The Bright Side to the ObamaCare Ruling

An appeals court today ruled that the individual health mandate is unconstitutional. That's ridiculous. But i am sure Bill McCollum is feeling vindicated to see his politically-driven lawsuit filed on behalf of us, the Florida taxpayers, result in some embarrassment for the White House.

I wonder, though, how he feels that the greatest political damage this will cause is likely to Mitt Romney. I expect the hit county on video of the ex-Massachusetts governor proclaiming "I like mandates" is soaring as we speak.

But this, of course, is a matter of law, and I can't help but wonder what the long-term ramifications will be with the courts ruling the government can't tell citizens to buy insurance. Personally, I am waiting to see if state AG Pam Bondi will now tell lawmakers in Tallahassee to drop a requirement for Floridians to own car insurance. Considering Florida has long held that all children should have health insurance with the state even if parents didn't buy it for themselves, I wonder if the state will find itself arguing a "compelling reason" to at least apply the concept of health mandates to minors.

This ruling, of course, is a disappointment to me, but I must say there is some schadenfreude to experience knowing how complicated this will make things for the right. Even though conservatives have long cried about the mandate as the worst part of this bill, that was never what really drove them crazy. Actually, the mandate is what was used to appease insurance companies. The judge in this case ruled that the mandate could be ruled unconstitutional without tossing ObamaCare completely, so this in some ways is a terrible outcome for Republicans, and especially for insurance companies. The ruling essentially says that all the reforms in ObamaCare are legal and sound, and that only a requirement to buy insurance crosses the line.

So when Gov. Scott is next caught beaming about how he was right about ObamaCare all along, ask yourself whether this former healthcare CEO was really bothered by a requirement for Americans to be insured, something which guarantees people are using hospitals more often, or if the problem he and his lobby always had was with the regulations intended to stop insurance companies from screwing patients. Because those parts of ObamaCare still stand.

And remember, if reasonable leaders can get back to Washington, changes can always be made to legislation. Maybe this ruling will embolden leaders in Washington to push for true universal health care and avoid the entire mandate argument in the first place. This ruling is a knock on Obama, for sure, but is no defeat for true health care reform.

Florida's Health Care Challenge

I wrote about the ongoing litigation nationwide a few days ago, but there is a much better write-up specific to Bill McCollum's wrong-headed challenge of ObamaCare up at the Florida Progressive Coalition.

The post does a great job of showing the special issues which are unique to McCollum's suit and which threaten the health coverage of millions in Florida.

Written by dantilson:

---

What he’s referring to is the fact that roughly half of the 32 million uninsured Americans to be covered by the new law will be covered by the federal-state Medicaid program, through very moderate expansion in its eligibility requirements. Regarding poverty issues in Florida, note that 2.7-million citizens, or roughly 1 in 7 people, are living under the poverty level. Florida has had the largest increase in that statistic of any state in the country since 2007. Ron Pollack, Executive Director of the national advocacy organization, Families USA, had a few other interesting facts to share with reporters in today’s conference call:

• To qualify for Medicaid coverage currently in FL, a 3-person family (which must include at least one dependant child) cannot have a combined annual income of more than $9,700.
• An individual with no dependant children cannot currently qualify for FL Medicaid coverage, regardless of income.
• For years 2014, 2015, and 2016, the federal government will pick up 100% of the cost of every one of the state’s newly eligible Medicaid recipients who quallify as a result of the new rules. In following years, Florida will never have to pick up more than a dime out of every dollar in those costs, and there will be a gradual rise to that cap.

---

There is much more if you follow the link, which you should.

In Defense of Sink

I find it curious that Chuck Todd would focus so much on Florida this year, but take serious exception to his naming Alex Sink the worst candidate of the 2010 election cycle.

Certainly, Sink made some missteps, most notably in trying to force Bud Chiles out of the primary. That contest could have raised her profile and aired all dirty laundry early rather than fighting off attacks from Rick Scott in October.

But in general, I think Sink ran an outstanding campaign. Her biggest problem was a GOP tide that seemed to sweep the nation, something which led to Democratic losses in every statewide contest and in every Congressional race which was at all competitive. Why should Sink take all the heat for that loss?

Todd's explanation, via the Palm Beach Post:
---
"You lost to a guy who defrauded Medicare, in Florida! Okay? More people on Medicare in Florida than maybe any other state."
---

But Todd's criticisms seem aimed exclusively at Scott's weaknesses as a candidate, not in the way in which Sink ran her campaign, or in her own qualifications for governor. Why wasn't Bill McCollum also included on the list today, then? He, after all, couldn't even convince party regulars to get him through the Republican primary against Scott.

The reason Rick Scott won is because of money. Plain and simple. Those senior voters Todd seems to allude to, many of whom retired her with amazing pensions and who have no need for Medicare, are more affected by television advertising. They don't sift through the blogs all day. They don't spend all their time personally researching candidate's backgrounds. They allow the war to be waged during commercial breaks during golf tourneys and soap operas.

Sink certainly devoted an enormous amount of advertising to exposing that record. I think few voters were left unaware come November that Rick Scott has pled the fifth 75 times.

The race was up and down all cycle. In early October, Scott was riding momentum from a primary win pretty strong. But in the following weeks, Sink pulled ahead. It wasn't until the GOP machine, focused on retaking the House of representatives, started to get into gear that a wave took the nation, and the state.

That seemed to swallow campaigns which otherwise had the upper-hand. Ron Klein was leading in most polls until the last few weeks. Joe Garcia once held a strong edge over David Rivera. Yet they both got trounced on Election Day.

Remember, Alex Sink's loss was the closest of any contested race in Florida that held any national significance. She fought off the impending GOP wave better than any other politician in Florida. It just wasn't enough. She was no Harry Reid, but she didn't run a poor campaign either.

Listen to Jeb on Immigration

It truly is a shame when a Republican speaking sense is a clear sign he isn't running for president. But Jeb Bush joked this week that his opposition of irrational immigration reforms were a sign he was not running for office.

His prospect-ending position? That Hispanic people not be required to carry proof of citizenship to the grocery store.

Via the Denver Post:

---

While (Bush) is sympathetic to the plight of Arizona officials forced to deal with all the problems linked to a porous frontier, he believes there are solutions other than a law criminalizing illegal immigrants, he said.

"It's the wrong approach," he said. "The net result is not much has been done."

