The United States now has its first openly gay black federal judge, and he’s from South Florida. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Darrin P. Gayles’ nomination to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida was approved by the Senate today in a 97-0 vote. Gayles was nominated…
One of the hazards of having a governor who financed his way into office with his own immense fortune is that he probably has money stashed in all kinds of places that conflict with his political decisions. That certainly applies to our own magnate-turned-leader. New disclosures this morning show that…
Florida now officially recognizes marijuana as a substance with medical benefits — well, at least in some very narrow cases. As expected, Gov. Rick Scott signed the “Charlotte’s Web” bill into law today. The bill allows certain strains of noneuphoric marijuana tincture to be used to treat a very short…
via Miami-Dade School BoardCarlos Cubelo, left, at a high school pep rallyFor years, Florida’s 26th U.S. Congressional District has been defined less by politics than by outright scandal. Two years ago, Republican David Rivera lost the seat amid revelations that he had funded a shadow campaign in the Democratic primary…
David Beckham’s downtown stadium is dead in the water, but Miami’s second-most contentious bayfront proposal is very much alive and kicking. Developer Jeff Berkowitz’s 1,000-foot tall paperclip, the SkyRise Miami tower, could be on a ballot for city voters as early as August. But first the city commission has to…
Need more proof that spending dump trucks full of cash can win elections in America? Take a look at Florida’s percolating governor’s race, where Rick Scott — yes, the same guy who has had trouble cracking 30 percent approval ratings for the past four years — has suddenly pulled even…
A poll in May found 88 percent of Florida voters supported medical marijuana. A March poll showed support at 74 percent. One from November had support at 82 percent. So a bipartisan poll released today showing that only 70 percent of Floridians plan to vote to legalize medical marijuana in…
South Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schutlz may be chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, but when it comes to medical marijuana she sure sounds like a Republican. Wasserman Schultz aired her “concerns” today about the ballot initiative that would legalize medical marijuana in Florida by claiming that it may be…
The most important constituents to Florida Republicans are old people and gun nuts, but what happens when these two groups come in conflict? The Colbert Report dug deep last night on residents of Big Pine Key, hardworking people who just want to enjoy a bit of peace and tranquility without…
Hillary Clinton’s coronation party will not be held in Miami. Local leaders have decided to drop their bid to host the 2016 Democratic National Convention, citing lack of time to prepare a competitive package. Though, organizers still have an eye on hosting a party convention in 2020. See also: Miami…
Fourteen years ago, Miami-Dade County negotiated one of the worst “profit-sharing” deals with a local sports franchise ever put to paper. Taxpayers gave Miami Heat owner Micky Arison $38 million in land and a $6.4 million annual subsidy to build the American Airlines Arena downtown, and in exchange the team…
Sure, President Obama has made some high-profile celebrity friends since taking office. He’s close with Oprah, calls up LeBron for favors, and texts JayZ, but during his presidency Obama has managed to strike up a less public, more personal friendship with none other than former Miami Heat great Alonzo Mourning…
Some Florida Republicans have a weird tendency of writing strange fan-fiction about Charlie Crist. Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam is out with his latest yarn: He thinks Hillary Clinton is already talking to Charlie Crist about being her running mate in 2016…
At a swanky luncheon yesterday inside a softly lit ballroom at the Coconut Grove Ritz-Carlton, former and likely future governor Charlie Crist had a few things to say. Among them: His favorite movie is Philadelphia; his new book costs $25 but will be cheaper in paperback; and his campaign had…
A week ago Cuban dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez launched 14yMedio, the first independent online media outlet in Cuba. Today it published its first big “get”: An interview with Vice President Joe Biden. The chat follows a 2009 interview President Barack Obama gave to Sanchez that was posted on her blog…
Americans may hold politicians to sometimes ridiculously high personal moral standards, but we are pretty lax about youthful drug use. Hell, Obama and Bush II have done coke, but Marco Rubio has always refused to say whether he’s ever smoked pot. See also: Marco Rubio Used to Throw Up Drunk…
Yesterday, David Beckham’s team of investors and real estate advisers unveiled an ambitious plan to build a soccer stadium atop what is now a boat slip on Biscayne Bay. “We want to bring the world’s greatest game to the world’s greatest city,” said Beckham’s Bolivian billionaire business partner, Marcelo Claure…
If you’re a scandal-plagued Republican governor, who better to campaign with you than another scandal-plagued Republican governor? Yes, New Jersey’s Chris Christie is in Florida this afternoon to help raise funds and campaign for good ol’ Rick Scott…
Joe Garcia’s life is like some less funny congressional version of Curb Your Enthusiasm. He keeps getting caught in these dumb embarrassing situations, and then we imagine this music plays. After video of him apparently eating ear wax live on C-SPAN 2 went viral yesterday, he went to Twitter to…
Elected as Rick Scott’s running mate, Jennifer Carroll became Florida first black female lieutenant governor ever. But to hear her tell it now it doesn’t appear that Scott was particularly eager to have a woman serving as his number two. In a candid interview yesterday with a Cocoa Beach AM…
Who says C-SPAN is boring? If you watch closely enough, there’s all sorts of entertaining stuff going on. Like Miami-area congressman Joe Garcia digging into his ear and then apparently tasting the bounty during a House Judiciary Committee meeting last week…
Remember when in the summer of 2012, just months before the presidential election, Gov. Rick Scott launched a purge of potentially ineligible voters? Thousands of Floridians — including World War II veterans — mistakenly received the threatening letters. The state spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the effort but…
