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(Left to right) Former state Rep. Adam Hasner, former US Sen. George LeMieux, Rep. Connie Mack and Col. Mike McCallister have confirmed participation in the US Senatorial Debate in Tallahassee.(Photo used with permission, FFRW)
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Ed. Note, Feb. 1, 2012: Adam Hasner will not participate in the Senate debate; he suspended his run for the Senate to run for the US House in District 22.
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(Tallahassee) The Florida Federation of Republican Women will host the first Florida U.S. Senatorial debate of 2012 in Tallahassee on February 19, 2012, at the Hotel Duval. The event will also be the first to feature the four most viable candidates in the race at the same event.
Never let it be said Republicans run short on candidates. Three well-known Republicans are engaged in a battle for the chance to topple Florida Democrat Bill Nelson from his U.S. Senate seat. The battle is fairly heated, considering the three Primary contenders all belong to the same Party and claim conservative positions.
For as long as I’ve covered his campaign, Marco Rubio has held blogger conference calls. Not just with the big blog aggregators, but with independents like The US Report.
My first contact with his campaign was a query about a negative story that turned out to be inaccurate. He responded quickly and specifically, avoiding typical political verbiage, and he didn’t hold it against me.
At that time, Gov. Charlie Crist was the darling of the establishment. I’ve written here that after the first time I heard Rubio speak, I came away infuriated.
Not only was he a brilliant speaker, he had credentials that made him a bona fide candidate. Yet those who were in charge of the Republican Party—some now thankfully no longer with the party—anointed Crist without a nod to the supporters who stuck with the GOP through the bitter climate of 2008.
Rubio held a conference call with bloggers on Wednesday. The first thing he did was not unusual for a man who has managed to escape the elitist mentality characteristic of so many in politics today. Rubio thanked us, basically for believing in him early on. He said he wanted to give “recognition” to those who covered the race from the beginning.
His conservatism also came through. Explaining that no one’s won anything yet, he emphasized he wants his message to “excite people” so they’ll come out and vote. He said, “We’re gonna keep working.”
I had the opportunity to ask a question, and I decided to move from typical talking points to something that intrigues me. President Barack Obama has done a number of comedy shows and late night TV shows. Would Rubio ever do that to defend his positions?
He said, “It depends on who the host is.” He added, “We have to be careful not to trivialize issues.” He didn’t criticize Obama for his appearances, though he could have. Rubio has consistently taken stands against Obama's agenda, but he's been very gracious about the president. That's worth noting considering how the president characterizes Republicans, Tea Partiers and anyone else who isn't a big government fan.
Rubio did admit he loves the late night shows.
The engaging candidate also said he plans to continue calls with bloggers if he wins the Florida Senate seat.
Rubio asked one thing of us. He asked that we place his new video on our websites. You’ll see it below.
Rarely have I publicly endorsed a candidate—in my lifetime, I have announced support for 3. Rubio is one of them. I hope you’ll vote for him on Nov. 2, or during early voting. I think Rubio will be a much needed voice of reason and fiscal conservatism at a critical time in our country’s history. He has a remarkable connection with Main Street. (Commentary by Kay B. Day/Oct. 27, 2010)
US Senate candidate Marco Rubio (R) debated US Rep. Kendrick Meek (D) and Gov. Charlie Crist (NPA) on Tuesday, and there’s no question Rubio won the debate. It’s true I support Rubio for the Senate. But it’s also true that I am harder on him than a candidate I don’t care about.
Rubio responded to every question in Rubio rapid fire mode, not mincing words and under absolutely no circumstances backing down.
US Senate candidate Marco Rubio. [Republican Party of Duval County]A crowd of supporters converged at Mudville Grille in San Marco on Wednesday night to watch one of the most popular candidates in the GOP take on Gov. Charlie Crist (NPA) and Rep. Kendrick Meek (D). Of all the candidates, Rubio stood out for his clarity, his consistency and his core belief that government should get out of the way of the private sector.
Meek came off as more focused than Crist. The Democrat representative stuck to his talking points—the middle class and anti-Republicanism.
Screen Snip/Marco Rubio addresses CPAC 2010. [Kay B. Day]Javier Manjarres at The Shark Tank is the man with the cam and the blog. I have to say he covers the ground when it comes to candidates and politicos. Now he’s managed to shoot new media mogul Andrew Breitbart in what is apparently an endorsement of Florida Democrat Kendrick Meek in the US Senate race—Meek when compared to Gov. Charlie Crist, that is. At the moment, former Speaker of the Florida House Marco Rubio (GOP) is the frontrunner in the 3-way.
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 2:57PM 