Read more:In visit to Denver, Jeb Bush says he doesn't agree with Arizona's immigration law - The Denver Posthttp://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_16782092#ixzz17MpxdM1U
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: http://www.denverpost.com/termsofuse

---

That's the problem with Jeb Bush in the eyes of the ideological right. He looks at results. The Arizona law is a racist in its generation and impractical in its execution. Certain elements in the law allowing citizens to sue if cops aren't being racist enough make it morally, and probably legally, detestable.

Of course, when Bill McCollum said "We don't need that law in Florida" it won only suspicion and scorn from the tea party-dominated Republican primary electorate. Full-throated support of the law won Scott attention on the right, and ultimately got him into the governor's mansion. All indications are that a new law will be passed by the Legislature this year that looks more like the Arizona law than anything else.

But it would be nice if the Republicans in the Legislature paid some heat to Jeb Bush. He worries such a law would be so broad his own children couldn't walk around without being deemed suspicious. In a state where so much of the Hispanic population hails from Cuba, and who are therefore legal by right of standing on dry land, shows why this law makes even less sense in Florida than it does out West.

We will see if one of the leading conservative thinkers in Republican policy still has enough pull in a state where he served as governor for eight years to stop this so-called reform.

Bill McCollum is Dead to Me

I have defended him, to loved ones in private and to the blogosphere online. But right now, Bill McCollum is dead to me. He has done the unthinkable and betrayed Florida to the enemy,

He has endorsed Rick Scott:

---

Our state needs conservative leaders who will grow our economy and create jobs. We need merit pay and an end to teacher tenure in our public schools, major litigation reform, smaller government, low taxes and a repeal of Obamacare... It’s the better choice for Florida.

---

I never expected McCollum to endorse Alex Sink, of course. But he had no obligation to chime in on behalf of this lunatic candidate. There is no decent reason to play the partisan for the executive branch. Immediately following the primary, he was talking about helping legislative candidates statewide. That seemed a fine and noble end for the politician.

Now he backed a man who he should be serving subpoenas.

This race isn't about ObamaCare. And Rick Scott isn't about small government. He is about corrupting the process.

I could understand McCollum backing down six years ago and endorsing Mel Martinez even after the soon-to-be Senator had called the "new darling of the homosexual extremists." That was for a Senate seat, and partisan caucusing matters in the Senate. This is crazy.

The worst Scott has been able to throw at Sink is that she didn't do enough to stop bad investments at the SBA, where, it should be noted, she was the Democrat in the minority. Who were the Republicans in the majority? Bill McCollum and Charlie Crist. He has countered the temerity of Scott's attacks on Sink before, but now stands with Scott.

I take back everything nice I ever said. Bill McCollum is dead to me.

Memories of the SBA

It was only a matter of time before this became a campaign issue. The sloppy investment decisions of the State Board of Administration gripped government officials throughout Florida three years ago, throwing retirement funds for cities and school boards into total disarray and spawning creation of a competing investment portfolio.

And Alex Sink was a part of it. Her position on the Cabinet and SBA gave her one of three votes on the investments. Until August, the best hope of allaying any political consequence for this was that Bill McCollum, the once-presumptive GOP nominee for governor, was just as much to blame. Now Sink has secured the Democratic nomination, but Rick Scott's surprise candidacy balances out the ballot.

But I'm not that worried. I link above to a St. Pete Times on the entire SBA affair. It's a fair assessment, but it's a gobbledygook of a scandal. Basically, money managers were chasing higher yields on investments, something they really shouldn't do with a standing fund such as this, and got burned by a collapsing economy. They were running the funds like an investor looking for a quick buck, and Sink, McCollum and Gov. Charlie Crist went along.

None of it was illegal. It was all just stupid.

I was covering the City of Cape Coral when all this went down, and that city was among those who yanked their money and fled the system, never to come back. The finance director for the city got an award for the foresight, but I also spoke with other cities who felt the mass exodus created the collapse as much as the actions of the SBA. That, I would note, is an opinion not well-expressed in this piece.

But the biggest reason this won't be a candidacy-cratering controversy? It's too complicated. Sink was one of three people who supported a move which could have boosted public revenues, but always ran the risk of costing. The latter occurred. How many people have been directly affected by this? Excluding those SBA officials who lost their jobs amid the original scandal, nobody. If you don't quite understand what all happened, you are not alone.

Compare that the the biggest of Rick Scott's scandals. His company was fined for stealing from the federal government. You get that? The fine was for $1.7 billion. The loot was likely much larger. Scott likes to brag the HCA had cheap rates when he was in charge. How were they low? If he'd known, he says he would have stopped the fraud. But according to another Times expose, he was warned of problems but never bothered to check things out.

That's all pretty cut and dry. Sink, as one of three votes, supported a bad investment and got snookered by crooks.

Rick Scott's company was caught stealing.

Which story scares you the most?

Sink Kick's Scott's Hiney in Fundraising

Division of Elections reports show enormous fundraising successes for Democrat Alex Sink in the wake of the state primary. I would like to think that would give naysayers some pause as they predict the doom of the Democratic Party this November.

Alex Sink grabbed a cool $525,000, compared to in Rick Scott's $43,000. I know that doesn't mean a huge amount because Scott is just going to bankroll the race the same as he has done to this point. The man has loaned a shocking $38.9 million to his own coffers so far. But this does show a huge enthusiasm gap in our favor.

From the time Rick Scott first reported figures in April up until the end of the last reporting period of Sept. 3, the Republican has only collected just over $567,000 in cash donations. Sink has taken in around $8 million. And since she is showing a 2- to 7-point lead in recent polls, the news is roses right now for Florida's CFO.

All of the data, be it financial or in the polls, indicates that Sink's supporters want her to win. That makes a huge difference going forward. After a bitter and divisive primary, one which offered Bill McCollum supporters few reasons to support Scott with any sort of enthusiasm, the Republicans are in bad shape when it comes to the gubernatorial race.

In a year when the Tea Party voters get all the press, and a year when so many people supposedly are frustrated with the Democrats, the Republican Party of Florida has to be very frustrated right now. But this is predictable. Bill McCollum ran a lackluster campaign and got beaten by a terrible candidate with a huge bankroll. All of the establishment Republicans in the state, from Jeb Bush to Jon Thrasher, found themselves with egg on their face, spending Primary day at what had to be a very depressing party in Central Florida waiting to hear McCollum concede.

