Mike Haridopolos Calls for Civility in GOP Senate Primary

Even though he is no longer in the U.S. Senate race, state Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, dispensed advice to the field of candidates looking to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.

FL GOP can win US Senate race if we become the party of better ideas and follow the RRs 11th commandment, Haridopolos posted on Twitter on Monday.

Hes referring to Ronald Reagans Eleventh Commandment which stated Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. Reagan first used the line in 1966 -- after Barry Goldwater and Nelson Rockefeller had gone after each other in the battle for the 1964 presidential nomination. Of course, Reagan did not always follow the rule, as he showed against Gerald Ford in 1976 and George H.W. Bush and the primary field in 1980.

The 2012 Republican primary is already heating up. Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux has attacked former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner who has been firing back, most recently in a speech at a national conservative event in South Carolina over the weekend. Retired Army officer and businessman Mike McCalister went after LeMieux, Hasner and Haridopolos, grilling them as the Tallahassee Triplets who represent politics-as-usual. Haridopolos has even thrown a few jabs at Hasner after getting out of the race, telling the Orlando Sentinel that he wont endorse the former majority leader.