Barack Obama picked Arne Duncan, CEO of Chicago public schools, as his man to be Secretary of Education. ...more

January 14, 2009

Champion of the Dream, the theme of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Cultural Arts Festival that begins Friday, takes on special meaning in the wake of the presidential election, organizers say. ...more

January 14, 2009

It is the little parade that could. Tampa's Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade will celebrate its 20th anniversary with a celebration of the civil rights leader beginning at noon Monday. ...more

January 14, 2009

With the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama and the enormous national economic stimulus package that has been promised to come immediately after, Mayor Scott McPherson thinks the time is right to work on some national name recognition for the city. McPherson announced at the Jan. 6 City Council meeting he has decided to attend the 77th winter meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors, to be held Jan. 17 - 19 in Washington, D.C. ...more

January 14, 2009

Merit pay for teachers, road and school construction and business development grants are some of the ideas being floated as Florida begins preparing its wish list for an anticipated federal economic stimulus package. ...more

January 13, 2009

The incoming Obama administration should launch a criminal investigation of Bush administration officials to see whether they broke the law in the name of national security, a House Democratic report said Tuesday. President-elect Barack Obama has been more cautious on the issue and has not endorsed such a recommendation. ...more

January 13, 2009

As the economy continues to lag and unemployment rates rise, Tampa housing officials are touting a planned redevelopment project as a way to create thousands of jobs. ...more

January 13, 2009

Amtrak is suddenly hot, and nowhere is hotter right now than Tampa. Florida's 14.6 percent gain in passenger traffic from October 2007 through September 2008 is almost a third more than the national increase, and the Tampa station is leading the way. The city leads Amtrak's passenger growth in Florida with a whopping 33.5 percent gain in ridership in the last fiscal year. ...more

January 13, 2009

President-elect Barack Obama is preparing to issue an executive order his first week in office - and perhaps his first day - to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, according to two presidential transition team advisers. ...more

January 12, 2009

Tampa leads Amtrak's passenger growth in Florida, with a 33.5 percent gain in ridership to 100,119 passengers from fiscal 2007-08. ...more

January 12, 2009