Now, most party establishment has officially gotten behind Scott, but Scott had made them look stupid. He called the state GOP corrupt, labeled all Tallahassee insiders as a major problem, and now has no concrete party support. Plus, McCollum did everything he could to point out the ten shades of sleazy that color Scott's shadowy past. Independent and liberal voters did not vote in the GOP primary, but the learned plenty about Scott along the way. And while Sink coasted to her party's nomination with nary a bad word said, Scott had poisonous negatives come dawn on Aug. 25.

Things will change, of course. Scott will run nasty campaign ads which tar Sink as a Tallahassee insider as well. He will ask voters if they really want a former Bank of America executive handling Florida's purse strings. He will subtly raise questions whether we are ready for a female governor, and drop hints about whether the woman is too liberal if she won't take her husband's last name. All the crap he has, he will throw.

But we know that. McCollum was taken by surprise. He may have known Scott was a crook, but could not anticipate the tactics Scott would employ is his vanity-driven, shameless power grab of a campaign. We know. And so do voters.

Chiles Supports Sink, McCollum Stays Mum

It is official. Bud Chiles has ended his independent run. But I think the more surprising thing is that he has endorsed Alex Sink. From his online sign-off:

---

"This decision to step aside comes with many emotions – sadness, yes, but also resolve and faith that our message has not fallen on deaf ears. While she and I have some differences, I am confident that she will wake up every morning determined to fight for what’s best for Floridians."

---

He draws a stark difference, of course, with zillionaire Rick Scott, who "may not have the best interest of Floridians at heart." I call that an understatement, but then, I am no politician or statesman.

But I want to draw a stark contrast with this and Bill McCollum. As quoted in The Buzz, McCollum has congratulated Scott but has no plans to endorse. Apparently, after a slash-and-burn campaign where Scott refused to disclose much about himself but tarred and feathered a long-serving public servant, McCollum still has questions about "his charecter, his integrity, his honesty."

I don't think that is just sour grapes. I was amazed in 2004 when Bill McCollum, after a grueling primary in which Mel Martinez called McCollum the "new darling of the homosexual extremists," McCollum ended up backing the GOP nominee. What is different now?

This is an executive post. McCollum may have had a professional respect in 2004 for Democrat Betty Castor, but he was not going to back anyone who would caucus in Washington with Senate Democrats. In collegial legislative bodies, party matters. So does philosophy, and whatever personal gripe he had with Martinez, the two aligned politically, and Martinez would promote a similar agenda to the one McCollum had in Congress.

But a major thing to consider as Chiles endorses Sink is this. Chiles has no obligation to back Sink. He challenged as an independent. There is no party commitment. He hasn't run before and may never run again. McCollum, though, has somewhat of a partisan obligation to back the victor of the primary in the general election. Right now, he is choosing not to do so.

That truly speaks volumes.

Primary Day - Florida Governor

Update: AP Just called it for Scott. The campaign has declared victory on its website. Crap.

Update: So this looks like Scott, who has 57 percent, but it would be crazy early to call it now. Big counties, notable Broward and Duval, have not done full, if any, reporting. That means this could swing in a big way if McCollum did well in the cities. But that's a big if. Those are markets where media saturation could work in Scott's favor.

Update: Still well over a dozen counties have yet to report any votes at all. But so far, Rick Scott is holding onto the lead. So much for those polls showing McCollum with an 11-point advantage. Unless something turns, he won't even get the nomination.

Update: This will be very, very close. Right now, Rick Scott is winning with 46 percent to McCollum's 44 percent. Too close and too early to tell.

But Alex Sink is in. The Democratic primary is cleary over.

---

The big race is on the Republican side where Attorney General Bill McCollum battles Rick Scott and also ran Mike McCalister.

For the Democrats, expect Alex Sink to win the formal nomination over sometimes Green Party supporter Brian Moore.

Is Anger Burning Out or Learning Up?

Rick Scott is hoping major turnout tomorrow helps him overcome a deficit shown in recent polling, according to The Buzz. I like to think better of the people than believing stupidity is more likely en masse, but I am sure Scott doesn't view things quite that way. But he does have a point.

I have promised myself not to pick apart the polls until the primary is over, but I do think there is something at play in the statistics beyond a move in the voters away from these money candidates like Scott. Namely, likely-voter screens are getting rid of the uninformed. Primary elections typically just draw out the party faithful, or in the case of the governor's race, McCollum voters. These people have followed politics for years, and in some cases pulled the lever by his name back when you literally pulled the lever by a candidate's name.

But I like to think the new voters, those that would need to come out in order for turnout to be so high, are not such fools. Three months ago, perhaps, a message of hiring any random insider seemed something worth consideration. Back then was the heyday of the Scotts and the Jeff Greenes. It was also back when your Sharon Angles and Rand Pauls were winning primaries, but more important, it was far from our actual primary day.

Trashing Kendrick Meek's record worked fine in late April. It fed the public perception that Congressmen were all thieves or buffoons. People weren't checking on the facts about Meek. Maybe they still aren't. But they are checking on Greene.

Since then voters have checked into these men's own records. They couldn't continue to run against the bums who hold office today. Accountability caught up with them. Fines for fraud and trips to Cuba are bringing up the negatives on these vanity candidates. And voters may be anxious to toss the current lot of office-holders, they won't blindly swap for a set of genuine crooks.

So the biggest reason Scott would see a high turnout as a plus for his campaign is that it would indicate voters weren't so turned off by both candidates to be compelled to sit this one out. He may hope he can buy enough fools to stuff the boxes. I don't think this will be so easy.

I am still anxious about the elections tomorrow. The mailers and radio ads from Greene are inescapable. Rick Scott's evil mug stares at me every time I log into Facebook. But if voters have done even the slightest bit of their homework, these billionaires will realize they just wasted a lot of dough.

So Sick of Polls

I recently heard USF Professor Susan MacManus suggest Florida is over-polled on politics. Being a swing state for presidential elections and host to a competitive Senate race most cycles, that is possibly true. But right now, I am wishing it wasn't getting polled at all.

A new Quinnipaic has some interesting results, but at this point, I find myself taking everything with a grain of salt. Their data shows shows Alex Sink winning the governor's race against either Bill McCollum or Rick Scott, but shows both Republicans getting the exact same percentage (29) and Bud Chiles pulling in 12 percent regardless of who wins the GOP nomination. That odd coincidence was enough to make RedState write off the poll. Which I kind of understand.

Of course, they loved the poll that shows Marco Rubio winning the Senate race in a Rubio-Charlie Crist-Kendrick Meek matchup. I said then the poll shouldn't be taken seriously. Now I wonder if any should.

