Allison Tant showed this week that she has no intentions of going away quietly -- but she is also proving she learned nothing from the drubbing Florida Democrats took at the polls last week.
Tant and the Florida Democrats brought out the Leadership Expansion to Advance Democrats (LEAD) Task Force on Thursday to try to figure out what went wrong and ensure it doesnt happen again in 2016.
Having done little to help Democrats besides Gwen Graham in the past election, Bill Nelson, his partys only proven winner at the statewide level, will co-chair the task force. Nelson will share power with Val Demings, an odd choice to say the least. Demings showed some potential in 2012 when she almost upset Dan Webster but her subsequent efforts have been less than impressive, including a botched bid against Teresa Jacobs that raised some serious questions about her political ability to follow it up.
Speaking of politicians who showed lots of potential but never could live up to it, Rod Smith will also be on the task force. Smith underwhelmed when he took on Jim Davis for his partys gubernatorial nomination in 2006 and was Alex Sinks understudy in her failed 2010 gubernatorial bid. At least Smith led the Florida Democrats in 2012 when Barack Obama and Nelson won big. He certainly did better at the helm than Tant has.
Other names arent that impressive but there are a few diamonds. Amanda Murphy and Jose Javier Rodriguez are solid choices having been proven winners in the House. Dwight Bullard has some charisma and passion but hasnt exactly shone in the Senate. But some of the other choices are simply lame, drawing from champions of government workers like Nick Maddox and the usual assortment of union groups.
Tant has appointed a group drawn from those who led the Florida Democrats into their current hole. This isnt exactly a task force ready to offer any major reforms to get the party back to winning outside of presidential candidates and Nelson.
With House Democrats set to caucus next week and Mark Pafford facing a challenge from Dwayne Taylor on leading them, Tant offered her opinion on Wednesday. Tant had feuded with Darryl Rouson and was glad to see him replaced by Pafford. Now Tant is calling Taylor and critics bed-wetters and told them to shut up. But under Tants and Paffords watch, six House Democrats went down to defeat last week.
There are rumors buzzing around Tallahassee and in political circles that some prominent donors are planning on cleaning house, chasing out Tant and some of her staff in time for the 2016 elections. No ifs, ands or buts about it. Hillary Clinton or whomever the Democrats nominate for president will have a tough road to the White House if they dont win Florida in two years. Tant and her team did not exactly build confidence in the way they handled things in the recent election -- and the new task force and Tants getting involved in yet another House leadership race offer little hope for improvement.
Tallahassee political writer Jeff Henderson wrote this analysis exclusively for Sunshine State News.
