World Politics

Charlie Crist Now Supports Gay Marriage

Well, that's a bit of a flip-flop. Charlie Crist, the former Republican-now-Democrat working overtime to make voters forget all about his past life, came out for marriage equality last night on his Facebook page. Right now it's political trendy for former gay marriage opponents ditch their old vie ... More >>

Rush Limbaugh Thinks Chris Christie Is a Fat Fool

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, President Obama and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie joined forces to help that state recover. Christie then made some news when he appeared on Fox & Friends and the Three Trogs that host that show asked him if he would pretty please have a photo op with Mittin ... More >>

Allen West Blames Obama for Libya Attack

What's this? An Obama Done Coddled the Terrorists and Apologizes to Them All the Time party? And Allen West wasn't invited? No, wait. There he is. With Mitt Romney leading the way and attacking a statement the president never actually made and Sarah Palin getting in on the Obama is BFFs with terro ... More >>

Charlie Crist Continues His Sticking It to the GOP Tour, Will Speak at DNC Next Week

Charlie Crist is really taking this Republicans suck thing seriously. Coming on the heels of his endorsement of Barack Obama, the former Republican governor is now slated to be a speaker at the Democratic National Convention next week in Charlotte. Shocking? YES. Except that, no. Crist might be ... More >>

Charlie Crist Will Switch to Democrat, According To Rumors

See also: Dear Dems, Please Do Not Run Charlie Crist for GovernorIn probably what is the least-shocking news ever, former Governor Charlie Crist might be switching over to Democrat this week. Saint Petersblog's Peter Schorsch tweeted out that a rumor is going around the Republican National ... More >>

President Obama Brews Beer and Buys a Round at the Fair

When choosing the next president of the United States, one has to weigh many issues. There's the economy, health care, beer appreciation...President Barack Obama, for instance, likes his beer so much that he's brewing and bottling his own private-label stash at the White House.For more than a year, ... More >>

Mitt Romney Is Hitting Fort Lauderdale for Fundraiser Hosted by Car Dealers

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will be coming to Fort Lauderdale on Monday for a $50,000-per-person couples fundraiser.The shindig will be hosted by the president and COO of Auto Nation, Michael Maroone, and his wife, Michelle, and cohosted by Rick Case of Rick Case Honda, and his wife. ... More >>

Poll Finds Marco Rubio Wouldn't Help Mitt Romney in Florida, but Jeb Bush Would

A new poll of Florida voters was released yesterday with all kinds of juicy numbers about politicians on both the state and national level. The full report is included at the bottom, but there are more facts in it than one blog post could ever hold.The poll was conducted by Democratic firm Public Po ... More >>

Bill Koch and Oxbow Donate $1 Million to Romney Super PAC

​Six months ago, Bill Koch's spokesman told us the Palm Beach billionaire's political allegiances were "hard to pin down." Unlike Tea Party sugar daddies Charles and David Koch, "Wild Bill" was the Koch brother who supported more traditional Republican candidates and liked to fly under the radar. ... More >>

Allen West Celebrates MLK Day by Telling President Obama Not to Play the "Race Card"

Rep. Allen Bernard "Harriet Tubman" West​Rep. Allen West -- the self-proclaimed "Harriet Tubman" who says he's trying to get the nation's African-Americans off the "21st century plantation," claims members of the Congressional Black Caucus are "racist," and suspects his potential opponent in his r ... More >>

Tenth Amendment Center: Allen West Deserves a Grand Total of Zero Redistricting Help

Rep. Allen Bernard West​On a scale of one to ten, the Florida Tenth Amendment Center says Rep. Allen West deserves zero special treatment in the redistricting process.As we've been covering, the Broward GOP has been fighting hard against the redistricting proposals, asking that its supporters help ... More >>

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich Lead Florida Poll, but Bettors Go With Romney

​With a month to go until Florida's GOP presidential primary, the latest poll shows former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich essentially tied and well ahead of the rest of the field.For those who are putting money on Florida's GOP primary, though, they're pickin ... More >>

Happy Birthday, Rick Scott!

​Gov. Richard Lynn "Rick" Scott is 59 years old today, and to his credit, it's been a successful run for him.He's a Navy veteran, earned a bachelor's degree and a law degree, bought some doughnut shops, eventually oversaw a health-care corporation that pleaded guilty to 14 felonies, bought some mo ... More >>

OCCUPIED Amendment From Ted Deutch "Totally Bans Corporate Money" in Campaigns

maryannaville.com​It looks like all those hippies hanging out in parks may have actually sparked an idea.Democratic Rep. Ted Deutch -- who represents parts of Broward and Palm Beach Counties -- introduced the "Outlawing Corporate Cash Undermining the Public Interest in our Elections and Democr ... More >>

Americans for Prosperity Florida Bringing Some Interesting Individuals on "Education" Tour

