On a conference call Wednesday afternoon, key advisers for Marco Rubio's Senate campaign discussed their strategy for the general election. In short, they intend to depict Charlie Crist as a serial flip-flopper, and expect Crist's Democratic support whither as enthusiasm for Kendrick Meek inevitably rises.
Strategist Todd Harris said that they believe that at least 20% of the electorate still don't know much about Marco Rubio, and they intend on telling his story. This first ad intends to do that:
Harris was somewhat complimentary of Kendrick Meek, saying that they expect him to run a credible campaign that will bring Democrats back into the fold, after flirting with Crist in the summer. Translation: They're not at all worried about the Miami Congresman, and why should they be? As pollster Whit Ayres remarked, a compiled average of all of the recent polls has Crist and Rubio virtually tied for the lead at around 35%, with Meek down in the mid teen's.
Harris also said that though sometimes debates can be overrated, he doesn't believe that's the case in a big state like Florida, and says they'll "aggressively" request to have those scheduled.
Rubio adman Heath Thompson said another reason for dropping their new ad, called "Dream,"is that after $12 million alone was spent last week on mostly toxic ads in the state, the Rubio camp wanted to provide a different style to the voters.
This article appears in Aug 19-25, 2010.