Premature election?

Got an email overnight from the Maurice Ferre 2010 campaign. He's the former Miami mayor who somewhat belatedly has tossed his hat into the ring for the open U.S. Senate seat next year.

Here's the email, in its entirety save for a curious link to an op-ed Ferre had published in the Miami Herald last month:

With Florida not getting our fair share back from Washington, Florida needs a pro not a rookie in the US Senate says Democratic US Senator MAURICE FERRE

Um, you're not a senator yet, Mr. Ferre -- nor, I might add, are you particularly good at punctuation. But good luck with that ....

Alan Grayson rocks the house

Biggest cheers of the day so far go to Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), who just gave the briefest yet most well-received speech of the morning. I'll paraphrase a couple of his remarks (which I livetweeted) for your enjoyment:

"Democrats are the party of people with a conscience. We ought to rename the Democratic Party the 'Conscience Party.' Republicans, though, ought to be renamed the 'Selfish Party.' "

"We've known for 3,000 years that a good society feeds the hungry, shelters the homeless, and takes care of the sick."

"Republicans are 'no-mongers.' They actually read books like The Virtue of Being Selfish."

He didn't speak long, but as he's done for you on your teevee, Rep. Grayson certainly made an impression.

Is Harry Reid becoming a vertebrate?

While watching Democrats from the state House to the White House roll over and play dead in the face of Republican opposition, even when the Dems are a supermajority (I'm looking at you, Congress), I've often wondered whether the folks on the Left (such as it is today ... kind of center-left, but I digress ....) would ever grow a backbone ... especially U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Could it be happening now?

First, I read over the weekend that Sen. Reid, a notorious weak link in Democratic leadership (maybe the fact that he's Mormon and anti-choice might have been a clue, Dems?!), came out* in support of next weekend's National Equality March in Washington and elsewhere.

click image for larger version

In all seriousness, it's nice to see Sen. Reid take a prominent stand on something so important. Particularly as rumors swirl about President Obama taking another look at Don't Ask, Don't Tell -- remarkably, also at the behest (in part) of Sen. Reid -- it's time to stop treating the GLBT community as second-class citizens and end what really amounts to the last legally permissible discrimination in America today.

Meanwhile, in the ongoing debate over health care reform, where Sen. Reid also is playing a critical role, there are reports that the president is working hard behind the scenes to preserve a public option ... without which health care reform really is no reform at all.

The Los Angeles Times reports that President Obama is quietly trying to shore up support for some form of a public option. "In the last week, however, senior administration officials have been holding private meetings almost daily at the Capitol with senior Democratic staff to discuss ways to include a version of the public plan in the healthcare bill that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) plans to bring to the Senate floor this month, according to senior Democratic congressional aides. Among those regularly in the meetings are Obama's top healthcare advisor, Nancy-Ann DeParle; aides to Reid; and staff from the Senate Finance and Health committees, both of which developed healthcare bills."

Previously, the Obama administration has relied on a bipartisan group of governors to support his various legislative initiatives; but on health care (in particular Medicaid), he could find bipartisan opposition as state governments worry about how to pay for an expansion of Medicaid.

[...]

[Sen. Max] Baucus [(D-Mont.)] and Reid are “approaching a breaking point” over inclusion of the public option in a final Senate proposal. While Reid “deferred the issue” to Baucus over the summer, the leader indicated last week “that he is prepared to join Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), who both pushed a public option amendment that failed in a committee vote last Tuesday.”

Reid and Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), also a strong supporter of the public option, indicated that in order to attract centrist Democrats wary of the public option, that they would be open to “[wrapping] the controversial elements of reform in a politically attractive message to the centrists’ conservative-leaning constituents. That could include the addition of provisions aimed directly at problems or issues in each Senator’s state, such as tweaks to state funding formulas for federal programs, aides said.”

The public option ought to be non-negotiable, Sen. Baucus' insurance-company-funded opposition notwithstanding. In short, you only need 51 votes, so Baucus and colleagues Sens. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) and Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) basically can take their votes and shove 'em.

Regardless of what happens from here in these vital issues, it's nice to see Harry Reid finally doing what his office requires him to do: lead the Senate Democrats. Let's hope it continues.

---

* Pun most definitely intended.

Grayson apologizes

Rep. Alan Grayson apologized today.

No, not to Republicans in Congress for hurting their itty-bitty widdle feelings when he said -- correctly -- that when it comes to health care reform, Republicans "want you to die."

Not only did Grayson stand by what he said yesterday -- again, correctly -- but he actually apologized to dead people for Congress' failure to enact health care reform sooner.

"I've spoken to other members of leadership and nobody has asked me to apologize. Nobody is going to ask me to apologize. As I said before, no rules of the House were broken. We have a - if you bother to look it up - there's something in the Constitution called the Speech and Debate Clause and I think it well covers this situation. So no, nobody is going to ask me to apologize among the Democrats. I think the Republicans have something to apologize for but I made clear exactly what that is last night," he said.