​Americans for Prosperity Foundation Florida, part of the Koch brothers' political-funding machine, announced yesterday that it's going to be "providing essential educational tools to Floridians in advance of the upcoming 2012 elections."Among the "influential leaders" AFP Florida is bringing on t ... More >>

Florida Ethics Commission: No Problem With Rick Scott's Cash From Private Prison Firms

​The Teamsters' ethics complaint filed last month against Gov. Rick Scott -- which alleged his million bucks from private prison corporations was somehow affecting the state's decision to enter contracts with the companies -- has been tossed out by the Florida Ethics Commission.Among other things, ... More >>

Rick Perry Leads CNN Poll Going Into Debate, Followed by Mitt Romney and... Sarah Palin

Texas Gov. Rick Perry​In anticipation of the GOP presidential debate it's hosting, CNN released its freshest poll numbers, with Texas Gov. Rick Perry leading the pack -- ahead by 12 percentage points over second-place Mitt Romney.The poll showed that 30 percent of the 446 Republican voters surveye ... More >>

Rick Scott Wins "Worst Governor Ever"

worstgovernorever.comFlorida governor and two-time election winner Rick Scott.​Gov. Rick Scott has officially been crowned Worst Governor Ever.The Transport Workers Union of America found a way for people to vote for Scott again, as he beat out Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, and Wis ... More >>

Jon Stewart on Allen West: "Quick, Robin! To the Batshit Mobile!" (Video)

thedailyshow.com​Rep. Allen West was the subject of another Comedy Central news satire yesterday, when Daily Show host Jon Stewart made a quip starring West as Batman -- except he's driving the "Batshit mobile." Republican House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy showed the GOP House members a clip fro ... More >>

Tea Party Outdoes Rick Scott -- Unveils Prewritten Faxes to Send Wasserman Schultz

This is what the future looks like.​Remember how old-school that Gov. Rick Scott was when he asked his supporters to send out prewritten letters about himself to newspapers around the state? Well, he has been outdone by the South Florida Tea Party, which is embracing the height of 1980s telecommun ... More >>

Donald Trump Giving a Bailout to South Florida Tea Party as They Still Won't Pay the Bill

fark.com​The new philosophy from the South Florida Tea Party apparently includes taking handouts and accepting bailouts.As you may know, the South Florida Tea Party has been trying to weasel its way out of paying the bill for a rally they held for Donald Trump in Boca Raton.Yesterday, Donald Trump ... More >>

Playing Doctor: Politicking Medical Professionals Kill Anti-Concussion Bill, Leaving Kids Unprotected

Got Damage? ​ Pop quiz.You're a legislator, and you've got a chance to vote on a bill that would protect kids from deadly brain injuries at no additional cost to the state.

Is Debbie Wasserman Schultz a Self-Hating Jew?

Debbie Wasserman Schultz​Oh, probably not. But such insinuations are the stuff of American politics in 2011. This particular insinuation is part of the fallout from Obama's speech on the Middle East last week -- that boring, almost content-free speech that in a saner clime would have attracted con ... More >>

Practitioners of Quack Autism Treatment in Trouble With Governor

David Geier, (not an) MD.​Two weeks ago, the Pulp published a small item about Mark and David Geier -- a father-son team of self-proclaimed autism experts who treat the condition with a powerful chemical castration agent called Lupron. They're from Maryland, but their interests run deep in Florida ... More >>

Allen West and John Boehner Fall Out Over Pakistan

​Allen West, writing to the chairwoman of the subcommittee on state, foreign operations, and related programs, CC'ing Boehner, Cantor, McCarthy, Hesarling, Rogers, Ros-Lehtinen, and McKeon:Dear Chairwoman:...It is not unreasonable for the American people to question. If Osama bin Laden was living ... More >>

Rush Limbaugh Digs Obama

His most devout fans insist it's sarcasm, but it's not: Palm Beach's loudest gazillionaire began his Monday radio broadcast with breathless, effusive, totally over-the-top and completely sincere praise of President Obama. (See the video after the jump.)Said Limbaugh:Ladies and gentlemen, we need to ... More >>

Government Shutdown Will Backfire on Republicans

​If the government shuts down at midnight tonight, it won't be the first time. The same thing happened at the end of 1995, when a U.S. House led by Newt Gingrich pulled the stunt on Bill Clinton. We all know how that ended. The public blamed the Republicans for the shutdown, and Clinton ... More >>

Should Florida GOP Return Donations?

