Wankard Pooser
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Wankard Pooser (September 27, 1893 – February 22, 1978) was an American politician in the state of Florida. Pooser was born in 1893 at DeFuniak Springs, Florida. He attended public schools in the area. He was later a farmer, lawyer, schoolteacher, mover, and newspaper publisher. He ran the ''Times-courier'' in Marianna from 1947 to 1951 and another publication entitled ''Wankard Pooser's Bumblebee – The Paper With A Sting'', which ceased publication in 1958. Residing in Marianna, Florida, he was elected to the
Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...
to represent Jackson County in 1944, with his term starting in 1945. It was said that his legislative goals were to "curb the growing tendency toward dictatorship in American Government, and to put some brakes on run-a-way taxes". He also made a campaign promise to reject every single bill that was presented to him, a promise which he would only stray from once in his legislative career. In the 1945 legislative session, Pooser was involved in an incident in which he introduced a law in the house calling for additional regulation at Jackson County hospitals. When the bill was opposed by fellow member John Lambe, Pooser brought up the fact that Lambe's newborn child had died at a hospital earlier that week, causing Lambe to "break down" and withdraw from the debate. Pooser later apologized and requested to be excused from further attendance in that legislative session. Also notably, upon the passing of a sales tax bill in the house, Pooser dropped to the chamber floor and started
praying Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified an ...
for the
taxpayers A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
of Florida. Pooser was a critic of economic policy, with a newspaper describing him as a "stormy petrel of the economy bloc". He was also a vocal critic of the administration of the Governor of Florida,
Fuller Warren Fuller Warren (October 3, 1905September 23, 1973) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 30th governor of Florida. Early life and education Born in Blountstown, Florida, he attended the University of Florida in Gainesvil ...
. In 1946, Pooser was an unsuccessful candidate for the Florida State Senate; in that same election, his wife, Maude also ran unsuccessfully for the State House of Representatives. Pooser was defeated in 1949 for his seat in the house, and left the seat in 1950. He attempted a comeback in 1952, but was defeated in a primary by Hugh Dukes by a margin of 24 votes. He was married to Maude Marie Brogdon at Jackson County on August 15, 1915, and with her had eleven children. Pooser died at Jackson County in 1978 and was buried at Pope Cemetery in Sneads, Jackson County, Florida. He was predeceased by his wife, who died December 15, 1966, at the age of 68. In a 1958 article, Pooser referred to himself as a "famous author, statesman, ndpoet". It was also said that he was known around his city of residence as a "lawyer, ex-legislator, ... noted local after-dinner speaker, wit, ndcritic".


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pooser, Wankard 1893 births 1978 deaths People from DeFuniak Springs, Florida Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives People from Marianna, Florida 20th-century American legislators 20th-century Florida politicians