Peter Schorsch
Is Ken Russell running for Congress?
For the Miami City Commissioner, it’s more than a simple yes/no question. It is a six-figure affair.
Perhaps Russell, a well-known toy enthusiast, is being as thoughtful and deliberate about his decision to seek Ileana Ros-Lehtinen’s seat as he is choreographing epic yo-yo routines.
What else can explain the three-month process, raising over $300,000, and spending over $100,000, all to “explore” a run for Congress, even though it seems a foregone conclusion?
Indeed, in the increasingly crowded Democratic primary — now at seven candidates — Russell spent more than any of them: $100,866 in the last quarter.
On October 5, days after the close of the reporting period, Russell told the Miami Herald he was still “seriously considering [a run for Congress] in my heart.” Russell also told the Herald the exploratory committee raised enough money to “go to Washington and conduct polling.”
In the last three months, Russell spent almost $2,500 on travel, as well as more than $20,000 with The Kitchens Group, a longtime Florida-based pollster. So, that accounts for $25,000 — what about the other $75,000 to “decide” if he will run for Congress as Democrat?
For Russell, much of the money went to Republican consultants.
Over $47,000 in expenditures went to his campaign’s general consultant/manager, Fernando Diez. Diez is a Miami Beach-based consultant and lobbyist who helped manage Russell’s surprising victory in the Miami City Commission race.
It should be noted that on Facebook, Diez self-identifies as a Republican; before launching his own firm, he worked for prominent Republican consultant Steve Marin.
Russell’s high-priced “exploration” also included an $8,620 payment to Miami-Dade County fundraising guru, Brian Goldmeier.
While Goldmeier is a registered Democrat and veteran of Alex Sink’s 2010 run for governor, he’s mostly known these days as the money man behind Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, a Republican. In recent years, Goldmeier also raised money for Carlos Lopez-Cantera and Francis Suarez, neither regarded as progressive champions.
Florida’s 27th Congressional District — like Florida writ large — is no bastion of ultra-liberalism. Hillary Clinton won the district 2-1 over Bernie Sanders, as she did the state. But even 2-1 means a third of the district was “feelin’ the Bern.” And just because a Democrat voted for Hillary does not automatically mean they will be OK with a Republican-lite candidate.
Remember, this is a closed Democratic primary in a district Hillary not only won, but took by 20 points.
Russell may be able to Split the Atom; he may even know the secrets of Cold Fusion. But you don’t need to go Around the World to know that Democratic voters aren’t longing for a congressional candidate surrounded by Republicans.
