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Meek knows he has to fight now, and he is sounding more convincing when he says he can and will win. I’d seen him speak at a poorly attended rally in Plantation just a few weeks ago and was underwhelmed, so the contrast was striking. The Sun-Sentinel’s Anthony Mann heard the change in tone, too:

Meek told the Democrats that Greene’s advertising hasn’t won him the election.

“After $7 million of advertising that you’ve been watching over the last several week’s, my opponent’s negatives are higher than his positives,” Meek said. “We have not run a 15-second radio ad yet. And I’m still three points ahead.”

Meek arrived at the Democratic Party meeting from the airport. Earlier Tuesday he spoke to the Senate Democratic Caucus in Washington, D.C.
His 10 minutes of remarks were more animated than many of his speeches earlier in the campaign, and he got two standing ovations from the Democratic activists.

“I am the real Democrat in the race,” he said.

“Democrats, I need you right now. This state needs you right now. And regardless of the money that’s going to be involved in this campaign we have to show the country when you have four major candidates, including my opponent, and I’m the only one who hasn’t run as a Republican in the past, that’s a no brainer. That’s no brainer,” Meek said.

He was referring to Republican Marco Rubio, no party affiliation candidate Charlie Crist, and Greene, who ran for Congress as a Republican in California. Crist was a Republican until he left the party. (Kendrick Meek says he’ll have ads on television within days, possibly sooner)

Meek has also been doing some of the right things all along, such as using a petition drive to qualify for the ballot as a way of building grassroots support along the way. Assuming he wins the primary, he will fill face a tough challenge in the three-way race with Crist and Republican Marco Rubio. But he is looking more like he knows how to win it.

Democrats raise $700K for state party at Hollywood dinner

Some 1,300 Democrats attended a dinner that raised more than $700,000 for the state party.
BY BETH REINHARD AND PATRICIA MAZZEI

With Florida in the throes of the wildest and most wide-open election in decades, Democrats girded against a Republican-friendly political climate and gathered Saturday for one of the state party’s most successful annual fundraising dinners.

About 1,300 officeholders and activists attended the dinner at the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa in Hollywood, which raised more than $700,000. The 2010 election features a tight governor’s race, a topsy-turvy U.S. Senate contest and three statewide campaigns for Florida’s Cabinet.

“Folks in this room understand what’s at stake — one of the most important elections Florida has ever had,” said political consultant Steve Schale, who led President Obama’s winning campaign that registered a slew of new Democrats in the nation’s largest swing state. “We don’t have to bring out most of the [Obama] voters in 2010. Just some of them.”

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/17/1735649/democrats-raise-700k-for-state.html#ixzz0u2aIWcdz

Zingers from FL Dems’ Jefferson Jackson dinner
So many speakers, so little time to blog. Here are a few memorable one-liners from the parade of candidates who spoke at the Florida Democrats’ annual Jefferson Jackson dinner fundraiser Saturday night:

– From Senate candidate Kendrick Meek: “I’ll be the only one that hasn’t run as a Republican in the past.”

– From his opponent Jeff Greene: “We put a man on the moon 40 years ago and we’re just now inventing an electric car.” (The third Dem in that contest, Maurice Ferre, declared himself the “sleeper” candidate.)

– From congressional candidate Joe Garcia, who lambasted Arizona’s controversial immigration law: “I can assure you that I am an American citizen. I’ve got [Republican gubernatorial candidate] Rick Scott‘s hate mail to prove it.”

– From congressional candidate Luis Meurice, a longshoreman: “I will take [Republican congressional candidate] David Rivera to the woodshed. That’s the way we do it on the docks.”

– From attorney general hopeful Dan Gelber: “I was called [former Gov.]Jeb Bush‘s chief nemesis, and I am proud of that designation.”

– From his opponent, Dave Aronberg: “They have swift boated me but I’m still standing.”

– From Alex Sink, the state’s CFO who is running for governor: “Sometimes I sit at those Cabinet meetings and think to myself, ‘Who are you people? And what are you doing for Florida?’”

– And from Florida Democratic Party chairwoman Karen Thurman, after Sink had mic trouble during her speech: “Even before she’s governor they’re trying to silence her.”

Palm Beach Post:

Applause meter: Meek gets louder applause than Greene at Florida Dem dinner

by George Bennett | July 17th, 2010
HOLLYWOOD — The crowd at tonight’s Florida Democratic Party Jefferson-Jackson dinner gave noticeably louder applause to Senate candidate Kendrick Meek than to primary rival Jeff Greene when both spoke to the crowd of about 1,300. Continued

Sun-Sentinel:

Alex Sink enjoying Republican governor primary fight
Posted by Anthony Man on July 17, 2010 06:04 PM

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink sees a lot to like in the Republican Party fight between Bill McCollum and Rick Scott.

