Thursday, March 7, 2013
Former Hillsborough County Administrator Fred Karl died March 7.
Hillsborough County is mourning the loss of one its longstanding leaders today, March 7. Fred Karl, a former county administrator, county attorney, state legislator and Florida Supreme Court justice, was 88. A Daytona native, Karl served as an Army tank commander in World War II and was present at the Battle of the Bulge, according to The Tampa Tribune. His public service career continued long after the war was over. The Stetson Law graduate served in the Florida House from 1956-64 when he attempted a bid for the governor’s office. After that, he ran for the Florida Senate in 1968 and served until 1971, according to web sources. Karl then sat on the Florida Supreme Court from 1977 until 1978 when he opted to go back into private practice. …
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf had retired to Tampa, Fla., after a final military assignment leading U.S. Central Command.
Retired Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, 78, passed away today in Tampa, according to media reports. Schwarzkopf was best known to the American people for his leadership in removing Saddam Hussein and his forces from Kuwait in 1991. Schwarzkopf had successfully led an international coalition of U.S. allies to drive out Iraqi troops. "Barbara and I mourn the loss of a true American patriot and one of the great military leaders of his generation," former President George H.W. Bush said in a written statement, according to ABC News. Schwarzkopf led what came to be known as Operation Desert Storm under President Bush. Most recently, Schwarzkopf had served as commander-in-chief of U.S. Central Command, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in …
Thursday, October 11, 2012
The World War II veteran, who spent more than 50 years as a lawmaker, was pronounced dead at Tampa General Hospital.
A memorial service for former congressman Sam Gibbons will be held at Tampa's Palma Ceia Presbyterian Church at 11 a.m. Oct. 20, according to Tampabay.com. Gibbons, an iconic Bay Area figure and politician who was instrumental in the creation of the University of South Florida died on Oct. 10, 2012. The World War II veteran, who spent more than 50 years as a lawmaker, was pronounced dead at Tampa General Hospital. Gibbons, 92, lived through some of the most significant events in Bay Area and U.S. history. He served decades in the Legislature and Congress, developing a reputation as an outspoken lawmaker.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Small business has been a major theme both inside and outside the Tampa Bay Times Forum this week.
Small business has been a major theme both inside and outside the Tampa Bay Times Forum this week. With events tied to the 2012 Republican National Convention taking place in all parts of the Tampa Bay area, many local business owners prepared to have the biggest money making week of their year. At the beginning of the convention, Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn and the 2012 Tampa Host Committee projected a $150 – 175 million boost to Tampa’s economy because of the 2012 RNC. "The way the City (of Tampa) and the Downtown Partnership put it out, we'd have 50,000 visitors and we'd be swamped," said Marc Zolkowski earlier this week. Zolkowski is the co-owner of the Metro Lounge and Restaurant in downtown Tampa. His neighboring business owner, …
Monday, June 25, 2012
'Priorities USA Action' has a new Florida TV spot about Mitt Romney's career at Bain Capital. Here's a week's worth of Florida political news by columnist Peter Schorsch, publisher of Saintpetersblog.
The pro-Obama Super PAC Priorities USA Action has a new TV ad in Florida, the latest in a series of negative spots about Mitt Romney's career at Bain Capital. The ad is part of a $10 million campaign and is also airing in Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Watch here. Koch Bros. Target Bill Nelson Americans for Prosperity, the tea-party group funded in great part by the Koch Brothers (the conservative version of George Soros), have launched a six-state $3 million ad buy that targets Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, among others, reports Marc Caputo of the Miami Herald. In bellwether Pasco, a Presidential enthusiasm gap, by Tom Jackson of the Tampa Tribune The major parties' presidential campaigns debuted their Pasco County headquarters …
D'Ann White
1:45 pm on Thursday, March 7, 2013
I was a county commission reporter at the time Fred Karl, who had already retired as a Supreme Court justice, agreed to come out of retirement and help out Hillsborough County at a time when growth and, unfortunately, graft were rampant. I was, frankly, in awe of this guy who'd been an Army tank commander at the Battle of the Bulge, a state legislator and Supreme Court justice. But during his … more ›