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Bill Rufty - page 2

Bill Rufty has 71 articles published.

Former Ledger of Lakeland columnist Bill Rufty is Central Florida political correspondent for SaintPetersBlog and Florida Politics. Rufty had been with the Ledger from 1985-2015, where, as political editor, he covered a wide range of beats, including local and state politics, the Lakeland City Commission, and the Florida Legislature. Ledger editor Lenore Devore said about Rufty’s 30-year career: “[He is] a man full of knowledge, a polling expert and a war history buff … who has a steel trap in his brain, remembering details most of us have long since forgotten.”

J.D. Alexander rides again to save Polk County arts center

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Remember former Sen. J.D. Alexander, the Lake Wales Republican who almost single-handedly created Florida Polytechnic University by use of his power as Senate Appropriations chair? Alexander has been out of the Senate for almost five years, but it would appear that the old power cell is still charged and ready to zap when needed. Polk County Commissioner George Lindsey recently praised Alexander saying he was the main reason that budget cuts that would have shut PSC’s JD Alexander Center in…

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Polk GOP Commissioner warns Republican incumbents may face strong challenges

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Republican Legislators could find themselves challenged for election next year … by Republican candidates, Polk County Commissioner George Lindsey, a Lakeland Republican, confirmed Wednesday. In an interview before his address to the Polk Tiger Bay members, Lindsey said what he described as legislators’ attacks on home rule and local government, has many even in the Republican Party talking about trying to remove incumbents in the 2018 elections. “The chatter (across the state) is voluminous,” Lindsey said. “I don’t know if…

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Darren Soto cautiously eyeing Puerto Rico statehood effort

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Sunday’s landslide vote in Puerto Rico to determine statehood and perhaps add the 51st star to the American flag, was almost ignored by news media, until the last minute, because of all the political controversies emanating from Washington. But some officials like U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, an Orlando Democrat representing the 9th Congressional District had been paying close attention since the election was scheduled. Soto, 39, the first Florida member of Congress of Puerto Rican heritage, was careful not to…

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Baxter Troutman entering competitive Agriculture Commissioner race

in 2017/Top Headlines by

Former state Rep. Baxter Troutman of Winter Haven said he will run for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture. The grandson of the late citrus baron and one-time gubernatorial candidate, Ben Hill Griffin Jr., Troutman will enter the competitive race to succeed Adam Putnam, a Bartow Republican who is term-limited and is running for governor. “I will file either Friday or Monday at the latest,” Troutman said. “This isn’t a decision I came to lightly and it isn’t a step to advance to…

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New polling shows alarming trend, many Floridians unaware how government works

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Many Floridians are unable to answer simple questions about how government works, says a new survey of residents by Florida Southern College. Even those with college degree missed some of the answers from questions included on exams administered to those becoming new citizens of the nation. For example, only 65 percent could name Rick Scott as governor of Florida. The poll, conducted April 2-14 and April 17-19 by the FSC Center for Polling and Policy Research, took responses from 377…

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Primary care physicians: Health care plans must have prevention

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Any health care program implemented by Congress or the state must include affordable preventive health care for all, Dr. Joy Jackson told members of the Polk County Tiger Bay Club Wednesday in Bartow. Jackson is the Polk County Health Department director and chairs the Florida Department of Health’s statewide committee on Pharmacy and Therapeutics. She has also served as medical director for Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine, a free and low-cost clinic for those in the health insurance gap, since 2012.…

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Darren Soto: Current GOP health care bill won’t pass

in 2017/Top Headlines by

The current bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act will never pass Congress in its current form, freshman U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, an Orlando Democrat, told members of the Polk County Tiger Bay Club during a Monday lunch in Bartow. “I believe ‘Trumpcare’ will be difficult in the House now that the joy of victory has subsided. And things in the Senate can come unraveled,” said the new congressman from Florida’s 9th Congressional District, which includes Osceola County…

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