The Political Whore

The season of slime starts early, and isn’t even that original, to tell you the truth. Haven’t we seen these same “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” parody attack ads in every elections since at least 2004? Didn’t we see similar ads trotted out against Vern Buchanan two years ago?

Either way, the shadowy 527 group Don’t Bank on Sink has released an Internet ad mocking CFO and governor candidate Alex Sink’s use of state airplanes.

Watch the entire ad and learn more about who’s behind the group after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Here is her video launch:

Having another guv from the Tampa Bay area (Alex Sink and her hubby, former gov candidate Bill McBride, still have a large lakefront home out in Thonotosassa in eastern Hillsborough) wouldn’t be a bad thing. Last one was Bob Martinez in the 1980s. And today, Sink, a former banker turned Florida’s chief financial officer, made it official that she will seek (and get) the Democratic nomination for governor in 2010 as Charlie Crist flees the mansion.

The Palm Beach Post has her full statement:

Read the rest of this entry »

Many people expect an announcement that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist will say he’s running for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, when the governor is set to announce his political future. To be sure, an open Senate seat does not come along very often … but this could be a major problem for Republicans.

Read the rest of this entry »

He is the popular mayor of the fourth-largest city in the fourth largest state with a proven record of achievement and yet Rick Baker may have hit the ceiling as far as his political career is concerned. With Bill McCollum announcing that he will not run for the US Senate – thereby guaranteeing a bid for re-election as Florida’s attorney general — and Alex Sink’s decision to remain as CFO, Baker now finds himself without an open office for which to run. Read the rest of this entry »

By Peter Schorsch
PoHo contributor

Not only is it light years away from November 2010, but the prospect of another grueling campaign in Florida — this time to replace Mel Martinez in the U.S. Senate — has yet to excite me.  I’m obviously not alone in this feeling either, as the two biggest names in both parties, Jeb Bush and Alex Sink, decided not to run for the seat. That leaves both sides of the aisle with candidates for whom the word ’senatorial’ does not immediately come to mind.

Allen Boyd? He just doesn’t scream Daniel Patrick Moynihan to me. Florida’s congressional delegation is already weak enough relative to the other large states, such as California and none of the expected contenders are likely to change that. Bill McCollum? He tried to impeach Bill Clinton! Now we’re going to reward him with a membership in the most exclusive political body in the history of the Western world? Read the rest of this entry »

Researchers polled it with top Democrat Alex Sink in the race, even though she has announced she will not run, and still it wasn’t great news for Democrats. The Quinnipiac University poll released this week shows the difficulty Obama’s party will have in winning Mel Martinez’s Florida seat in 2010, as I outlined in my column this week.

Atty General Bill McCollum (courtesy myfloridalegal.com)

It was a toss-up with Sink in the race, at least against GOP Attorney General and anti-casino noodge Bill McCollum. McCollum led 36 percent-35 percent. Not exactly a great starting point for your strongest candidate — who is not even running.

The breakdown of the rest of the race:

Had Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink decided to run for the U.S. Senate, she would have had a small early lead in the Democratic field, and run almost even with the best-known GOP potential candidate, Attorney General Bill McCollum, with 35 percent for Sink and 36 percent for McCollum, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds.

Although McCollum holds a wide lead in name recognition among the GOP candidates, U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV, son of the former senator with the same name, runs closely to him in a trial heat of GOP contenders and also is viewed very positively by the party-rank-in-file.

“No one has surfaced as a likely Democratic opponent for Gov. Charlie Crist and that’s not surprising given how well he is thought of by Floridians,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “It’s impressive at this time of national Obamamania that Gov. Crist’s favorability rating is slightly higher than that of the new President. Of course, it’s still more than 21 months until the 2010 election, but Charlie Crist looks like a very strong candidate for re-election.”

Here is how they stand today (a fairly meaningless exercise, I admit, except for ammo in early fundraising) on the Democratic side:

Read the rest of this entry »

The Miami Herald’s Beth Reinhard reports:

Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink is expected to announce today that she’s not running for the U.S. Senate, opening the field to a crop of lesser-known contenders.

Sink, the only statewide officeholder on the Democratic shortlist, was seen as the party’s strongest contender for the seat to be vacated by Mel Martinez in 2010. She was being recruited by the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee and Emily’s List, a national fundraising group that backs female candidates.

Sink’s decision means she is likely to pursue her real ambition, which is to run for governor — most likely in 2014 when term limits will force Charlie Crist to step down.

The Buzz’s breaking news on it here. March On Politics’ take. What it means to Democrats, from The Campaign Manager blog.

That leaves the field wide open for folks such as Sen. Dan Gelber and even such rumorees as Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, former Congressman Jim Davis, Ron Klein, Allen Boyd, Alex Penelas and just about anyone else with the time and energy to get their name out there statewide.

Here’s a wrap-up on what we know about who is in and who is out in the race for the U.S. Senate in 2010:

DEMOCRATS

CFO Alex Sink — definitely rethinking the race now that Mel is out. The Trib said she “is her party’s 800-pound gorilla – if she wants the nomination, it’s hers.”

State Sen. Dan Gelber — well liked in the party but not known outside of South Florida, despite his turn heading up the 2008 election cycle for the Democrats. A race against Martinez that would have raised his profile and set the table for a future statewide run would have been a better fit for him than a battle possibly against Alex Sink.

Allen Boyd — A congressman from the Panhandle whose name recognition statewide is too low.

Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schulz of Weston — Her spokesman said she’s happy in the House, where she is a rising star in the capo regime of Nancy Pelosi.

Former Tampa Congressman Jim Davis — The Trib reports he is not interested. His name continues to be bandied about for Tampa mayor in 2011, although some believe he won’t run and is happy making money as a Washington and Tampa lawyer.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio — Uncertain, gave a noncomittal answer to queries.

