Mitch Perry
We were prepared not to weigh in on the results from last night’s Super Tuesday results, but watching the evisceration of Chris Christie on Twitter last prompted a closer look at what Florida GOP strategist Rick Wilson writes about in today’s Daily Beast.
“Far from having the same kind of Kevlar media armor Trump enjoys, if you think you inherit his invulnerability, you’re deeply, sadly mistaken,” Wilson writes, referring to Republicans like Christie, who have come out and endorsed the GOP front-runner, or are thinking about it. “You’re about to become a bullet magnet for every controversial statement Trump has made … and if you try to out-Trump Trump, you’ll be laughed off the stage.”
Perhaps that’s what David Jolly was thinking when he released a statement last night saying that he wouldn’t endorse in the Florida presidential primary on March 15.
Folks, short of a miracle, Trump will be giving his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July. Will the party rally around him?
Nothing sticks to him, as we’ve seen about two dozen times over the past year. Nothing. Is that going to work for a Republican in a contested primary? Good luck with that.
Obviously, Rick Scott doesn’t really care about that. Though the Florida Governor didn’t endorse last night, there’s no question that the two businessmen turned Republican candidates/lawmakers are simpatico. Then again, Scott’s lack of popularity has never seemed to hurt him too much to date. If he runs for Senate in 2018, well, that’s light years away.
But for those who are on the ballot this November? Let’s go back to quoting Wilson:
“I’ve knocked out any number of Democrats using ads associating them with the brand toxicity of Reid, Pelosi, and Obama, and before that Ted Kennedy, Barney Frank, and others. All the Democrats have to do is what I did, in reverse. If Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is being sworn in come 2017, this family of ads will be the thing that put him there.”
In other news …
It’s interesting to note that when some lawmakers run for president, their popularity increases, and some, like Chris Christie in New Jersey, see their numbers tank. Add Marco Rubio to the latter, as the GOP presidential candidate actually trails Rick Scott in popularity now.
Some folks won’t let Marco’s “conversion” on undocumented immigration slide. A group representing the families of victims who were met with violence by the undocumented penned a harsh letter about Rubio on Monday, warning Super Tuesday voters not to be fooled by the Florida Senator.
A Public Policy Polling survey shows that, as in other recent polls, while most Floridians aren’t sure at all about who’s running for U.S. Senate, among those who do, David Jolly and Alan Grayson are the early leaders.
While Bernie Sanders‘ dream of capturing the Democratic presidential nomination may be on the ropes, the dreams of the U.S. looking more like Scandinavian isn’t, or so say a local think tank official.
Rick Scott’s proposal to fund Enterprise Florida to the tune of $250 million may be on the legislative rocks, but Tampa Bay Partnership head Rick Homans wants to make sure that House and Senate Budget appropriations chairs Richard Corcoran and Tom Lee realize how much it means to the economic development of the Tampa Bay area.
