO, part shaman, Seminole leader James Billie has his tribe charging toward economic independence.

Undercurrents