Campaigner (from Dean's Campaign) brings Web skills to Florida

[AmyStrange]

Campaigner brings Web skills to Florida

By VICKIE CHACHERE
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

FROM: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apus_story.asp?category=1110&slug=Florida%20Senate%20Castor
TAMPA, Fla. -- When Howard Dean's campaign for the presidency turned to the Internet to raise money and motivate potential supporters, it made modern political history.

Now a key player from Dean's campaign has turned his attention to Florida, making Betty Castor's otherwise traditional Senate campaign into a hip venture where "Bettyheads," the Betty Blog and e-mail fund raising are featured on BettyNet.com.

Larry Biddle, former deputy campaign finance director for Dean, is serving as deputy campaign manager for Castor, a former University of South Florida president and state education commissioner.

Biddle was credited with using the Internet to help raise $25 million for Dean - about half the money raised by the former Vermont governor's campaign.

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[Bombtrack]

1. Although I would work hard for her, I just don't see her as having what it

takes to beat someone like Mel Martinez, who the Bushies will ensure get's the GOP nomination. She doesn't seem to have anything special that would overcome facing a hispanic GOP nominee who ran as a moderate. Martinez wouldn't just shore up probably 80 percent of the Cuban vote(which would hurt Kerry), he would probably get at least if not signifigantly more than 55 percent of the left-leaning other FL hispanic groups such as the Orlando Puerto Ricans.

She just strikes me as too milquetoast, and politically rusty(this is her first campaign in a long time). Florida's politics are, in the ideological spectrum, not too far from New Hampshires and she sort of strikes me as another Jean Shaheen, a campaign I did put a bit of time into.

I hope people don't get too defensive and hostile about my opinion. I don't have any animosity towards her, I just don't have enough confidence in her electability in short. Or her ability, or lack thereof, to help Kerry.

[The Backlash Cometh]

2. Unfortunately, you may be right.

The only way to beat Mel is to use his track record against him. How well did he do in HUD? I heard there was a scandal in Sanford.

[Bombtrack]

3. I think a smarter way we can beat Martinez is to get Alex Penelas in the

ring with him. I've yet to find any professional or prominent politico or consultant or analyst who doesn't see him as the strongest candidate in the general election whether against Martinez or McCollum.

[The Backlash Cometh]

4. If Penelas wins, it would be for all the wrong reasons.

I'm not sure you'd be happy with the results, afterwards.

[Bombtrack]

5. I wouldn't be happy that we're defending a democratic senate seat

from Going republican? Penelas's politics aren't any further right than Bob Graham or Betty Castor. I know the idea is foreign to alot of people here that you can be friends and aquaintences with republicans and be liberal at the same time. Point me to an executive of a large population who doens't conduct a dilogue and relationship with the opposition party and I'll show you an ineffective executive.

I'm not going to lie and pretend Penelas has been the perfect raging partisan so many people here like, that would be untruthful, but alot of people here are being untruthful and extremely exaggetory about Penelas, and alot of it is steeped in anti-Cuban and overall guilt by association overtones.