The only axiom in politics is that only one poll matters. That, of course, is the true results on election say. There is so much interest in Florida's gubernatorial and Senate contests that we are getting polls everyday offering different results. It is easy to find comfort in a poll which shows your guy on top, and I am as guilty as any there. Yesterday, I posted something on McCollum leading Scott in the polls, and planned to do another post yesterday on Meek beating Greene.

But a poll can be found to support any candidate. Jeff Greene. Rick Scott. Every candidate that matters has seen a poll come out in the last five weeks which showed them on top. The results vary greatly. That is because the questions asked vary, and the voter screening is different. Enough so that the numbers may best be described now as crap. And if the opinion of the public on these candidates is so malleable it can shift 11 points in two days, then there is no way pollsters can get voters on the phone fast enough they don't their minds.

So I am giving up on polls at least until after the primary. No more will be sourced on this blog until we know the candidates on the November ballot.

McCollum Could Fend Off Scott's Ill-Gotten Gains

While I am openly rooting for Democrat Alex Sink to win the governor's race, I am quite happy the new Quinnipaic poll shows Bill McCollum beating Rick Scott, who brings toxicity to this entire contest.

I don't like McCollum's ridiculous health care lawsuit or his hate-pandering immigration proposal, but the man is a proven public servant with decades of experience serving Florida first as a Congressman and then as Attorney General. It's real cool right now to throw the bums out, but swapping experienced leaders for hacks with big bank accounts is not the solution to our problems in government. We need better leaders, not richer ones.

Scott, though, is a proven failure in the private sector who only made his millions breaking the rules and negotiating good severance packages. After his heath care company racked up $1.7 billion worth of fines following a landmark fraud case, he has fought tooth and nail against letting any of his testimony in the case come out. So much for taking responsibility. Of course, his answer has been to say McCollum only wants the truth out as part of a political stunt.

I say, 'So What?'

That response reminds me of when GOP leadership in the House blamed Democrats for letting the story of Mark Foley's intern-harassing come out in order to take political advantage. Never mind it was actually a Republican former intern who blew the whistle, exposing a predator going after children was the right thing to do whether there was gain in it or not. It's like attacking someone who turns in a kidnapper just to get the reward money.

If Scott is going to get angry anytime his own words prove publicly embarrassing, someone should remind him this is the Sunshine State in more ways than one. We have some of the best open government laws in the nation. All of a governor's emails pertaining to politics and government are public record and they do come out. Ask Jeb Bush.

Most credit Bush, of course, with helping McCollum through the last slogging month. The former governor's endorsement carries a lot of weight with Florida Republican voters. I am sure that contributes to McCollum bringing his favorables up to 44 percent. But there is likely more to it than that. This is a dramatic rebound for McCollum, who Q had pegged as losing to Scott 43-32 as recently as July 29. Now he is winning 44-35. In that span, undecideds only dropped from 23 percent to 19 percent, so McCollum has been poaching from Scott's support.

More likely, the polls are starting to zero in on those voters who are actually going to bother showing up to the polls. Those voters are party regulars and tend to be more educated. And they are voters who have come to primary elections year after year, often voting for McCollum whether he was seeking the nomination for Attorney General, U.S. Senator or, in the case of some Central Florida voters, Congressman.

And while McCollum's negative campaigning has at times seem crude and unrefined, it has worked at bringing down Scott's reputation. Right now, Scott is at 34/33 favorable/unfavorable ratings. On June 10, Q pegged him at 40/12. And perhaps as party regulars see Sink coasting through an uncontested primary (though independent Bud Chiles awaits in November), they worry how much more of a shellacking Scott can take in front of general election voters.

And unlike, say, Marco Rubio, Scott has not been able to bottle up the enthusiasm of the tea party quite so effectively. Perhaps that is because the attentive conservatives in Florida have always seen Impeachment Bill as a standard-bearer for the right.

Whether because of caution of enlightenment, Republican voters are coming around. But we'll see if that can last. This year may go down as the most dynamic political season in Florida history. A lead in the polls today means nothing next week.

As a P.S., I also can't help but wonder, if the establishment McCollum can fend off the insurgent Scott, will it make Charlie Crist regret fleeing from his party primary?

Conflicting Polls on Scott, McCollum

Who knows how this will go, but some pollster will look really stupid by the end of this month. Mason-Dixon yesterday said Bill McCollum was enjoying a 4-point lead on Rick Scott in the Republican primary for Governor. But the new Times/Herald poll shows 10 points for Scott.

I have been saying for months that Republicans have lost their senses if they run Scott for governor because his only experience has been leading health care companies into record fines and settlements.

But the M-D is the first poll I've seen in a while that shows McCollum up. I think the Attorney General is going to have another statewide loss on his resume pretty soon.

Rubio's Betrayal of Hispanics

It must be tough being a minority politician and, at the same time, a darling of a movement built on hate. Apparently, Marco Rubio is having as much trouble taking a stance on hating brown people in Florida as he did about hating brown people in Arizona. This tea party crusader lacks the leadership to stand up to race-baiting within his own party, and as bigotry drives more of the political conversation in the Sunshine State, it would be nice for this supposed ideological leader to stand up for something on his own.

The problems increased for Rubio this week when Bill McCollum, in his own rush to out-crazy a crazy, came out with an Arizona-like proposal to discriminate against Hispanics. This law will give police power during "lawful stops" to demand people prove their legal immigration status. I'm sure white people like myself are busy getting their paperwork in order and making room in the glove compartment.

Rubio, though, can't tell this is a bad idea. His campaign declined to take a stance when asked by Politico. This is pure cowardice, and is worse than his queasy back-and-forth regarding Arizona's law because this will actually affect his constituents should he be elected as a U.S. Senator. I've noted his fearful cowering in the face of tea party anger before, but this bill has particularly horrible ramifications in Florida. And for a man so proud to tout his Cuban-American heritage, I would hope he could see the specific ways enforcement of this type of law could go much worse here than in other parts of the country.

Cuban immigrants don't work by the same rules as those crossing the border from Mexico. We have the ridiculous and arbitrary 'wet-foot, dry-foot' policy, a child of the dinosaur Cuban embargo which every Senate candidate this year ardently supports. Sigh. What that means is Cubans who make it to dry land are not illegal. Does this policy make sense? No. But more importantly in this conversation, it makes it much harder to demand a newly-arrived immigrant from Cuba to "prove" his citizenship.

