la liberté avant tout
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA— People expecting stiff resistance from the New Black Panther Party at the Republican National Convention in Tampa next week can breathe a sigh of relief. Speaking exclusively to Florida Watchdog, Michelle Williams, chief of staff for the local chapter of the New Black Panther Partyin Tampa-St. Petersburg, said her group has no more plans to appear alongside…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA — As county election officials thumbed through the 2 million ballotscast during the Aug. 14 party primary election in Florida, a state judge nearly 1,000 miles away was preparing his ruling on a law closely mirroring the voter identification requirements in the Sunshine State. The next day, Aug. 15, Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson rendered…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA — In the business world of today, there is much more to worry about than just the bottom line. Entrepreneurs are forced to not only appeal to consumers, but they must also comply with federal, state and local regulations, keep an eye out for upcoming laws that will…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA— Ceding to the hot temptations of democracy, three Florida judges will shed their traditional black robes for chance to enter the political boxing ring of merit retention elections this November, putting their records on the bench up for popular scrutiny at the ballot box. The measure, adopted by…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog CORAL GABLES—It took only a margin of a few hundred votes to topple a powerful 24-year incumbent of Capitol Hill. That was the fate of U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns, of District 6, by political newcomer and large-animal veterinarian Ted Yoho ofGainesville on Tuesday night in the 3rd district’s GOP primary. The latest returns showed Yoho…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog CORAL GABLES — As the words of praise and accomplishment were handed down from the podium, expectations rose at Connie Mack IV’s campaign headquarters in Coral Gables on Tuesday night. The four-term Republican congressman from Naples, fresh off his easy victory in the GOP U.S. Senate primary win over three…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA — In the shadow of Mitt Romney’s visit to Florida with freshly introduced vice presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., on Tuesday, more than 8 million registered Florida voters will hit the polls to choose their party’s candidates for local, county and state elections. As the 42nd state…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TAMPA— Consider the large grassroots movements of the past four years—including the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street—and you’re likely to conclude countless Americans believe the country is moving in wrong direction. That’s backed up by the latest Ramussen poll from Aug. 8. It reveals that only 27 percent of likely U.S. voters say the country is…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog TALLAHASSEE— On Aug. 7, Florida Watchdog Bureau Chief Yaël Ossowski, joined Capitol Vanguard reporter Will Patrick for a discussion about Florida’s top news stories. Topics covered in the podcast include attempts to overcome voter fraud, the growing absentee ballot scandal in Miami-Dade County, politicians protesting military sequestration cuts, and the newly upheld health care reform known as ‘Obamacare’ and its…
By Yaël Ossowski | Florida Watchdog ST PETERSBURG — A trait that is often regrettably lost when a politician takes office is consistency in both rhetoric and action. The rhetoric that fiscal conservatives in Florida and across the country have been successful in conveying and repeating is the idea that the federal government cannot create…