Well!
Saturday’s Debate between four of the five democratic candidates for Governor was, as the young kids say, LIT!
We finally see some of the candidates showing they are, indeed, willing to stand up and fight for Floridians.
Chris King was a pleasure to watch. He certainly is showing his knowledge, and his progressive bona fides!
He didn’t pull any punches when it came to Gwen Graham.
Unlike others, he let her know in no uncertain terms that her last name and her daddy were not going to let her off the hook for casting questionable votes, and basically not standing up for those who couldn’t stand up for themselves.
King let Graham know it takes more than being present in Congress for two years, and not doing anything. In short, Floridians need a champ, not a chump!
Graham’s one attempt to go on the attack has been the subject of laughter since the debate ended. When she shrill-ly yelled : “Tell’em about the coal plant, Andrew,” all that did was remind people of her Keystone XL Pipeline vote and the fact that her family is building a mega-mall in Miami. She is NOT a champion of the environment, and she shot a blank on that one. It was sad, really.
Andrew Gillum excited the crowd, as he usually does. There is no mistaking his charisma, and his ability to get the voters fired up.
The highlight of the debate came at the expense of Philip Levine!
The crowd booed him after he proclaimed himself the frontrunner, highlighting the fact that polls showed Hillary Clinton the frontrunner, and voters saying something totally different once they cast their actual votes.
Remember, she lost Florida.
Democratic voters didn’t treat Levine as the frontrunner at the debate, and his face during the chorus of boos told the tale.
The frontrunner fiasco wasn’t the only gotcha moment for Levine.
During Marco Rubio’s initial run for U.S. Senate, one of his donors was none other than Philip Levine, to the tune of $2,400.
Levine did not donate to the Democratic nominee, Kendrick Meek.
How long before mock checks, such as the one shown to this page, start floating around, showing that Philip Levine donated to tea-party darling Marco Rubio?
Tonight’s debate should be very interesting. Click here for details on where and when to watch. It seems as though Levine and Graham don’t do very well in front of live audiences!
I’m sure they will try to overcompensate for the flubs, and flub again.
I’ll be watching.
Leslie Wimes, a Sunshine State News columnist, is founder and president of Women on the Move and the Democratic African American Women Caucus, www.daawc.com. Follow Leslie on Twitter: @womenonthemove1
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