Rahm Emmanuel Hosting Fund-raiser for Kendrick Meek

Locked in a close primary battle with billionaire investor Jeff Greene for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate election, U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek is finally getting backing from the Obama administration. Meek, who lags far behind both independent Gov. Charlie Crist and Republican candidate Marco Rubio, will be holding a fund-raiser on Aug. 2 in Washington and the headliner will be Rahm Emmanuel, the former congressman from Chicago now serving as White House chief of staff.

With polls showing Meek slightly ahead of Greene among Democrats but still unknown to many of the primary voters, Meek needs all the White House support he can get, but needs it in Florida and not the Beltway. With the First Family headed to the Sunshine State on the weekend of Aug. 14, Meek has the opportunity to share face-time with Obama.

The question is will Obama endorse Meek. With Meek facing a serious challenge from Greene and many Democrats at the state and national level defecting over to Crist, Obama clearly does not need Meek as much as Meek needs the president.