The law makes no sense anyway. The Arizona law, of course, had its controversial sections tossed in court. That law practically requires discrimination, and even if some of the more onerous parts are scrubbed, it remains bad policy.

But while we can blame so-called conservatives for preventing Rubio from taking a firm stance on that law, his tea-carrying ways don't even make sense for the Republican primary in Florida. If the GOP has any long-range future in the state, it will need a foothold in the Hispanic community, and there are no guarantees that will happen. The Bush administration knew this the last time this Senate seat was up for re-election. That was part of why the White House was so happy to see Mel Martinez as their nominee. Martinez, also a Cubano, was deeply aware that the future of the Republican party was deeply dependent on future support among Hispanic voters.

Read this Martinez quote from the 2004 CNN piece linked above:

---

"This community is still up for grabs. It's a big factor."

---

Martinez won that Senate race in a very close contest with Democrat Betty Castor, and he can thank Hispanics for that. Bush also won Florida in 2004, and did so by increasing his share of the Hispanic vote by 7 percent, according to an analysis that year by the National Review. Bush's win was close, and Martinez's was closer, and I think it is fair to believe the presence of a candidate who would become the first Cuban-American elected to the Senate played a huge role in motivating Hispanic Republicans that year.

That National Review report notes that Florida traditionally has boasted the most conservative Hispanic population in the country, thanks largely to the Republican bent of Cubans in South Florida. So why would Rubio, the Cubano conservative hero chosen to follow in Martinez's footsteps, be so unconcerned about preserving that base support? It is, quite simply, insane.

Of course, one constant misperception about the Hispanic vote in Florida is that it is all Cuban, and all conservative. A Pew analysis of Florida's vote in 2008 shows Hispanic Democrats outnumber Hispanic Republicans in the state both in registration and at the polls. Pew also finds that Cubans make up just the third-largest share of the Hispanic electorate, behind Mexicans and Puerto Ricans.

Rubio ought to think about that as he excoriates Mexicans crossing the border, and as he gets wishy-washy on a law that has most detrimentally affected law-abiding Mexicans across this country. Puerto Ricans, who are all citizens, likely won't be too excited about the consequence of this law either. At least he came down on the right side of the offensive "birthright citizenship" issue, but there is little reason for Hispanic voters to galvanize around an Hispanic candidate if he can't be trusted on Hispanic issues.

Fear of upsetting a fast-growing and influential part of the electorate, though, shouldn't be the only reason to oppose this law. It most likely can't stand legal muster, and does nothing to solve the problems of illegal immigration in the first place. As a U.S. Senator, Rubio would accomplish more in this front by helping improve the impoverished way of life in Mexico, or by helping modernize relations with Cuba. But that sort of intervention, the type that can be done without costing the lived of American or foreign lives, is an obvious no-no with the right. Hate is the only tool Republicans have left that reliably gets voters to the poll.

At some point, Rubio needs to consider with whom he has thrown his lot. These hate-mongering conservatives are the same ones who got Martinez booted as chairman of the Republican National Committee and who questioned the citizenship of Columba Bush. The only thing Rubio should be concerned about is when they will turn on him.

Unliked is not Unconstitutional

Since Impeachment Bill McCollum first filed a lawsuit against health care reform, I have been disgusted by a political stunt and the use of taxpayer dollars to counter the agenda of duly elected leaders. I was pleased to see Alex Sink and the Democratic party rake him over the coals for this anti-democratic, anti-fiscal conservative act. But when I read the words today of a Republican looking to succeed McCollum as Attorney General, I was struck by just how unconcerned modern Republicans can be about the law.

From Sunshine State News:

---

Backing Attorney General Bill McCollum’s constitutional challenge to new federal health-care laws backed by President Barack Obama, Benson called the new measures “the slippery slope toward socialized medicine” and said she would continue the fight against it.

---

That is Holly Bensen, former Health Care Administration secretary and one of three Republicans vying for the post. And according to a poll by the same news source, she is in a dead heat with Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp and former state prosecutor Pam Bondi. (Of note, I have frequently called Kottkamp the clear GOP frontrunner, but this poll indicates there is no such thing.)

What disturbs me about Bensen's position is that it is not simply politically-motivated but also logically bereft. McCollum has argued that mandating people have health insurance is a burden which violates their constitutional rights, kind of like making people pay taxes. This is stupid, of course, but it's an argument. I don't believe it will hold legal muster, and I don't think McCollum cares. He just wants to rile up the conservative base during the governor's race with an anti-Obama lawsuit he knows will be thrown out, but which likely won't reach a conclusion until his tenure as Attorney General is done.

Bensen, though, doesn't go through the niceties of making up a paper-thin justification. She just calls the reform names. SOCIALISM! What garbage. You don't need to be a lawyer to see the problems with this line of attack.

Of course, health care reform is not socialism. The proposal which could most accurately be labeled as socialism was the public option, but that was dropped during the watering down process our Congress calls legislating. If only this health care package was socialism. Then it might guarantee fairness and equity in the availability of medical care in the United States. Instead, the package signed into law by President Obama was little more than a series of new regulations, most of which won't go into effect until after the end of his first term.

Which gets to the fundamental problem with Bensen's statement. Socialism in and of itself is not unconstitutional. With all the talk among tea partiers of protecting the Constitution and fending off socialism, you would think our Founding Fathers were gripped by a red scare and that Sen. Joseph McCarthy was among the co-signers on the Declaration of Independence. Did John Adams and Thomas Jefferson envision this reform package? Probably not, but they didn't seem pre-occupied with making sure such laws would never get passed in the 13 colonies.

Much of what the American government does is socialism, including the few programs which conservatives so bitterly defend. Forcing all Americans to chip in tax dollars to pay for a police force that watches over our own people? Implementing a National Guard with the right to fire upon and kill this nation's citizens if they cause unrest? Forming a military force capable of imposing the political will of American leaders on neighboring countries based on the supposed notion of protecting America's collective interests? That is socialism. Helping poor people pay for surgery? Not so much.

And yet the creation of a police force and military are not unconstitutional. Why? The drafters of the Constitution were not concerned with socialism. Indeed, even after escaping the tyranny of King George III, our Founding Fathers still found a need for some centralized government and working function of society as a whole.

It is bad enough that an Attorney General who supposedly hates frivolous lawsuits would file suit on a law he simply doesn't like in an attempt to suck up to nutjobs. If we end up with an Attorney General who doesn't understand the basics of what makes something unconstitutional, then we are taking a nearly-impossible-to-find step down.

Greene, Scott Winning. Wake up, Florida!

