Here’s a review of who’s old, who’s new, who’s in and who’s out... plus some facts and little known stories and tales.
Herbert Hoover vacationed at the J.C. Penney estate on Belle Isle in 1928. It is rumored that Hoover’s grudge with Al Capone started in Florida. There are two versions of the story circulating. First, the Capone compound was not far away from the Penney estate and the tale goes that there was so much shouting and shooting during the night from the Capone retreat that Hoover couldn’t sleep. His ire aroused, Hoover decided then and there to destroy the famous gangster when he took office. The second tale describes an enraged Herbert Hoover. The president-elect watched in dismay as a drove of reporters suddenly abandoned him in a Miami lobby when a more important person strolled in. That person? Al Capone.
Franklin D. Roosevelt holds the distinction of being the first American president to travel via airplane with a flight from Miami to Morocco in January, 1943. Roosevelt met Winston Churchill in Morocco for a 10-day meeting to discuss World War II.
Harry S. Truman began to visit Key West for rest and relaxation, but returned so frequently – 175 days – during his presidency that the house earned the nickname The Little White House. Today the house is open to the public as a museum serving as a historical tribute to Truman.
John F. Kennedy’s family was perhaps the most celebrated family in Palm Beach both before and after his ascension to the White House. In 1933, his father, Joseph Kennedy, purchased the home that later became known as the “Kennedy Compound” where his family wintered. It was during JFK’s presidency that 1095 Ocean Drive was nicknamed the Florida White House due to the stream of dignitaries, heads of state and celebrities who were invited to the rather plain-looking beach house for everything from official business to A-list parties. In 1993 the house went on the market for $7 million and it was reportedly sold in 1995 for $4.9 million.
Former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, are reported to have a home on Florida’s Southwest Lee Island Coast they use for vacation getaways and where former President Bush is often photographed fishing.
John Ellis “Jeb” Bush couldn’t be more connected to Washington than if he were president. He is the brother of President George W. Bush and his father is former President George H.W. Bush.
Jeb Bush was born in Midland, Texas, February 11, 1953. He came to Florida in 1981 and helped start a real estate firm. He became politically active and served as Florida's Secretary of Commerce under Governor Bob Martinez before his unsuccessful bid for governor in 1994. He became Florida’s 43rd Governor four years later in November, 1998 and was re-elected in November, 2002. With that victory, Jeb Bush became the first Republican to be re-elected Governor in the State’s history.
Jeb Bush continues to be the most accessible governor in the State’s history (he’s been known to answer emails personally), but he also became the most controversial during the 2000 Presidential election that landed his brother in office. The controversy centered around the pre-election purging of felon voter registration rolls and those infamous butterfly ballots and hanging chads.
U.S. Representative Katherine Harris was a player in that election controversy that thrust her into the national spotlight. It was the job of the then Republican Secretary of State to oversee the election process in Florida that eventually would declare George W. Bush the winner in Florida and thus the next President of the United States. Harris was no political newcomer having served as a Senator in the Florida State Senate from 1994 to 1998. She resigned as the last “elected” Secretary of State in 2002 to run for congress. Harris continues her public service as she was sworn in January 7, 2003 as a U.S. Representative serving the 13th district of Florida.
Secretary of State Glenda Hood is the first “appointed” Secretary of State by Governor Jeb Bush in February 2003. She leads the Department of State as it transitions from an elected constitutional office to an appointed Governor’s agency – she also oversees the election process throughout the State. Prior to her appointment, Hood was elected the first female Mayor of the City of Orlando in 1992 and served three terms.
Look for plenty of controversy to surround Hood throughout the months leading to the national election. She has already weathered controversies within the last month regarding lost and found voting records, discrepancies in the felon data records and reported anomalies in the new touch-screen voting systems.