Stephen Prosper JusticeHarry Sargeant III​Yesterday, The Washington Post revealed that Delray Beach billionaire and oilman Harry Sargeant III may have bilked to the US government -- and, by extension, the US taxpayer -- to the tune of $200 million, while supplying jet fuel to American troops in we ... More >>

Political Money Man Mendelsohn's Sentencing Pushed Back

Wild art: The first edition of the official Tea Party mag. ​Hollywood lobbyist and political fundraiser Alan Mendelsohn won't be sentenced on his federal conspiracy conviction next week after all. The sentencing has been pushed back to April 28, according to court records. Sounds mundane ... More >>

Sunday Politics: Q&A With Tea Partier on Health Care

The Tea Party has demonized health-care reform -- or Obamacare, as it calls it -- to the point that the group seems to believe that it alone is going to destroy America. Tea Party signs​They've disrupted Congressional town hall meetings, screamed about sociali ... More >>

The Show Must Go On

Working on a Tea Party story but in the meantime wanted to share a photo that has been spreading across the internets lately. Here it is:                   What the hell is this, you ask, and why is it on the Pulp? Well, ... More >>

Palm Beach GOP Leader Sid Dinerstein Isn't Picking on Opponents Because They're Not Rich

Dinerstein did not call himself an "excellent" fundraiser.​Palm Beach County GOP Chair Sid Dinerstein wants you to know that he did not, not, not write a mailer accusing his opponents for the GOP chairmanship of Florida of being stingy little peasants without the earning power to do the party a da ... More >>

Breaking: Joyce Kaufman Quits Allen West Job

Right-wing radio talker Joyce Kaufman -- whose July 4 call for "bullets" in favor of ballots has been linked to yesterday's threat that led to the countywide lockdown on all Broward County schools -- is on the air now and promising a statement of explanation. Kaufman and West ... More >>

Fail Ceasar!

Mitch Ceasar's political palace is falling apart. The Democratic Chairman lost big on Election Day. Broward laid down for the Republican push on Tuesday, with voter turnout in the supposed Democratic powerhouse county a meager 40 percent -- eight point under the state avera ... 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 >>

It's Time for Florida to Legalize Pot

Florida has the nation's stiffest pot penalties, but everyone seems to be lighting up.

Three Questions for Your Local, Scandal-Plagued Public Hospital District

Broward General Medical Center: Scene of the crime?​It's time to start paying attention to what's happening at the North Broward Hospital District (AKA Broward Health). Or rather, it was time back in January, when Gov. Charlie Crist removed two commissioners who were going to reform the district f ... More >>

George LeMieux Claims Credit for Skimmers Going to Gulf

Sen. George LeMieux will call off his hunger strike, or sit-in, or whatever he was planning to do next if Barack Obama didn't send more skimmers to the Gulf of Mexico. Nobody knows whether LeMieux's highly misleading rants about the need for skimmers had anything to do with the Obama administration' ... More >>

Beth Kigel's Political Career a Casualty of Crist?

​A young political operative named Beth Kigel rocketed into Palm Beach County Republican leadership in 2006 after she put all her chips on the long-shot candidacy of Charlie Crist for Florida governor. Four years later, her champion has gone rogue, and now the vice chair of the county's GOP is in ... More >>

Allen West Rips GOP Chair Over Comments About Appealing to Blacks

In remarks made during an appearance this weekend on MSNBC, congressional candidate Allen West had sharp criticism for the chairman of his party, Michael Steele, over Steele's response to a question about the Republicans' appeal to black voters.After hearing a quote from Steele about the party havi ... More >>

A How-To Kit for Campaign Suicide, by Charlie Crist

Flickr: gary_rominWas this photo taken in Crist's campaign HQs?​Since late last year, when Sen. Mel Martinez announced he wouldn't be running for reelection to his seat in 2010, it was Charlie Crist's to lose. He was one of the nation's most popular governors, with a knack for charming his detract ... More >>

Reactionary Politics You Can Love

Flickr: UN1SONGelber​Usually, we're skeptical when a campaigning politician cites a breaking news story as a basis for new legislation, but we'll suspend that cynicism for the moment. State Sen. Dan Gelber, Democratic candidate for Florida attorney general, has seized on the recent corruption case ... More >>

Did Wexler Have Falling Out With Obama?

Wexler​In Barack Obama's presidential election, Robert Wexler was one of those linchpins. As an early supporter, he convinced a great many wary Jewish voters in South Florida that Obama would be a friend of Israel, as Obama himself promised. It was crucial to winning Florida.But since Obama won el ... More >>

Candidate: Broward Democrats Offered Her Big-Money Donors if She'd Back Off From Evan Jenne

Che Guevara Ordered His Father's Death, So Gustavo Villoldo Promised Payback

Juice Memo: To Deerfield Beach city workers; Re: Appropriate Greeting for the Mayor

Deerfield Beach city employees who fail to greet Mayor Peggy Noland in the manner seen above will be deemed "disrespectful." To wit, any other greeting is "unacceptable" and causes "irrevocable damage to the welfare of the department" and their fellow workers. As such, those workers will face disci ... More >>

Don't Cry For Me, Evita

Letters to the Editor

Letters for August 9, 2001

Mosh Pit in Bogotá

Rock al Parque offers a more metallic Plan Colombia