Kendrick Meek Insists He is Not Ending Senate Bid

Stuck in third place in the polls, U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, the Democratic candidate in the U.S. Senate race, now confronts whispers that he will pull out of the race. Stephen Moore over at the Wall Street Journal reported that Florida Republicans are worried such a scenario is in place -- and will leave Democrats who would back Meek voting for Gov. Charlie Crist who is running with no party affiliation.

Meek vehemently insisted on Thursday that he is in the race to the end.

"I'm taking a stand against the radical right, said Meek. Marco Rubio has always been the tea party candidate and yesterday Charlie Crist says he wants to crash the tea party, too. I'm the only candidate who's fighting for the middle class and I'm not going anywhere except the United States Senate.

"If you want to stop the privatization of Social Security and Medicare, stop more tax cuts for the wealthy, stop more special-interest tax breaks, stop more environmental destruction and stop more jobs being shipped overseas, I'm asking you to take a stand with me, added Meek. "Because if they want to go back to the Bush years, they're going to have to go through this 6-foot-3-inch former state trooper."