The political specter many of us feared for some time may yet get the best of Florida Democrats this August. Following a multi-million ad blitz, vanity candidate Jeff Greene is posting a lead of 33-23 over Kendrick Meek in the most recent Quinnipiac poll. The same poll shows Rick Scott is beating Bill McCollum in the governor's race.

I pray the Greene poll is an outlier, but since I first balked at a Q poll about Rick Scott outperforming McCollum, the trend has born out. The Attorney General, I fear, has lost the nomination to a sham candidate. Now I worry the same will happen to Meek. I have devoted a great amount of energy to blasting Charlie Crist and promoting Meek, so I feel a need to be clear how I will respond to a Meek loss in August. I will leave the Senate bubble blank on my ballot. I will not support any candidate running for that post, and do not make that choice lightly. And I acknowledge here, in writing, that Greene is worse news for Florida Democrats than Charlie Crist regardless of where the newly-independent governor caucuses in the Senate.

Megabucks madmen Scott and Greene are from different parties but share more in common than any other candidates for statewide office. They boast no experience holding public office, and show no decent understanding of how government works. Both believe their proven ability to amass millions in personal wealth proves qualification for high office, but each balks at scrutiny on how those fortunes were made. Scott's company defrauded the federal government for billions, but wants us to believe the fact he never served time proves he holds no moral responsibility. Greene got rich betting against homeowners and crushing banks who had to pay increasing amounts to default swappers just as homeowners stopped making payments. The money-making tactics of these so-called self-made millionaires were at best amoral, though craven and greedy are more appropriate terms.

I don't want to go into my problems with Impeachment Bill McCollum here. Should he defy the odds and make it to the general, there are many issues the left can and should exploit. But Republicans are fools to believe Scott is a more qualified candidate for the governor's mansion. You have an experienced member of the Cabinet and the Congress with influence in Tallahassee and Washington, as opposed to someone whose most notable interaction with the federal government involved bilking them for billions.

But at this point, I say let the Republicans hang themselves. Scott offers us a plethora of weaknesses to exploit in November when independents and moderates, not partisans and super-voters, go to the polls.

My greater concern now is with Jeff Greene. Should he win, my hope of a rebirth of the successful Democratic party in Florida will be severely hampered. For Florida progressives to side with such a greasy figure because he sends more glossy fliers and puts up more television ads would demonstrate a pure unwillingness on the part of Sunshine State Democrats to educate themselves about the most important election this year.

Kendrick Meek is a proven progressive. He has stood up for minorities, the middle class and the poor. Derided as a child of privilege, he didn't use his mother's connections in Congress to become a lobbyist, but instead spent his days as a Florida Highway Patrolman. He was among the most pronounced liberal voices during his time in the Florida Senate, and has been a reliable progressive since becoming a member of the U.S. House. Yes, he can be a loudmouth. But while that makes him part of the obnoxious rabble that fills the House, it could be a defining characteristic for creating influence in the Senate. He could be a Russ Feingold or a Paul Wellstone there. Not since the days of Claude Pepper have Florida Democrats had such a chance to send a genuine liberal to the Senate. Don't blow this!

I realize the enormous number of Democrats who have already been woo'd by Charlie Crist. That is November. I am sure I will enumerate my problems with the governor on another day, but at the very least, Democratic voters should not shirk their duty in August to vote for the most qualified candidate in our party primary. I read posters who say Meek doesn't have a shot in November. If he loses in August, that is undoubtedly true, but at the very least, Democrats should support him in the primary and allow him to take a shot at the general.

Greene does not deserve a shot, and I cannot watch this man buy the party nomination and then cast a vote for him in November. I will not support a march toward New Jersey logic and help prop up an unqualified candidate simply because he is rich.

Meek certainly has a lot to do to win over voters who question his resilience and ability to run a winning campaign. But don't vote him down early in protest. Don't deny him a chance to win you over before November. The Q poll shows 35 percent of Democratic voters remain undecided in the primary, and 54 percent of those who do have a preference are willing to change their minds. At the least, give Meek the opportunity to change your mind.

Don't Get Excited Yet, Alex

It's old news now, but Alex Sink has pulled ahead in the governor's race, according to a new poll released today by Public Policy Polling. She beats McCollum 37-23 and Scott 36-30. There are no trend lines worth noting, as the last time PPP took a look at this race was in March. Furthermore, no other poll shows Sink leading on both Bill McCollum and Rick Scott, though a poll released earlier this month showed her ahead of McCollum.

But for a million reasons, there should be no breaking out of champaign. This poll has plenty of bad news for Sink. For 54 percent of voters, Sink in unknown, a bad thing considering she has served as Chief Financial Officer now for four years. She even remains unknown by 49 percent of Democrats. This isn't surprising to me. One thing I'd like to see polled, just for curiosity, is how many people think Alex Sink is a man. I, for one, find myself correcting her gender virtually every time her name comes up in conversation. Meanwhile, only 36 percent view Rick Scott as an unknown, and just 33 percent have no opinion of McCollum.

One curiosity, independent son-of-someone-famous Bud Chiles is only viewed positively by 12 percent of those polled, yet comes in at 13 percent in a matchup with Sink and McCollum and pulls 14 percent in a race with Sink and Scott. While he can't be called a spoiler if Sink wins, that likely shows there are some people willing to vote for Chiles based purely on his late father's good name.

What distresses me most about the poll, though, is the continued trend of Sink performing worse against Scott than McCollum. Scott is so slimy, I can't imagine why anyone would be more inclined to vote for him than any alternative. That shows more about the crooks-over-politicians mentality that poisons the tea conservatives are drinking. I've complained about this before, but there really is no core value that should drive conservatives to support Rick Scott. It is a disgrace to the philosophy that this man gains any support at all.

At this point, though, Scott is the nominee. He has extraordinary problems, and fortunately, Bill McCollum is matching Scott dollar-for-dollar in advertisements explaining everything wrong with the disgraced hospital executive as a gubernatorial prospect. Scott's negatives rise every day, and the PPP poll shows 41 percent of voters already realize he is bad news.

But since they have no opinion of Sink whatsoever, Scott can still beat Sink in the general election. That leaves the Democrat a window from now until the Aug. 24 primary election to make sure everybody in Florida knows who she is, and thinks good things about her going into November.