Grayson also took to the House floor to offer a different sort of apology - to those who have died for lack of health insurance. "I apologize to the dead and their families that we haven't acted sooner to end this holocaust in America," he said.

I love this guy ... in a manly way, of course. Thank Jeebus one Democrat (and from Florida, no less!) has the balls to say what needs to be said. And when lesser Democrats -- Harry Reid, Steny Hoyer, Rahm Emanuel, et al. -- bow and scrape at the slightest breath of Republican consternation, Alan Grayson is one Dem who says he's mad as hell, and he's not going to take it anymore.

More like Grayson, please. Many, many more. It's nice, finally, to have someone who, as another Floridian once put it, won't back down.

Not enough offices to go around

As Democratic candidates line up throughout Florida to run for state office in 2010, when every statewide office will be open for the first time since 1876, it's almost inevitable that some toes will be trod upon and some feelings hurt. Unfortunately, it looks like some of those toes and feelings may belong to state senator and Friend of Blast Off! Dan Gelber (right).

When Gelber announced last weekend in Miami that he was "stepping back" from the U.S. Senate race (a story I had the honor of "scooping" on Twitter, of all places), he expressed the hope that state Democrats could avoid a "circular firing squad" as they jockey for position. He also stated publicly that he was going to be looking at possible Cabinet positions; speculation had centered on Attorney General.

But with today's announcement by another state senator and Friend of Blast Off!, Dave Aronberg, that he would seek the Democratic nomination for AG, things suddenly got a little tighter. So Gelber responded late today with this email to supporters and friends:

A few days ago I receded from the U.S. Senate race in order to avoid the circular firing squad that has characterized too many past Democratic efforts. My hope was that with the opening up of every cabinet office (for the first time in 140 years [sic]) that Democratic hopefuls – like me -- would take a step back to give all of us time to reach a thoughtful judgment on how best to unify our party in a year when real change is finally within reach.

In fact, over the last few weeks many of the potential candidates had been in dialogue with each other and with others hoping to avoid the type of divisions that damage our ability to present a winning slate in November. I am grateful to have heard that so many of you share my concern and were also hopeful that our party could break free of its past missteps.

This afternoon my friend Dave Aronberg let me know that he was not waiting any longer and announced his candidacy for Attorney General. While I would have preferred a different timeline, I expect to be making my own announcement of my intentions within a few days. While part of me worries that this is déjà vu all over again, I am still optimistic that ultimately we will be able to deliver the change Floridians so desperately need.

Sounds to me like Gelber may throw caution to the wind and jump in the AG's race himself. That might encourage former gubernatorial candidate Rod Smith to follow suit, figuring that Aronberg (left) and Gelber would split the south Florida primary vote.

The bottom line in all this, assuming Gelber and/or Smith decide to take Aronberg on for AG, is that Gelber's -- and the Florida Democratic Party's -- wish for uncontested nominees likely will go by the wayside. There simply aren't enough offices for everyone who wants one. And when it comes to the AG race, where the GOP nominee hilariously might well be embattled and ethically-challenged Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp, the Democrats can ill afford to knock each other out in a bitter primary battle.

Here's hoping personal ambition takes a back seat to what's best for Florida.

Emotional history

Watching the news reports from Washington, I'm surprised at how disappointed I feel that I didn't make the trip. Yes, there are crowds -- massive crowds, it's true -- but I can only imagine the excitement that folks like NTodd and Kenneth Quinnell must be feeling as they prepare to witness history (and chronicle it for the rest of us).

The teevee keeps encouraging all of us to embrace unity and bipartisanship on this day and, presumably, forward into the Obama administration. Indeed, on most Inauguration Days I can recall, there's at least a modicum of melancholy for the outgoing president, who generally is, as CNN said today of George H.W. Bush while watching his son Drunky McStagger leave office, "wistful" as he contemplates his departure from the White House, and I'm usually willing to share in that feeling.

Usually.

Thing is, I'm having a very hard time mustering any kind of sympathy or warmth for this outgoing president. Defiant to the end, our soon-to-be-former president continues to insist that he did the right things, that he wasn't negligent or ignorant or, worse, malevolent. He and his dwindling cadre of aides and supporters are convinced, or deluded, that history will vindicate him, in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Granted, that's par for the course for the hubris-laden sociopaths who populate the Bush crime syndicate, led by Drunky himself, but if you were looking for some sort of deathbed conversion for the Gang of Thieves, you'll be disappointed.

See what I mean? Even 20 years ago today, when I personally attended the inauguration of George H.W. Bush as our 41st president, I felt a little twinge for Ronald Reagan of ... well, if not exactly sympathy, then at least recognition of his impact on American and world history. But I have trouble disguising my contempt for today's outgoing president, who I truly believe should be retiring to a prison cell, not to Dallas.

