Florida Watchdog
FL: Chambers of commerce want taxpayers to foot bill for new Tampa baseball stadium
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — Whether or not they’re fans of baseball, residents in Tampa and St. Petersburg have the opportunity of a lifetime to become investors of the future of America’s pastime. They’ve been told to imagine a sprawling ballpark with a retractable roof, enviable seating capacity and a prime location in Tampa that…
FL: Florida officials aim to outlaw cell phones at wheel, public meetings
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG ─ To ban or not to ban, that is the question. Throughout the state of Florida, lawmakers and citizens’ groups are casting their ire on cell phones, demanding the government step in and ensure safety and transparency in one fell swoop. In one case is a proposal to…
FL: Democratic gains in Congress leave state politically disjointed
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — Florida Republican Gov. Rick Scott had little reason to worry as the election results were tabulated. His party’s presidential candidate may have lost, but Scott is confident that he will have a Republican-controlled House and Senate for another two years, allowing him to continue his agenda as the self-appointed “jobs governor.” With a few…
FL: Early voting becomes political weapon in last hours of election fight
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — Though in-person early voting has been only a novelty in Florida elections since 2004, organized groups statewide have taken up the issue as their last chance of winning the election in the final hours. Reports of long lines and excessive wait times have flamed up concerns for party…
GA: Holder abortion ties blind him to billions in Medicaid fraud, activists say
By Yaël Ossowski | Watchdog.org ATLANTA — In the sparsely populated Atlanta suburb of College Park, dozens of pro-life activists gathered outside a local gynecologist office Friday afternoon to call out the negligence of one man: United States Attorney General Eric Holder. The nation’s top prosecutor, they claimed, was not only allowing abortion providers to fraudulently…
FL: PolitFact or Fiction: Double standard on the Mack Penny Plan
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — If a Senate candidate criticizes a plan to cut government spending, and exaggerates those cuts over a decade to make them seem massive and frightening, is that misleading and deceptive? According to the self-described “fact-checking” organization PolitiFact, deception is not only welcomed and approved, but also…
FL: Nelson’s anti-tax fraud bill would beef up local cops’ tax enforcement powers
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — If Sen. Bill Nelson had his way, local police departments across the country would not only be empowered to go after criminals breaking local laws, but also enforce federal tax crimes related to fraud and identity theft. The Identity Theft and Tax Fraud Prevention Act, introduced by Nelson on July…
Florida Watchdog on WTSP News 10 Tampa Bay on Voter Fraud
My Florida television debut on WTSP News 10 in Tampa, all about the potential for voter fraud and the very real attempt and to intimidate and deceive voters in one of the nation’s most important swing states. I was nabbed for the interview after I wrote “The All-Out Battle to Fix the Florida Elections.” Read…
FL: The all-out battle to fix the Florida elections
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG — For the average voter in the state of Florida, questions about the legitimacy of the election process are about as common as candidates’ specific platforms or policies. In the year 2012, that mantra holds true again. In the past two weeks leading up to the general election,…
FL: Bill Nelson put on defensive over foreign aid to Libya, Pakistan and Egypt
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST. PETERSBURG – As American embassies are overrun by protesters and ambassadors are put in harm’s way across the Middle East, Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida wants to continue sending foreign aid to nations who aren’t friendly to the United States. That’s the pitch of a new advertisement sent out by RANDPAC, the political action committee…