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Politics

Orrin Hatch Aide a No-Go for Joining Crowded Race to Replace Patrick Murphy

July 2, 2015 - 6:45am
Orrin Hatch
Orrin Hatch

A key staffer to one of the leading Republicans in Washington, D.C., has decided not to join the crowded field running for the congressional seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla., who is running for the U.S Senate.

William “Bill” Castle, currently the general counsel to U.S. Senate President Pro Tempore Orrin Hatch, R-Utah,  had been looking at entering the race but sources told Sunshine State News on Wednesday that he has decided not to enter. Castle has worked for Hatch since 2002 and the senator has called him a trusted lieutenant for his work on legal issues. Castle attended Brown and went to law school at the University of Pennsylvania.

While currently based in Washington, D.C., Castle has ties to Palm Beach. His father, John K. Castle, has been prominent in philanthropy and business in the area, garnering national headlines when he purchased the Winter White House in 1995 from the Kennedy family. The house had been bought by Joseph P. Kennedy back in the early 1930s and was used by John F. Kennedy during his presidency. John Castle is the chairman and CEO of Castle Harlan, a merchant bank, and investment firm Branford Castle.

Bill Castle had met with consultants in both Washington, D.C., and Florida but ultimately decided to stay out of the race. 

Even though Castle might be staying on the sidelines, there is a crowded Republican primary shaping up to replace Murphy. Current candidates include former state Rep. Carl Domino who ran against Murphy in 2014; Republican leader and attorney Rick Kozell; activist and veteran Brian Mast; St. Lucie County Commissioner Tod Mowery; Martin County School Board member Rebecca Negron; and businessman Paul Spain who ran against U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-Fla., in 2014. Possible candidates include conservative leader and former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino, who ran for Congress and the U.S. Senate in Maryland; radio talk-show host K.C. Ingram-Traylor; educator Belinda Keiser; former congressional aide Stephen Leighton; conservative pundit Noelle Nikpour; and businessman Gary Uber. 

On the Democratic side, Melissa McKinlay and Priscilla Taylor from the Palm Beach County Commission are already in the race. So is engineer Juan Xuna. Possible candidates for the Democratic nomination include attorney Jonathan Chane and St. Lucie County Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky.

Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN. During the 2000 election, Kevin led Hatch’s campaign for the Republican presidential nomination in New York.

Comments

Whew...! Another "political elitist lawyer" decides to "dodge a bullet" from a whole pack of "political elitist lawyers" circling barely a couple of available "government mammarys" ... (Power and the "milk of power" sure does draw the predators)

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