March 11, 2003
60-40 VISION:
Cabinet member asked to seek Senate: White House lobbies Mart’nez (PETER WALLSTEN, 3/11/03, Miami Herald)The White House has asked Mel Mart’nez, a Cuban-American member of President Bush's Cabinet and the former elected chairman of Orange County, to run for U.S. Senate in Florida next year, sources told The Herald Monday.Mart’nez, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development since 2001, has been approached in recent days by a leading Republican senator and other White House emissaries, and is said to be weighing his options, said the sources familiar with the discussions. [...]
[M]art’nez, 56, would drive up voter turnout among Cuban Americans and in his politically critical home region of Central Florida in a year that the president needs Florida's 27 electoral votes to secure reelection.
''How many more Cubans, who are almost always Republican, does it draw out in an election if the Senate candidate's name is Mart’nez?'' said one leading Republican operative.
''It's not a slap in the face at McCollum or Foley,'' the operative said, ``it's just a fact that [Mart’nez] would influence turnout in a way that would be favorable for Republicans.''
The Democrats may as well just confirm Estrada now, 'cause soon they won't even be able to filibuster. Posted by Orrin Judd at March 11, 2003 2:58 PM
Americanprowler reported today that Dems expect Hollings in SC to retire rather than run for reelection and the Dems don't have any obvious candidate to run for them in SC which has become increasingly GOP
Posted by: AWW at March 11, 2003 10:18 PMIt's dubious that Hollings would win anyway after SC's experience with Strom at an advanced age.
Posted by: oj at March 11, 2003 10:57 PM