Carlos Lopez-Cantera gets blasted by liberals after entering Senate race

While Democratic Senate candidate Patrick Murphy was taking the high road in welcoming Carlos Lopez-Cantera to the growing field of candidates in the 2016 U.S. Senate race, his friends with the Florida Democratic Party in Tallahassee weren’t nearly so friendly.

“I look forward to a healthy exchange of ideas in this campaign,” Murphy said in a statement issued out early Wednesday. “We need bold leaders who are willing to empower Florida’s working families, strengthen Social Security and Medicare, stand up for our environment, and protect a woman’s right to choose.  I look forward to sharing my vision with the people of our state.”

Florida Democratic Party chair Allison Tant had a different take.

“Professional Tallahassee politician Carlos Lopez-Cantera has built his career on lining the pockets of wealthy special interests and pandering to the most extreme fringe of the Republican Party — all at the expense of Florida’s middle class,” she said. “Now, Rick Scott’s yes-man wants to take his self-serving brand of crony politics to the United States Senate, where he would do what career politicians always do in Washington: make thing worse. Unfortunately for Lopez-Cantera, he won’t be able to hide behind Rick Scott or his wealthy special interests funders when he hits the campaign trail and is forced to explain his disastrous record of putting politics and profits ahead of the people he supposedly serves.”

The FDP Chair said that Lopez-Cantera had supported cutting over  billion dollars from public schools and universities while hiking tuition fees, voted to allow near-shore oil drilling, and supported “massive taxpayer handouts to some of Florida’s biggest corporations – including $3.2 billion Duke Energy flexed from taxpayers.”

She also brought up his support for a tough immigration bill in 2011, which he called “common sense” at the time.

Then there was the reaction from American Bridge, the liberal political action committee. While Tant went after Lopez-Cantera’s record in the Legislature, where he served from 2004-2012, American Bridge went after his work habits, which has become a big issue for Democrats to seize upon in recent weeks.

In an email press release entitled,  “All Dressed Up And Nothing To Do,” the group criticized the Lieutenant Governor for touting that experience  that he says will help him serve in the nation’s capitol.