Katie Sanders, PolitiFact Florida Staff Writer
Katie Sanders is a staff writer for PolitiFact Florida. She previously reported on state politics and government from the Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee bureau and on breaking news for the Times in St. Petersburg. She earned bachelor's degrees in journalism and English from the University of Florida.
Phone: (727) 893-8037; cell: (850) 673-1511
Email: ksanders@tampabay.com
Twitter: @KatieLSanders
Blog: Deal Divas
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Need gift ideas? Check out this site
06/18/13 BlogFun fact: Summer is a super busy season for birthdays.
Not so fun fact: I'm already out of gift ideas. Completely stumped, behind, desperate.
Fun fact: I found a website that will help!
The Daily Beast came out with a super cool list of the Internet's best websites this week. I bought in from the beginning because the list heaps praise on PolitiFact, the Times' fact-checking site (my day job)....
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PolitiFact: Bill Nelson says Rick Scott said no to $1 million to monitor health insurance rates
06/16/13 State RoundupSen. Bill Nelson did not have high hopes when he pressured Gov. Rick Scott to veto an insurance regulation bill that Nelson said could harm consumers.
Nelson, a Democrat who used to be the state's insurance commissioner, asked Scott to veto SB 1842, which prevents state regulators from reviewing rate hikes for new plans in 2014 and 2015 as the federal health care law is implemented.
"Given the governor's recent decision to return $1 million in federal funding that would have helped the state cover the cost of overseeing insurance rates under the new health care law, and the fact that he has not even applied for another $5 million in federal funding that is available to help states control their insurance markets, I'm not holding my breath," he wrote in an op-ed column....
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PolitiFact: Kathy Castor says 70,000 children lose Head Start access, including 2,000 in Florida
06/09/13 State RoundupFaced with complaints about airport delays, members of Congress took action to halt sequester-related furloughs for air traffic controllers.
Some Democrats want to know why other groups aren't getting similar relief from the sequester.
U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, railed against cuts to Head Start recently on MSNBC's Hardball.
"Seventy thousand 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds across America will lose access to the preschool Head Start classroom ... 70,000 students across America and 2,000 in the state of Florida alone because the Republicans refuse to replace the sequester or sit down with us to negotiate a balanced plan."...
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Snatch up the Groupon for Revolve Clothing Exchange yet?
06/04/13 BlogBack by popular demand (at least in our circle) is the spend $10 to get $20 Groupon for Revolve Clothing Exchange.
Looks like you'll need to hustle on this deal. More than 1,000 people have already bought it.
Revolve, for the uninitiated, is a consignment shop with locations in Tampa, Ybor and St. Pete near Crescent Lake....
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PolitiFact Florida: Rick Scott says he's cut taxes 24 times
06/03/13 State RoundupHow many times did Gov. Rick Scott cut taxes? You better believe the unpopular Republican running for a second term is counting the ways.
"Twenty-four times," Scott said after signing the state's $71.1 billion budget.
The claim certainly got our attention at PolitiFact Florida. Could Scott and the Legislature have enacted two dozen tax cuts in just three budget years, two of which were hamstrung by billion-dollar budget shortfalls? We turned to the Truth-O-Meter to sort it out....
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PolitiFact Florida checks out Rick Scott's claim of 24 tax cuts
06/03/13 BlogThe latest over at PolitiFact Florida:
How many times did Gov. Rick Scott cut taxes? You better believe the unpopular Republican running for a second term is counting the ways.
"Twenty-four times," Scott said last month after signing the state’s $71.1 billion budget....
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My Outfit Monday: Trying to recreate Macy's magic
06/03/13 BlogIt's been a minute. Remember that time Macy's invited the Deal Divas to wear cute clothes and host a fashion show? I know we've hardly mentioned it, but do you recall how the event left us desiring the clothes we wore, how some of us purchased pieces of our look?...
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Celebrating what's light, right -- and white!
05/28/13 BlogMy three-step action plan for dealing with the end of Memorial Day weekend is as follows:
1. Catch up with an old friend. Coffee, where are you? I need you. Never leave me like that.
2. Approach workload with renewed diligence (may or may not occur as a result of step No. 1).
3. Pick a fight with Deal Diva Kameel.
Remember when she blasted Boyz II Men for changing up "I'll Make Love to You" for an Old Navy commercial about white jeans?...
