Neither of Floridas two U.S. senators -- Democrat Bill Nelson or Republican Marco Rubio -- are on the ballot in November, but both have shifted campaign activities into top gear with six weeks to go until the general election.
Nelson went to bat for former Gov. Charlie Crist, the Democratic nominee challenging Gov. Rick Scott in November. Earlier in the election cycle, there was buzz that Nelson, who had run for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1990 but lost to Lawton Chiles in the primary, would take on Crist -- a Republican for decades before joining the Democrats at the end of 2012.
On Friday night, Nelson sent an attack-on-Scott email out on behalf of Crist.
Since taking office nearly four years ago, I believe Gov. Rick Scott has been leading our state in the wrong direction, Nelson wrote. And now, as a result, I think we're headed into the ditch. During his time as the state's chief executive, there's been an assault on Florida's voter laws, there's been a refusal to expand Medicaid to more than a million people, and there's been a deregulation of the state's health-care industry, allowing rates to go up unchecked. Just imagine what he'll do if given another four years without any checks or balances.
Fortunately, we have a chance to do something about it come November, Nelson added. We can replace Rick Scott with Charlie Crist. I'm confident that if elected, Charlie will immediately begin to repair some of the damage Scott and his administration have done.
Nelson has also been active on behalf of other Democrats in the Sunshine State, including Gwen Graham who is challenging U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Fla.
On the other side of the aisle, Rubio continues to push Republican U.S. Senate candidates through his Reclaim America PAC. Rubio is looking at running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
On Friday, Reclaim America released a video featuring Rubio in which he backs Republican Senate candidates in Arkansas, Colorado and Iowa who are running against vulnerable Democratic incumbents.
This year we have an unprecedented opportunity to elect a conservative majority and take back the Senate, Rubio says in the video.
Rubio also sent out emails on behalf of the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) over the weekend and for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) on Monday morning. In the emails, Rubio insisted a Republican Senate will stop President Obama, Harry Reid, and Nancy Pelosi from believing that all the millions theyre raising will be enough to overcome the disastrous agenda they've implemented ... President Obama, Reid, and Pelosis campaign machine must be stopped."
Closer to home, Rubio has been active in backing Republican candidates across Florida, including endorsing Miami-Dade School Board member Carlos Curbelo, who is running against U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia, D-Fla., in November.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
