The Campaign for Liberty, which is chaired by former Congressman Ron Paul, is ramping up its efforts in Florida as buzz continues to grow that U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., the son of the former congressman, will seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
This week, the Campaign for Liberty announced it would be holding political training sessions in Florida next month. It will be hosting an event in Tampa on Sept. 14 before heading to Orlando the next day. Earlier in the month, it announced it was holding a similar event in The Villages on Sept. 7 before heading to the First Coast for a session in Jacksonville on Sept. 8.
John Tate, the president of the Campaign for Liberty, sent out an email to supporters late Thursday promising the sessions would provide proven methods for forcing change in the Legislature. He also wrote that the events would cover politics at the federal level.
The gloves are also starting to come off as Republicans begin to position for the 2016 presidential race. At the end of last month, the Campaign for Liberty attacked U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for voting to supply foreign aid to Egypt. Like Rand Paul, Rubio is considered a top contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
The Campaign for Liberty sent out a statement attacking Rubio. Despite the fact that nearly 75 percent of Americans are against sending foreign aid to Egypt, Senator Rubio today stood with President Obama and Harry Reid to vote against the rule of law and the American people, the Campaign for Liberty insisted. I fully expected Senator McCain and Senator Graham to vote with Reid and Obama, as they often do, but for Senator Rubio, who bills himself as a conservative, to do so is disgraceful.
The Campaign for Liberty promised to ramp up its operations in the Sunshine State, pledging to remind the citizens of Florida that Senator Rubio stood with Obama to send their money to Egypt.
Rubio has also drawn fire from the Campaign for Libery for his role in passing the Gang of Eights immigration reform bill which passed the Senate at the end of June. The Campaign for Liberty has attacked the immigration reform bill for including provisions for a national ID, a charge Rubio and his supporters have heatedly denied.
While the Campaign for Liberty is looking to gear up in Florida, Ron Paul has not done well in the Sunshine State during his three bids for the presidency. He took 3 percent in the Florida primary during the 2008 presidential primary. In 2012, he took 7 percent in the Florida primary. Back in 1988, when he was the Libertarian Partys presidential nominee, Paul took less than 1 percent in Florida.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com.
