Despite what current polls say, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson insists that the battle for the opening Senate seat will be a two-man race in Florida. Nelson is predicting that Republican Marco Rubio will fade down the stretch, leaving Gov. Charlie Crist, running as an independent, and Democratic Congressman Kendrick Meek to duke it out Billionaire Jeff Greene, who has been in the Senate race for less than two weeks, is starting to hit the campaign trail. Greene spoke to Palm Beach County Democrats on Thursday Greene may want to follow conservative Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Scotts playbook. Polls show the unknown Scott doing well despite being in the race for a month now and remaining unknown to many Floridians. Scott has bought $4.7 million in television and Internet ads and is closing the gap with Attorney General Bill McCollum. A recent Mason-Dixon poll showed McCollum with 38 percent of support of Florida Republicans, while Scott has the backing of 24 percent
Republican candidate Karen Diebel is starting to get national support for her challenge to Congresswoman Suzanne Kosmas. A number of prominent national conservatives, including former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and former U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, are backing Diebels campaign and helping with its fundraising Keep an eye on Republican Dana Young, an attorney who is running to replace term-limited Rep. Faye Culp, R-Tampa. Besides gaining the support of Culp, former Gov. Bob Martinez and Hillsborough County Sheriff David Gee, Young has raised more than $162,000 -- almost twice as much as her nearest rival John Schultz, who just retired from the Florida Highway Patrol (where he provided security for Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp), is running for the House seat that Rep. Nick Thompson, R-Fort Myers, is vacating. Schultz is joining an increasingly crowded Republican primary field and, yes, has the endorsement of Kottkamp
Pembroke Pines City Commissioner Angelo Castillo has dropped his bid to serve on the Broward County Commission. Castillo said that service on the county commission would be a conflict of interest with his job as executive officer of Broward House, a charitable organization that helps patients with HIV and AIDS Rose Naff is back. The longtime executive director of Florida Healthy Kids has been named to head up Florida Healthy Choices, an organization that reaches out to small businesses to provide heath insurance options to their employees...
Looks like Florida A & M University will continue efforts to establish a dental school. FAMU President James Ammons has specifically praised both Senate Democratic Leader Al Lawson and Rep. Alan Williams for their help with securing funds at the state level Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez is getting pressure from business and community leaders to fix the Jackson Health System. The leaders sent a letter to Alvarez last week demanding reform to Jackson. Signers included banker Maria Alonso, who is the incoming chairwoman of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, St. Thomas University president Monsignor Franklyn Casale, current chairman of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Bruce Colan and Bank of America president Gene Schaefer.