Sink said she’s helped by the fight for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Continued

Kendrick Meek, Jeff Greene tone down rhetoric at Democratic dinner
Posted by Anthony Man on July 17, 2010 09:10 PM

Democratic leaders spend lots of time Saturday talking up gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink, the big unknown is the U.S. Senate race.

The two main Democratic candidates – U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek of Miami and Palm Beach billionaire Jeff Greene – have been blistering each other on the campaign trail. Continued

Florida House Democratic leader says it’s too early to write off Democrats chances
Posted by Anthony Man on July 17, 2010 05:08 PM

The national mood isn’t a good one for Democrats as the midterm elections approach.

But Florida House Minority Leader Franklin Sands, D-Weston, said it’s way too early to assume the Democratic Party will have a terrible year.

“On a national level, it’s anybody’s guess. On a state level I think it’s anybody’s guess,” he said in the place where Democrats from across Florida are gathering Saturday afternoon – the lobby of the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood for the party’s big Jefferson-Jackson weekend. Continued

Mitch Ceasar smells success in the wind for Democrats
Posted by Anthony Man on July 17, 2010 05:50 PM

Maybe he was breathing too much of the signature white tea scent in the lobby-atrium of the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood, but Broward Democratic Chairman Mitch Ceasar smells nothing but success for his party this fall.

Ceasar is among the hundreds of Democrats gathered for the state Democratic Party’s Jefferson-Jackson weekend of politicking and fundraising.

The event comes at a time when President Barack Obama is unpopular. Polling shows Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink is shaky. And the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate is fraying political relationships and dividing party activists.

There’s a lot for Democrats not to celebrate Saturday. But there was a lot of celebrating – and positive spinning – anyway. Continued

FLA Politics: As the Palm Beach Post’s Randy Schultz recently pointed out, the tea is squirting outa Mr. West’s ears:

Last year, Col. West gave a stemwinding speech in which he urged people to “fix bayonets” and “take back the country.” It was a YouTube sensation, and brought in lots of donations. Col. West referred to the “tyranny” of the Obama administration. So we wanted to know what he considers examples of “tyranny.”

As it turns out, “tyranny” to Col. West means President Obama’s criticism of the Supreme Court during his State of the Union address. It means extracting $20 billion from BP upfront to compensate victims of the company’s negligence. It means the stimulus package, the financial bailout and the health care bill.

Tyranny? Elected representatives cast those votes. Most of those representatives will go before the voters and have to defend their records. Those who believe that parts of the health care law are unconstitutional will get to make their case in court. That’s democracy, not tyranny. In a democracy, sometimes your side loses.

Read: “It’s democracy, not tyranny“

Picked this up from the Damn! I Wish I’d Thought of That! blog: Old Spice: Turning a one-time viral hit into a long-term social media campaign

Gelber resigned from the firm out of political necessity, even though he personally never had anything to do with representing BP and taking them on as a client wasn’t his call. But I just got another email from Aronberg rehashing this issue. Strikes me as opportunistic and cynical.

As scored by the PolitiFact fact checking project:

Dan Gelber and his ties to BP questioned by opponent

If Florida winds up suing BP over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a newly elected Attorney General Dan Gelber may have to sit the case out, according to his rival for the Democratic nomination. Dave Aronberg says that Gelber could be disqualified from representing the state in a case against BP because the private law firm he worked for until recently, Akerman Senterfitt, signed BP as a client in oil spill matters.

… we turned to a cadre of legal experts to see if there is or could be a conflict.

Most thought it would be difficult to have Gelber removed. (Read the analysis)

Here’s this week’s release from Aronberg, if you want to judge for yourself.

Updated: I’ve revised this post to use slightly less inflammatory language, and to add the link to PolitiFact. Fans of Dave Aronberg are welcome to respond, or post their own entries on why they support him.

Dear Friends,

As a horrified nation watches daily news reports of oil washing up on our shores, it has become clear, as President Obama said, that this is indeed “the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced.”

Not only is the oil spill one of the most important challenges facing Florida today, it also presents the most important legal issue facing our state’s next Attorney General.

In what may well be the biggest lawsuit in Florida history, the next Attorney General will have to lead the state’s legal response to the actions of BP, Halliburton and Transocean.

In my opinion, Florida’s next Attorney General should not come from BP’s law firm.

Two months ago, BP hired Dan Gelber’s law firm to represent the company in Florida. Because of this potential conflict of interest, I, along with many others, have serious concerns about my opponent’s ability to represent Florida against BP as Attorney General.

I fully realized that by shedding light on these facts, my opponent’s supporters would accuse me of negative campaigning.

I strongly disagree.