Does that make me just another angry DFH? Maybe. But only the most ardent, Kool-Aid-infused Republicans can deny that the last eight years have been extraordinarily detrimental to America's strength and standing domestically and abroad. I encountered one of those last night at rehearsal, when one of my fellow singers, a former Giuliani supporter who knows well my own political stance, only half-jokingly asked me whether I would be "sad to see a great statesman leave office tomorrow," a man who he truly believes "kept us safe." They refuse to acknowledge Drunky's dismal, historic failure to keep us safe on 9/11, when he was warned a month earlier of Osama bin Laden's "determin[ation] to strike" the United States yet did nothing. They refuse to acknowledge how he and his cronies almost gleefully abandoned New Orleans in the wake of Katrina. They refuse to acknowledge his utter contempt for the Constitution; indeed, they find ways to justify and celebrate it.

Yes, today is a day of American unity as Barack Obama becomes our 44th president. But I hope we never forget the disastrous era that ends today, so that the good feeling that accompanies the inauguration doesn't lead us to repeat history by ever again installing sycophants, hypocrites, and apologists in positions of power.

Sink for Senate? Or governor?

Democrats in Florida are hoping to maintain some momentum in 2010 following Barack Obama's big win, and they're looking right at Sen. Mel Martinez.

With Dems already branding Republican U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez a top target for 2010, much speculation has focused on Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink as a potential Democratic challenger. Sink is also a hot commodity in the 2010 gubernatorial speculation market. Sink, for the record, says she's focusing on her job and not commenting on 2010 rumors.

If Sink doesn't run for Senate, U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, D-Boca Raton, will be among those attracting speculation. One of the most prodigious money-raisers in Congress, Klein has about $1.7 million left over in his campaign account. Klein says he's too busy dealing with the nation's financial meltdown and national catastrophe insurance to think about 2010.

Okay, first of all, let's be realistic here: Democrats in Florida have no momentum. Not really. Yeah, we went blue for president, but that was about the extent of the excitement. Democrats had a net gain of one -- count it, one -- congressional seat, and the Legislature remains deep red. And as far as ballot initiatives, one need only look at the atrocious Amendment 2, the constitutional ban on all non-one-man-one-woman unions, to see that Florida has far to go to consider itself even on the on-ramp to the progressive road.

But, let's fast-forward a couple of years. If President Obama is successful at restoring economic health in America (and, presumably, in Florida by association) and the Iraq War is over or nearly so, the Democrats might be able to make some gains in the mid-term elections. Besides, we have to have someone to run against Martinez, as well as against incumbent governor Charlie Crist who, despite being a Republican (or maybe because of it), remains highly popular. Martinez clearly is the easier target of the two, and Alex Sink is the Democrats' strongest statewide candidate at this point; she and Sen. Bill Nelson are the only Democrats presently holding statewide office.

As much as I like Ron Klein, though, I believe he would be a poor statewide candidate (as would his congressional colleagues Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Robert Wexler). Floridians outside of south Florida tend to distrust those from this area (the exception being Miamians like Jeb! Bush, Bob Graham, and Claude Pepper), and even though Klein is a prodigious fundraiser, I don't think he has the pedigree nor the experience to succeed in a statewide race.

So, for my money, Alex Sink should step up and take on Mel Martinez in 2010. Florida was a pioneer in sending a woman to the Senate (Paula Hawkins, elected in 1980). It's time for another one, but this time a Democrat. As for the gubernatorial race, it's going to be frankly tough to beat Charlie ... so let's not sacrifice a successful member of Congress for the cause.

Palm Beach County voter registrations skyrocket

Well, perhaps "skyrocket" is too strong a word ... but it's pretty impressive, I think, that there are over 15,000 new registered voters in Palm Beach County since the August primaries. Yeah, it's a little less than a two-percent increase, but hey, we're talking about two months' time here.

When the tally was all-but-completed early today, 45.8 percent were registered as Democrats, 29.7 percent as Republicans and 24.3 percent as other.

While no party can declare victory, the total number now registered is impressive: 825,078 up from the 809,650 who were eligible to vote in the August primary.

"It's pretty big," Assistant County Administrator Brad Merriman said, adding that he didn't know how that compared to prior voter registration spikes that traditionally accompany presidential elections.

The percentages for each party didn't change appreciably -- Palm Beach County historically is a Democratic stronghold -- but it's still nice to see people actually interested in voting.

Now let's see which party does a better job of GOTV (Get Out the Vote). I'll give you three guesses, and the first two don't count ...

Florida's still swinging

No, the title is not a reference to, for lack of a better term, "geographical anatomy." However, based on the two latest polls on the presidential race, America's Wang™ still could go either way.

Both presidential campaigns can point to new polls that show them ahead in Florida.

SurveyUSA: McCain 49%, Obama 47%

Research 2000: Obama 49%, McCain 45%

The interesting part, as one commenter at the link points out, is the internals on the SUSA poll. They have Obama leading among independents, 47-44, and each has 80% of his own party, yet Huggy Bear has a two-point lead overall? Maybe a little GOP bias in the sample?

Even weirder, SUSA scored it 75-22 for Obama among African-Americans. I'm not saying race has to be a determining factor here, but realistically, how can Huggy be getting 22% among African-Americans? