FLA INSIDER POLL: Donald Trump will be on Fla's March ballot, Jeb will win

The Tampa Bay Times' The Buzz ^ | August 21, 2015 | Adam C. Smith, political editor

[2ndDivisionVet]

Look out Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio, the political world no longer thinks you will be the only real contenders for Florida's March 15 presidential primary. In our latest Florida Insider Poll, nearly 80 percent of the savvy Sunshine state politicos surveyed predict that Donald Trump will be on the ballot as well.

"The Trump bubble is certainly not going to burst as early as many of us expected -- he is here for awhile," lamented one Republican.

Many Republican leaders had expected Trump's candidacy to fizzle out by now, but he continues to lead in most polls. Trump still being in the race by mid-March is not the same thing as Trump winning the Sunshine state race, however. Two thirds of the Florida Insiders predicted Jeb Bush will win Florida's primary and ultimately the Republican nomination too.

"2016 race certainly getting stranger by the day - but only Jeb has the resources & campaign organization to wait out the Trump bubble until in bursts. Trump currently the anti-Bush option - he is allowing no one else to grab that mantle with any certainty - that helps Jeb long term," said one Republican. "End of the day Jeb emerges and wins a very tough fight for the nomination. Followed by an even tougher fight in the fall that will also see him prevail."

This is an unscientific survey of 150 members of Florida's political elite - campaign professionals, lobbyists, recovering politicians, fundraisers, and the like. It reflects the thinking of Florida's political establishment, which is not exactly enamored with Trump.

"Even though many of them are my friends, I will admit that it's fun watching the daily meltdowns from within the consultant class over Teflon Trump's inability to bleed when cut," one Republican confessed....

[HANG THE EXPENSE]

You are not the only one to experience that.My life long demorat parents called me the other night and said they were all in for Trump and Cruz.I think the scorching hot Texas summers have finally gotten though to them.Thank you Jesus.

[bigbob]

Amen!

[Red Steel]

These so-called "insiders" have been all wet so far.

Inside losers.

[Salamander]

Martin O’Malice gave MD the most awesome castle doctrine, ever.

Would not for vote for him if my life depended on it.

[Amntn]

We have a friend who has always voted democrat because his family has always been democrat.

Nothing we said could convince him of what the democrat party has become. He even voted for Obama twice.

He told us the other day to make sure we vote for Trump in the primary because he wants to vote for him in the general.

[haircutter]

Y'ALL IN FLORIDA say...Jeb will win...

will you be willing to vote for Trump when he wins??

I have some loyal Democrat friends in Florida and they surprised the heck out of me, by being all out for Trump..

I believe many are in for some REAL surprises. and we sure need a major change and Jeb Bush just isn't it....

I can see a TRUMP/CRUZ TICKET WINNING IT ALL...

[EternalVigilance]

This is an unscientific survey of 150 members of Florida’s political elite

Whistling past the graveyard.

[Amntn]

TRUMP/CRUZ TICKET WINNING IT ALL...

Sound good to me!

[kvanbrunt2]

I can’t believe I’m typing that, I have never liked the guy, but he is connecting with people like I haven’t seen since Reagan.

i told my GF this tonight as well He is just acting like he is running the country. something a true leader does in a vacuum naturally. and there is a big vacuum. in my small world at work i do the same thing when appropriate.

[X-spurt]

Maybe they are pretesting Floridah legalizing Maryjane.
Lots of wishful thinking going on.

[mkjessup]

I thought JB was a decent governor.

Terri Schiavo-Schindler was unavailable for comment.

[mkjessup]

Good Morning Popman,

LOL...you must not know Florida voters very well...

Actuall I know them really damn well, because I used to be one.

Yeb Bush was actually a pretty decent governor...people will remember that...

Terri Schiavo-Schindler sure remembers. Oops, she's dead. Thanks Jebuardo.

He will win the low information rino vote and Rubio will win the Cuban vote...
That doesn’t leave Trump with enough votes to win...
He will do OK...but he isn’t going to win Florida...

Florida voters are a lot like the alligators resident in that state, sometimes they just sit around and watch what's going on, you might be excused for mistaking them for just one more gawdy lawn ornament, but then when you least expect it, they leap forward, jaws open, and then *snap* 'em shut on whoever they have targeted, and that poor soul will be remembered only as a great big 'BURP'.

Senior voters in Florida will remember Jebuardo alright, which is why they'll pull the lever for Trump.

Marco Rubio?

He'll be lucky to hang on to his seat next time around.

FRegards ...

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

Ya know,,, doctors say the first born gets the most smarts, and the next go downhill. We’re screwed!

[mkjessup]

Jeb was not a bad Governor...

Unless you were one of the farmers, ranchers or homeowners on the wrong end of one of his massive land-grabs... 65,000 acres in my county (Collier) alone. "It was to preserve the environment for future generations."
Then he was a very bad governor. In fact, he was a evil piece of s**t.

Ahhh, I see you remember Jebuardo the way I do. Fat Boy might have gotten himself elected Governor back in the day, but as Trump said of former New York governor George Pataki, "[today], he [Bush in this case] couldn't get elected dogcatcher".

I'll say this, if the Jebuardo Boooooosh campaign sees their own internal polling pointing to a humiliation as the Florida Primary approaches, he'll drop out first before subjecting himself to that debacle. Believe that.

[nickcarraway]

So true.

[mkjessup]

This is an unscientific survey of 150 members of Florida’s political elite

Whistling past the graveyard.

Exactly. And none of the so-called 'Republican leaders' would lend their name to this Jebuardo poopaganda. He's already toast and deep down, he knows it too.

[nickcarraway]

Trump, in his book, The America We Deserve, said Jeb Bush is, "exactly the kind of political leader this country needs now and will very much need in the future."

Trump should take his buddy Jeb to a country like Sweden where their beliefs fit in.

In the meantime anyone who votes for either of these two idiots is a worse idiot, and certainly no conservative. Down with the amnesty twins!

[mkjessup]

“Two thirds of the Florida Insiders predicted Jeb Bush will win Florida’s primary and ultimately the Republican nomination too. “

Wow. Only 2/3 will be wrong this time. they’re getting better at this as time goes along. Just a couple of weeks ago it was almost ALL the pundits and almost ALL the “professional” politicos predicting Donald’s demise. Now it’s only 2/3.

They were predicting the demise of a sitting Florida Governor (Lawton Chiles) in '94, saying that Jebuardo would certainly take his rightful position in Tallahassee, but ol' Walkin' Lawton squeezed out a victory by a margin of 64,000+ votes.

Just like Hillary Rotten Clinton, Bush is a name from yesterday, not a name to trust going into the future.

[mkjessup]

Trump, in his book, The America We Deserve, said Jeb Bush is, "exactly the kind of political leader this country needs now and will very much need in the future."

Yeah, that was back in 2000, *fifteen* years ago. If Trump still thought that way, he wouldn't be running for the GOP nomination, he would have just cut Jebuardo a big fat check.

Trump should take his buddy Jeb to a country like Sweden where their beliefs fit in.

I doubt they consider themselves "buddies".

In the meantime anyone who votes for either of these two idiots is a worse idiot, and certainly no conservative. Down with the amnesty twins!

Hey, you have something in common with John McCain now Nick, he thinks everyone supporting Trump is a "crazie".

You find us another GOP candidate generating this kind of coast to coast enthusiasm with poll numbers to match, and we'll take a look at him, fair enough?

[entropy12]

I kept flippin between Fox News & MSNBC and avoided almost all commercials!