Staff Reports
The Congressional Leadership Fund has wasted no time in lobbing its first attack after Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who announced this week she would challenge Republican Carlos Curbelo in Florida’s 26th Congressional District.
The super PAC, which has the backing of the entire House Republican leadership, sent an email Wednesday saying Mucarsel-Powell is “slowly becoming a perennial candidate.”
“Despite having a war chest and strong establishment support throughout her campaign last year, including that of President Obama, South Florida strongly rejected her,” reads an email from Courtney Alexander, the press secretary for the Congressional Leadership Fund. “Mucarsel-Powell lost in a district where Hillary Clinton won by a whopping 10 points.”
Mucarsel-Powell ran against Republican Sen. Anitere Flores in 2016 in the newly drawn Senate District 39, which stretches from Miami to Key West. She was endorsed by then-President Barack Obama, and had the backing of other top Democrats. It wasn’t enough to get her to Tallahassee, though. Flores defeated Mucarsel-Powell, 54 percent to 46 percent.
The Congressional Leadership Fund email goes on to call Mucarsel-Powell a “soldier of the so-called extreme and at times violent ‘Resistance’ movement.” It also says she is the “handpicked candidate of Nancy Pelosi’s DCCC.”
“This makes sense, much like the DCCC, Mucarsel-Powell has no message, no strategy and no real reason to run – except to complain,” reads the email. “Not to be a Debbie downer, but voters rejected her and her campaign last year – and they’ll do it again in 2018.”
Curbelo, a second-term congressman, defeated former Rep. Joe Garcia 53 percent to 41 percent in 2016. However, his seat has been viewed as a possible Democratic pick-up in 2018.