Don't believe Rick Scott is going to run out of money before the general. The man is sitting on more ill-gotten loot than you'll find on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. He will spend every day between Aug. 25 and Nov. 2 beating the heck out of her on the air. Sink's negatives are now at 22, but Scott will make sure they go up. Sink's positives sit at 24 today. It is her job to make those rise. While Scott and McCollum are arguing about how much taxpayer money should be wasted in their mudslinging contest, Sink needs to get on TV and convince voters she is the real deal before an utter fake starts telling them otherwise.

Prospects of Jeb! 2012

The splash on Huffington Post's homepage at lunchtime teases a prospect that frightens Florida progressives and tantalizes conservatives. That is, of course, the possibility of a Jeb Bush candidacy for president in 2012. Sam Stein writes a thorough exploration of the rising prominence of the younger Bush bro, and I must concede it is frightening for anyone who wants Florida to be a blue state two years from now. Of course, any speculation about when Jeb Bush runs for the White House is worthless until the conclusion of this election cycle, but it does now appear to be a question of when.

I won't pretend to know Jeb Bush is any deep way. Through a decade covering the Sunshine State, I interviewed him at least a dozen times, but my guess is if he saw me today, he would wonder from where he knew me, and after three seconds move on to another thought. But the casual familiarity is enough that family and friends often asked through the years what Jeb's ambitions might be in terms of higher office.

There was major speculation a year ago that the ex-governor would run for the Senate, but I knew then he had no interest in such an opportunity. Would he win? Sure. His presence would be enough to scare Rubio, Crist, and maybe even Meek off the ballot. Not only would he have been a favorite, he might have been the only credible candidate in the race. But a legislative body is no dream job to a retired executive. In Florida circles, it was well-known Bob Graham was never as happy in the Senate as he had been in the Governor's Mansion. For Jeb, the Senate would likely be even more frustrating. In Tallahassee he was boss, and during Bush's tenure, he ran the town when the Republicans held greater majorities in both houses of the Legislature than had been seen generations. Bush enjoyed that he could call a press conference and it would prompt immediate action from government officials around the state. While Jeb Bush is certainly charismatic in his own ways, he has never been collegial, and he had little patience for deliberating details of policy with peers.

A run for President, though, is another story. The White House would provide Jeb a greater bully pulpit than the governor's mansion, not a lesser one. He could once again call for legislation and know a Republican lawmaker would have something drafted by week's end. And he would have more minions answering to his whims. The Pentagon. The Treasury. Even international leaders. Every politician dreams of what it would be like to run the White House. As the son and brother of two presidents, Bush knows exactly what it would be like.

That said, I was present once when then-Gov. Bush was asked directly if he would ever run for President. Sitting officials are always guarded when asked about higher office, lest they suggest discontent with the job to which they have already been elected. But Bush seemed then to be genuinely grateful to have his job and let big brother handle the antics of D.C. There was more contention in Washington, he said. It has harder to make things happen, even things he felt should be easy to accomplish. It wasn't especially alluring, he said then. But like any seasoned politician, Jeb Bush would never say never.

Now the man is out of office, and has been playing a greater role in electing Republicans around the country than any expected him to play. While nobody was surprised to see Florida's most popular conservative backing Bill McCollum and Marco Rubio, he has been willing to share his influence outside the Sunshine State. He tossed an endorsement to Bradley Byrne, a Republican hopeful for governor of Alabama, and even tossed backing to David Casas in a state House race in Georgia. Part of his reason for supporting candidates in other states is to further his reputation as a voice in education reform, where brings certain financial benefits. But these endorsements make him friends in other states, something which could be important whenever he does run for president.

That said, I don't know that 2012 is the time to do it. Jeb Bush won't run unless he can win. He knows that, unlike governor, there are no second chances at the White House. He also understands the risks he takes through endorsements that will either help or hurt him in the near-term. Need a clear example? Both Rubio and McCollum as of today are losing their respective races for Senate and Governor. If that doesn't change, Bush's odds in 2012 are greatly diminished from the go. One of the best things Jeb has going for him in a presidential race is a perceived lock on the Florida vote, but if his support isn't enough to get prodigies elected in his home state, with a political landscape so favorable to Republicans, then he will have to sit 2012 out.

And of course, there is W. Even ignoring the monumental unpopularity which the last President Bush enjoys today, America likely suffers a good bit of Bush fatigue anyhow. I always felt the biggest liability facing Hillary Clinton in '08 was the sad prospect of the White House being occupied by only two families for 24 to 28 years. After one Obama term, would America be anymore willing to bring in another Bush? Won't national Republicans want to find someone outside the Bush dynasty who can win a presidential election?

Let me share a story from 2000 about when Dick Cheney came to Central Florida to campaign. I found myself on a local press bus that traveled 100 miles that day, and at the end I needed a ride from the campaign to get me back to my car, and on the way we talked about the governor. Jeb had traveled with Cheney all day, sharing his personal popularity in Florida at every stop. The adoration for the governor at rallies impressed the Cheney people, who by that point were already wondering what the younger Bush's future might be. They knew the governor at that point could win any office in Florida, even though his older brother was in a tight race there.

One wondered out loud if the younger Bush would run in 2004 should W. fail to win election. He wouldn't discuss that much further, though, as a lengthy hypothesis like that would be sacrilege during the late stage of the campaign. So I asked instead if Jeb seemed a good choice once his brother hypothetically finished his White House term. That elicited a laugh. "For Jeb, the best thing to happen would be for his brother to lose," the campaign aide said. "Otherwise, I think America is going to get sick of the Bushes."

Surely he never imagined then how unpopular Bush 43 would be, but his words are important today. If people in 2012 are genuinely seeking change and want an alternative to Obama, that doesn't mean they will be pining for another Bush.

Now if Jeb does run, Florida Democrats are in trouble. The national party may even decide early to kiss our electoral votes goodbye. Moreover, the coattails of a Bush candidacy would be incredible. Republicans statewide would be so energized in a very partisan way, and would come out in droved to vote a straight ticket. No Democratic Congressman in a tight re-election would want to run in that environment.

But it Democrats want that star power diminished at any point in history, they better find ways to beat Jeb Bush's slate of candidates today. If the Jeb! roster wins today, you better believe the man's reach will be longer tomorrow.

Money Still Matters Most

Bill McCollum's welfare campaign and Rick Scott's election purchase have taken the Republican primary into the courthouse, a great irony for the party which so fervently fights placing any power in the hands of the Florida judiciary. McCollum won round one of his court battle Wednesday, a surprise noted by Steve Singiser at Daily Kos, but getting stuck on the courtroom drama misses the greater point demonstrated in this war of riches.

