While the jury may be out on whether U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan will enter what could be an increasingly crowded Republican primary field to take on U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, the Florida congressman has raised his profile significantly in recent weeks.
Buchanan released a web video this week taking aim at amnesty and calling for English to be officially recognized as the national language.
The congressman, who won a third term in November, has been taking advantage of the lame-duck session, weighing in this week on several issues.
The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, chaired by former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles and former U.S. Sen. Alan Simpson of Wyoming, issued a report on Wednesday on federal spending and the national debt.
Buchanan said he would read the report but insisted that the best way to get Americas financial house in order was by passing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.
As our national debt approaches $14 trillion, we need to change the way we do business in Washington and work in a bipartisan manner to reduce spending, said Buchanan. Failure to do so will lead to higher interest rates, inflation and a less competitive economy.
I look forward to reviewing the commissions report, but I believe the first step to control spending is to pass a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, continued Buchanan. Congress has balanced the budget just five times in the past 50 years. That is why the first bill I introduced was the Buchanan Balanced Budget Amendment.
A balanced budget amendment is a common-sense measure that would force Congress to make the tough choices necessary to spend wisely, save taxpayer dollars and help ensure the financial security of our children and our grandchildren, noted Buchanan.
Buchanan also took aim at WikiLeaks, sending a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder asking for the federal Department of Justice to open up an investigation of that organization for posting classified documents on their website.
Buchanan won by the skin of his teeth back in 2006 to take the 13th Congressional District seat which Katherine Harris was vacating to run against Nelson for the Senate.The district, which covers all of DeSoto, Hardee and Sarasota counties and some of Charlotte and Manatee counties, favors Republicans, but Buchanan barely held off Democratic candidate Christine Jennings. The race proved so close that the Florida Department of State was forced to order a recount -- which found that Buchanan prevailed by 369 votes.
While 2006 was certainly a Democratic year at the polls, Buchanan has impressively won since then. In 2008, he won another term with 55 percent and ran ahead of Republican presidential candidate U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona in the district. In 2010, Buchanan crushed Democratic candidate former Bradenton City Councilman James Golden, taking almost 70 percent of the vote.
If he decides to run against Nelson, Buchanan faces a potentially crowded field of candidates. Retired Army officer Mike McCalister, who took 10 percent of the Republican gubernatorial primary vote back in August, appears certain to be a candidate. Outgoing U.S. Sen. George LeMieux has expressed interest in returning to the Senate. Other potential candidates include U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, incoming U.S. Rep. Dan Webster, Senate President Mike Haridopolos and former House Leader Adam Hasner.
Buchanan may have the edge on some of the competition in one key area: campaign finance. Besides ranking as one of the wealthiest members of Congress, Buchanan has experience at the helm of campaign finance operations. He served as finance chair for Mel Martinezs successful bid for the U.S. Senate back in 2004. He also served a stint as co-chairman of the Republican National Finance Committee.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