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Fact-checking Rick Scott's plate setting
05/21/13 BlogDining with Gov. Rick Scott? Before chowing down, he asks that you please review his accomplishments for Florida families.
Members of the Florida Council of 100 and Scott gathered for a Thursday meeting at the Sandpearl resort in Clearwater Beach. Included in their place settings was a souvenir of sorts: a fact sheet touting Scott's almost two and a half years in office. The campaign-style flier comes from the governor's office and does not have a political disclaimer....
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Sniffing out summer nail trends
05/21/13 BlogWe are not approaching the summer of shy nails, that's for sure.
Nail polish trends for summer are bright, shiny, scented and best of all, creative. You can do them yourself without shelling out for a manicure, I promise. You just have to practice.
Check out our slide show for photos and follow the links for tutorials and sources.
* Hints of metal: Remember the allure of aluminum for feet? You can capitalize on the trend without going full-blown look at this giant mirror/car part on my hand. You can try a thin, subtle gold strip atop a nude nail or splash a bold metallic stripe over a bright base color, like orange. I mean, it's almost summer, and YOLO....
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PolitiFact: Fact-checking Rick Scott's jobs math
05/20/13 State RoundupThe statement
"We are already almost halfway to our 2010 goal of creating 700,000 new jobs in seven years."
Gov. Rick Scott, in his budget letter
The ruling
To hear Gov. Rick Scott tell it, his memorable campaign pledge to create 700,000 jobs in seven years is going right along schedule.
The novice politician, almost two and a half years into his first term, says things are looking bright for the Sunshine State as a result of investments in economic development and public education....
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PolitiFact: Weatherford overreaches with claim that Medicaid expansion drives deficit
05/19/13LegislatureThe Florida House did the nation a favor by refusing to expand subsidized health insurance to 1 million low-income Floridians, argues Speaker Will Weatherford.
"Congress has not passed a budget in four years, and each year the federal government spends over a trillion dollars more than it has, leading to a national debt approaching $17 trillion," Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, wrote in a recent op-ed column. "Expanding Medicaid would require borrowing more money, drastically expanding our deficit."...
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Pinellas lawmakers talk Medicaid, cheap House health insurance at Tiger Bay
05/14/13 BlogThree Pinellas County legislators who voted against accepting federal Medicaid money defended their heavily subsidized state health plans Tuesday but said they were open to footing more of the bill.
Reps. Larry Ahern, Ed Hooper and Kathleen Peters were among eight Pinellas legislators grilled Tuesday by members of Suncoast Tiger Bay about the legislative session. The health insurance juxtaposition, highlighted by the Tampa Bay Times on Tuesday, was the focus of a couple questions at the St. Petersburg Marriott Clearwater hotel luncheon....
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Local fashion truck owner tries to match fun of food trucks
05/14/13 BlogHere's a cool concept for our on-the-go culture: a designer boutique that fits in a highway lane.
Mobile boutiques, long spotted in mega cities like Los Angeles, are getting some love in Tampa Bay.
Times retail reporter Susan Thurston brings us a great story about Zakia Carter, a 40-year-old Lithia entrepreneur who founded White Tent Runway last year. Carter runs the women's boutique from a 37-foot, 1985 recreational vehicle that used to house victims of Hurricane Katrina. She made the RV a chic space and stocks it with one-of-a-kind pieces from designers in LA, all under $100....
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PolitiFact Florida: Florida Democratic Party chair misfires on Scott's teacher pay raise priority
05/12/13LegislatureFlorida Democratic Party chairwoman Allison Tant attacked Gov. Rick Scott as a feckless chief executive who let the Legislature steamroll his session priorities.
"He boasted that his No. 1 priority for the 2013 session was a $2,500 across-the-board raise for classroom teachers," Tant wrote in a column on April 30. "Seven weeks later his abject failure to defend his top issue has allowed Republican legislators to cut that raise by 60 percent with a multitude of strings attached."...