If this decision stands, which is far from certain, it doesn't change that McCollum is being outspent by $25 million and has only $800,000 on hand six weeks before the primary. It also doesn't change the fact Rick Scott has no experience in public service, and his greatest private sector accomplishment was chairing a health care company that defrauded the federal government for billions. This is the worst viable candidate in the modern era with a real chance to move into the governor's mansion. No amount of ill-gotten loot buys this man credentials or erases his failures.

And yet he is winning. A Chamber of Commerce poll released last month showed Scott, a failed HCA executive, with a five-point edge over McCollum, a sitting attorney general who is running his fourth statewide campaign. On Monday, Reuters released a poll which shows Scott beating Alex Sink, Florida's Chief Financial Officer, by four points but shows McCollum barely losing to the certain Democratic nominee.

I know a lot of people are getting excited because this is the first poll in forever which shows Sink ahead of McCollum, but at this point I find it highly unlikely McCollum will make it through the primary. The amateurishness he demonstrated in dealing with Scott's upstart campaign has doomed him to another victory party where the balloons never drop. More disturbing to me is the now plentiful amount of polling data which shows Scott beating both McCollum and Sink. Often the differences are statistical ties, as is the case with the Reuters poll, but Scott clearly has the momentum.

Does anyone expect public financing to turn the tide? This strange and constitutionally-shaky law basically provides a dollar to McCollum for every dollar Scott spends beyond a public financing cap. But McCollum hasn't effectively used the money he has, and I doubt that will change when he gets his hands on taxpayer finances. Republicans complain about government waste? How about spending $6 million in state revenue trying to save Impeachment Bill's political hide?

That's a snarky comment, but I bet many of the conservatives voting in this primary will be upset by that irony. These same voters have shown no reluctance to embrace Scott's get-rich-by-any-means shenanagins. McCollum tried going negative on Scott, but it didn't work. Scott put out the "Unfortunately That's True" ad, which just may go down in Florida Politics history as the most brazen mea culpa to ever be featured in a multi-million TV blitz. I didn't think this sort of "I'm a Crook, So What!" message could resonate outside of Louisiana, but it did.

Clearly, McCollum didn't anticipate Scott surviving a storm of bad press. We know that because it seems to be all the Attorney General has talked about for the past two months. There are no ads touting McCollum's specific accomplishments as AG or as a member of Congress. He is running a losing campaign, and we are suffering the consequence. Indeed this is where the political incompetence of a failing former frontrunner has potential to doom us all. Scott will walk away from the August primary smelling like a winner, and he still leads Alex Sink in all polls.

So if McCollum gets his public financing, fine. It won't matter, but maybe he can use it to tarnish Scott's bad name a little more before moderate and liberal voters get a swing. But don't think Scott will stop campaigning just because he lost this court battle. Remember McCollum only gets money when Scott spends it, and Scott has shown a willingness to spend whatever it takes to governor. It just may work.

Yes, McCollum is awful, but...

It has been brought to my attention that I may too gentle and respectful of Bill McCollum on this blog. Many of those closest to me suggest that I am ignoring many of the deplorable acts, past and present, for which the gubernatorial candidate is responsible. It made me ask myself, have I been too kind to this Republican ideologue? Has his mild-mannered demeanor made me forget the reactionary inside? Most importantly, am I being too nice?

The answer is... Yes, but there is a better reason than those listed above.

That reason is Rick Scott, who so far has shown himself to be a Tea Party corporatist's fantasy candidate. Between his anti-immigrant rhetoric and unapologetic record of fraud, Scott has shown zero qualifications and boasts a bio which indicates more reasons not to vote for him than to cast support his way. Yet, a Florida Chamber poll released this weekend indicates he leads McCollum in the Republican primary for governor by five points, outside the poll's margin of error. The same poll shows both Scott and McCollum beating Democrat Alex Sink in the general election, and Chiles pulling in just enough as an independent to ruin Sink's chance at catching up.

So what is a good citizen to do? Route for the crooked billionaire? I have trouble doing that. For all his flaws, McCollum also has a record of public service fighting for federal dollars to come to Florida, especially in his old House district. Right now, it is also hard to forget his consistent opposition to oil drilling.

But I admit Scott's record of deception and failure within the private sector would make him a great opponent in the general election as far as our side is concerned. The Democrats ought to be able to tear him apart with ads reminding of Scott's poor judgment at HCA. Does anyone recall the way Sen. Mel Martinez made the entire 2004 Senate race about Democrat Betty Castor's handling of a single professor while President of USF? We should be able to play the same game with Scott, and do it more effectively. After all, his work in charge of HCA is the only real background he has that would qualify him for office, and he was such a failure there he was driven out by the board of directors after paying more than a billion in fines.

So part of me doesn't want to risk a Scott gubernatorial term at all. But will it be harder work to beat McCollum in the general election? Perhaps, but let me submit this clearly overdue laundry list of his flaws.

Remember that highly unpopular impeachment of a sitting President because of a sex scandal. Bill McCollum walked the impeachment papers to the Senate and was among 13 Congressman acting as prosecutors in the Senate trial. Because he was so incompetent and completely wrong, he lost despite a Republican majority in the Senate.

Looking forward to the benefits of health care reform? Well sit tight because pending litigation may delay the effects of the landmark legislation. Who would file suit against improvements to the system? Bill McCollum, and he is doing it with Florida state money. If this was just some tea party quack filing a frivolous suit, it would get dismissed, but McCollum will use the power of the AG office to push this to the Supreme Court. And guess what he thinks of regular people filing frivolous lawsuits, like those filed when health care screws people. Yeah. he doesn't like those so much.

And did you notice the Republican Party of Florida was in shambles? He didn't.

So maybe I have been too nice to Bill. Maybe he deserves to lose in August and be denied a November defeat. Maybe he is no worse than Scott. Maybe for a candidate so intent on limiting government, it is embarrassing to have a resume with nothing besides government jobs and temporary lobbying work.

But hopefully we won't need to be that mean. It seems Scott and McCollum are interested in destroying one another before the end of August. If Alex Sink can stay above the fray and develop a positive reputation among voters while those two sling mud, it may not matter who gets the Republican nomination. But until then, I concede it is important liberals in Florida know exactly what is at stake. And they shouldn't get so distracted by the polls. Scott remains untested electorally, and McCollum has lost more statewide races than he has won. With luck, these guys will marginalize themselves, but if they can't get the job done, we should be ready to finish it.