Posted on 06/27/2006 8:33:24 PM PDT by JulieRNR21
EAST PALATKA -- U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris said she is getting support in strange places in her fall bid for the U.S. Senate.
Harris, the Republican who represents Florida’s 13th District, spoke at a Lincoln Day dinner held by the Putnam County Republican Executive Committee on Saturday night, saying House Democrats have told her they want her to beat incumbent Democrat Sen. Bill Nelson in their race for the U.S. Senate this November.
“I’ve had Democrats in the House of Representatives come to me and say ‘You know, we’d really like to take the majority in the U.S. Senate’ — these are Florida Democrats in the U.S. Congress — ‘but you’ll do so much more for us if you’re there. We hope you win,’” Harris told a crowd gathered at the Putnam County Shrine Club.
Harris said one Florida representative suggested a slogan for her campaign against Nelson.
“I had one of the most liberal house members from Florida say to me, ‘I’ve got a great slogan for you for Nelson.’ I said ‘What is it?’ He said, ’All about nothing for far too long.’”
Harris said she replied she did not think she could use the slogan.
“I said ‘Well, it’s kind of mean. I don’t think I could really use it, but can I quote you?’ And he’s like ‘No, no, no.’”
The Shrine Club was awash in red, white and blue for the buffet dinner. On long tables were white gift bags with paper flowers and little American flags. Around them were red, white and blue mints.
On a table against a wall were several pictures of President Ronald Reagan, one of New York Yankee great Mickey Mantle and a photograph of President Abraham Lincoln over a plaque reading “The Party of Lincoln.”
State Rep. Joe Pickens, R-Palatka was master of ceremonies.
Mica: Harris helped put Bush in office
U.S. Rep. John Mica also spoke at the dinner, introducing Harris and telling the crowd she has the ability to beat Nelson in November, just as she won her seat in Congress in 2002.
“She was not favored,” Mica said. “She wasn’t on the radar screen. She didn’t hold any high position. And she wiped out her opponent and no one predicted that.”
Mica told the crowd Harris is a “human dynamo” who showed strength after the 2000 presidential election in her capacity as Florida’s Secretary of State.
“You saw what happened in the 2000 elections,” Mica said. “Others would have had a faint heart and walked away. Katherine Harris helped us put in office, and rightfully so, George Bush as president of the United States.”
During her speech, Harris said she followed “the letter of the law” in certifying a George W. Bush victory in Florida.
Harris said beating Nelson and Florida electing a Republican governor in 2006 would help shape the political future of the country.
“I won’t say it’s just about the future of our state — it’s about the future of America, because whomever wins this seat and whomever wins the governor’s seat is likely going to determine the presidency in 2008,” Harris said. “Florida will become the third most populous state in the nation. And whoever wins Florida, wins.”
Harris attributed growth in the nation’s Gross Domestic Product to tax relief passed by Congress under Bush.
Harris supports fair tax
“If we had the fair tax, if we take a look at real tax reform, then you cannot imagine the growth in our economy,” Harris said. “People would start saving instead of spending. And people like Teresa Heinz that have $7 million in income when her husband was running for the presidency and didn’t pay a dime in taxes because of tax shelters all of a sudden pay taxes on all those homes and all those cars.”
Harris said the fair tax would ensure that those at or below the poverty level “would never pay a dime.”
She said under a fair tax plan, federal taxes on Social Security, cable, telephone and gas would be eliminated.
Harris also said it is important that the Iraq war be fought and won on the battlefields, not in Washington, D.C.
“We’ve been to Iraq,” Harris said. “It’s debatable why we got in. We can continue that argument ad nausea if you like. I think more and more things are going to be discussed and discovered.”
According to Harris, Florida is a state on the right track.
“We are the envy of every state in the nation,” Harris said. “We have the lowest unemployment rate and the highest job creation.”
Putnam County Republican Executive Committee Chairwoman Linda Wells said she thought the dinner went well.
“We were thrilled with the turnout tonight and the enthusiasm everyone showed,” Wells said. “And we hope it will translate into Republican victories in November.”
Great news! I'm really happy to have your feedback on what's really going on there. Very best wishes.
How so?
A bit of reinforcement to the rumors of how much trouble her campaign is in. And if he gets involved and she doesn't show any significant improvement, it will likely be portrayed as "nothing can save her!" (Not that we haven't seen plenty of that already.)
Plus, as of now, she just hasn't earned a place that high up on the priority list. Others need the President's help just as badly and are more competitive in their races. If she can keep her staff together and post some better polling numbers, I think he'll be there after Labor Day. Just my two cents.
I think these democrats are wanting KHarris to stay because she appears very easy to beat.
Nelson has a walk away victory in the bag and if another viable candidate replaces harris then Money will have to be diverted.
Harris has not learned the lesson, she is still being manipulated and not talking about issues, she is talking about the race. Nelson is allowed to do photo ops on FNC and look serious.
Look for Nelson to be on the VP short list in 2008 as a candidate who can deliver FL.
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