Opinion

Donald Trump’s situation reminds me of a funny short story I read many years ago.   The story is about an aviation hero. He flew beat-up planes during the swashbuckling early days of flying.   You have read of aviation heroes of that era. First guy to fly solo from New York to Tuscaloosa. First […]

Well, Donald Trump has stirred things up, hasn’t he? He has soared in several polls. He has sucked the oxygen from the political room. He has captured the attention of a lot of people. And a lot of media types. For good and for bad.   What is The Donald’s appeal? He is a Muhammad

Very often, legislative bodies pass ill-advised laws in response to tragedies in hopes that the new laws will work to prevent similar tragedies from happening in the future. I used to work for a judge who would say bad facts make bad law. This is true in the legislative process and no truer is the

When CenterState CEO and its partners launched the CenterState Metropolitan Export Initiative, regional exports were a little more than $6 billion; today they have grown to almost $7 billion. While this growth is encouraging evidence of progress, we continue to find new ways to realize our region’s true export potential. This is why I am excited

While more than 19 million Americans call New York state home, countless other non-residents own second homes in the state. Similarly, over 19 million Americans call Florida home but many non-resident retirees and snowbirds own vacation homes in the Sunshine State to enjoy the warmer climate in the winter months.   The problem Whether you

Suppose you leave your garbage can open starting tonight? Do you think maybe a few critters will dive in?   Your government does the equivalent. Only it’s a bin of money. Yours, if you pay taxes. And the word has spread that the lid’s off the bin.   So say the government’s auditors. They looked

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is preparing to take unilateral action to further artificially adjust labor rates. He has instructed Acting State Labor Commissioner Mario J. Musolino to create a wage board to examine the minimum wage in the fast-food industry.   The rhetoric coming from the governor’s office is troubling, but unfortunately familiar. He

Isn’t it sweet to be surrounded by so much make-believe? So much pretending.   Various characters pretend our economy is just peachy. Pretend that any day now it will kick into higher gear.    I hate to be the guy who tugs back the curtain to reveal the Wizard of Oz. But, things ain’t peachy.

Last year, taxpayers spent more than 530,000 to fund the pensions of 14 public officials convicted of felonies. Despite failing to uphold their duties to constituents, these individuals are still able to cash retirement checks funded by taxpayers.   It is mind boggling that this is still the case in 2015. It is even more bewildering

Recently, New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released a stunning audit of the state Medicaid program that showed that over the last four years more than $800 million was wasted on “improper” payments and other “questionable” transactions. This is startling news.   New York’s Medicaid program is among the most expensive in the nation, costing