Other names out there: Others: U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, Frank Sanchez of Tampa, fundraiser Chris Korge of Miami, Boca Raton Congressman Ron Klein.

Analysis: Sink has a strong advantage if she chooses to run, and she likely will, but expect other Democrats to get in as well, hoping for her to stumble or taking the opportunity to build their statewide name recognition.

REPUBLICANS

Former Gov. Jeb Bush — Martinez’s dropout changes everything for the former guv and presidential brother. Bush would have been positioned to run for president in 2012 if his brother hadn’t so sullied the Bush name. Bush is allowing friends to leak out his interest in the seat, and he would wipe not only any GOP candidate off the map but any Democrat as well. The seat is his for the taking.

Attorney General Bill McCollum — Propped up by the social conservative wing of the party, McCollum has been trying to get back to Washington since his days in the House trying to impeach Bill Clinton. He’ll run for sure unless Jeb! gets in.

Former House Speaker Marco Rubio of Miami — definitely interested.

Former House Speaker Alan Bense of Panama City — definitely interested.

Congressman Connie Mack IV — definitely interested.

Charlie Crist — Forget about it; Charlie is better positioned to run for higher office (read: president) as the centrist governor of Florida than having to play the Capitol games in the US Senate.

Congressman Adam Putnam of Bartow — Howdy Doody stays put in the US House for now and is eyeing a run for the Ag Commissioner slot in 2010.

Others mentioned: State Sen. Dan Webster, Fla. House Majority Leader Adam Hasner of Delray Beach, Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty, Congressman John Mica of Winter Park, Congresswoman Ginnie Brown-Waite.

Analysis: Jeb! is unbeatable, and if he gets in, there will be no substantive GOP primary. Running against him is a suicide mission that will be viewed as disloyal by the Republican faithful. Everybody else (but McCollum) is just throwing their name out there for free publicity.

Other coverage:Orlando Sentinel here and here; AP; Palm Beach Post.

It won’t be incumbent Republican Mel Martinez, who shocked the establishment today with his announcement that he will be a one-term wonder:

The Senate is the only federal office carrying a six-year term, so a decision about whether to run for re-election is one that my family and I have carefully considered over the past year. It was a question that came to mind as I wrote my book – causing me to reflect on the path I’ve chosen, and to think about, with love and gratitude, those who’ve traveled with me.

The inescapable truth, for me, is that the call to public service is strong, but the call to home, family and lifelong friends is even stronger.

So today, with deep love for this country and with sincere gratitude to the people who placed their trust in me, I announce that I will not run for reelection to the United States Senate.

(full text after the jump)

The Orlando Sentinel reported that Martinez’s fundraising had lagged, hurt by a probe into his 2004 campaign.

And until Martinez made his surprising announcement, it wasn’t going to be Florida CFO Alex Sink, either. Sink had signaled to numerous reporters that she was taking a pass on the 2010 Senate race in favor of sitting tight as the highest-ranking elected Democrat in the state. But in the aftermath of Martinez’s surprise, Sink is rethinking the race, according to March on Politics:

Suddenly, after Sen. Mel Martinez’s announcement that he won’t run for re-election, Alex Sink’s staff is retracting her leaked plans to forgo the Senate race. “I spoke too soon—there’s not going to be an announcement today,” a Sink spokeswoman said.

Unnamed sources close to Sink had spread the word among reporters this morning that she would run for re-election to her chief financial officer seat in 2010 rather than seek the Martinez Senate seat. A formal announcement would be coming before lunchtime, they said.

Best guess: The Martinez pull-out puts Sink back into it, since she has been looking for either an open Senate seat or Governor’s race for her next jump up. But she won’t be alone in the primary. Expect lots of other Democrats to take a look, including former state House Minority Leader Dan Gelber and South Florida state Sen. Dave Aronberg.

On the GOP side, it will be a free-for-all, with Attorney General Bill McCollum clearly coveting the return trip to Washington that he tried to win in 2004. The deep GOP bench could also find players such as former House Speaker Marco Rubio and Sen. Dan Webster. More to come on this speculation, and that’s all it is for now.

Read the rest of this entry »

Nearly 200 people showed up for Sunday night’s GLBTA Democratic Caucus of Hillsborough County, an evening of blues, booze and politics at Skipper’s Smokehouse. Some in the crowd were decked out in homemade Barack Obama T-shirts and SayNo2 stickers, urging people to vote against the anti-gay marriage Amendment 2 referendum in November.

The event, titled “The Times They-Are-A-Changin’,” featured live music from blues acts Soul2Earth, Rebekah Pulley & the Reluctant Prophets and Roppongi’s Ace, while participants mingled with candidates and checked out Hillsborough’s new voting machines.

An Obama campaigner chats with members of the crowd who stuck around despite a thunderstorm (photo by Amelia Harnish)

“We wanted people to come in and have some fun and talk politics,” said Sally Phillips, president of the GLBTA Caucus. “Our efforts for this are focused on getting out the vote… and to make sure that everyone knows the Democratic Party is here. “

Among the candidates roaming Skipper’s outdoor bar area were GLBTA Caucus member and endorsee Kevin Beckner, who spoke between sets about the need for Hillsborough County to come together to address “quality of life issues” such as transportation. Beckner is running for the countywide seat on the Hillsborough County Commission now held by Republican Brian Blair.

CFO Alex Sink, Florida’s highest ranking Democrat, and her husband, former governor candidate Bill McBride, also attended. Sink spoke only for a few minutes, but the crowd was pleased with her support. “There is change in the air,” she announced to numerous cheers and whistles.