The St. Pete Times' Alex Leary is reporting on what has been heavily rumored for months, if not more than a year; that Florida's" accidental Senator" in 2009-2010, George LeMieux, will officially announce next week that he will be a candidate for the Republican nomination for Senate in 2012.
Earlier this week, LeMieux sounded like he was ready to go when speaking at the Palm Beach Young Republicans’ meeting, where he sounded as harsh as any Republican currently in Congress, attacking President Obama for not showing leadership when it comes to Libya. And he already had his talking points prepared to attack the man whose job he aspires to, Democrat Bill Nelson, in this video, courtesy of South Florida political blogger the Shark Tank.
Yes, just like Rick Scott earned his job in part by conflating Alex Sink with President Obama, Nelson is prepared to do it all over again (why not since it worked for Scott?), calling Nelson "an Obama liberal, a Nancy Pelosi liberal, a Harry Reid liberal."
Because of his former alliance with former Florida Governor Charlie Crist, LeMieux may have the patina of being a moderate. It's hard to say, since he really didn't have an opportunity to spread his wings while in D.C., but in trying to win a GOP primary, being associated with Crist is the last thing that LeMieux wants or needs, and thus the mass bashing of Nelson and Obama has already begun.
Going up against Mike Haridopolos and potentially Adam Hasner, both perceived to be to the right of LeMieux, you'll be hearing a steady diet of this rhetoric all the way through next summer, no doubt.
This article appears in Mar 31 – Apr 6, 2011.