Like you, I too am tired of personal attacks in politics: vicious campaign ads that reference someone’s family or an innocent youthful indiscretion have no place in politics.

But when the number one issue facing the next Attorney General is the impending lawsuit on behalf of the people of Florida against BP, it is crucial information to know that one of the Attorney General candidates may be disqualified from leading the charge against BP. You don’t have to be a lawyer to see the potential conflict of interest when someone works for BP’s law firm and then turns around and sues BP as Florida Attorney General.

Whether Florida’s next Attorney General can sue BP is not only a relevant issue — it is one of the most important issues of this campaign.

The people of Florida will ultimately decide whether I am right or wrong to highlight this issue in this race.

However this election turns out, at least it will be decided on relevant issues, not red herrings. On public policy, not personalities. On oil, and not on mud.

Sincerely,

Beginner’s Guide to Grassroots Campaiging

Today, we present The Beginner’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigning, the third installment in our “Beginner’s Guide” Series.  (If you haven’t already, be sure to check out The Beginner’s Guide to Political Communications and The Beginner’s Guide to Political Fundraising).

Working the grassroots is a vital component of any campaign, no matter how large or small.  For local campaigns, grassroots politics takes on added significance as one of the main ways to communicate with the voters.  No matter what office you are running for, no matter how much (or how little) cash your campaign has, follow these tips to make sure your grassroots campaign gets off to a great start:

Building Your Campaign Organization

5 Secrets of Successful Grassroots Organizations – Tips for making your grassroots organization shine.

The 2 Most Asked Questions About Grassroots Politics – Do you know the answers?  They may surprise you!

Finding and Managing Volunteers

How to Find Volunteers for Your Political Campaign – Where to find great volunteers to help you win.

Creating Volunteer Superstars – Figuring out how to best use each and every volunteer.

How to Manage Political Campaign Volunteers – Soup to nuts, getting your volunteers on track and on task.

Door to Door Campaigning

Why Your Campaign HAS to Go Door to Door – The top reasons why your campaign – and your candidate – has to start knocking on doors.

How to Run a Great Door to Door Campaign – Now you know you need to get out there… here’s how to do it!

Grassroots Events

How to Hold Successful Town Hall Meetings - Get out there and meet the crowd.  How to use town halls to build your name recognition and benefit your campaign.

How to Plan a Candidate Tour Event – Using candidate tour events to build local support.

Voter Registration and Absentee Ballots

The Right Way to Hold a Voter Registration Drive – Don’t just set up a table and hope for the best… use this guide to help you target your efforts.

Successful Absentee Voter Drives – Reaching (and persuading) absentee voters with your campaign’s message.

Get Out The Vote (GOTV)

Winning Your Election by Getting Out the Vote – Your strategy guide to running a GOTV operation.

Do You Know How to Set Your Get Out the Vote Goals? – Setting GOTV goals that will have your team celebrating on Election Night.

A Guide to Making GOTV Calls – How to run an effective get out the vote phone bank.

Advanced Grassroots Topics

Linking Your Campaign with a Grassroots Movement – How to connect with outside grassroots movements to help you win.

Running a Grassroots Contribution Campaign – Raising money at the grassroots.

Building Political Coalitions - One of our most popular (and longest) articles ever.

This Issue Sponsored by: Political Insight

Easy and affordable campaign website, volunteer and donor database, and more… all rolled into one, and all designed specifically for state and local campaigns.  Check out Political Insight, your platform for politics.

Related posts:

1. Political Targeting – The Beginner’s Guide
2. A Guide to Making Get Out the Vote Calls
3. Beginner’s Guide to Political Communications

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 09th, 2010

Republican Congressional Candidate Allen West (FL-22) has Record Fundraising Quarter

(Deerfield Beach, FL) Republican 22nd Congressional Candidate Allen West raised over $1.4 million during the 2nd Quarter (April-June), blowing past his previous fundraising record of $860,000. To date, LTC(R) West has raised nearly $3.5 million from over 40,000 individual contributions.

“The strength of our campaign is that over the course of this election cycle almost 96% of our donations have come from individual contributions,” said Allen West. “This campaign will demonstrate that the American people, led by the good folks here in South Florida, can elevate someone into the United States House of Representatives.”

To date, the average contribution to LTC(R) West’s campaign sits at about $85.00 per donation, bringing his cash on hand available to nearly $2.2 million.

“These fundraising numbers show that South Floridians and all Americans are fed up with business as usual in Washington,” said Allen West’s Campaign Manager, Josh Grodin. “In particular, our district has a Congressman who has voted with Nancy Pelosi 98% of the time. Citizens are tired of politicians like Ron Klein, and are looking for leaders like Allen West.”

For more information or to schedule interviews with Allen West, please contact Valentina Weis at (561) 603-8188 or vweis@AllenWestforCongress.com.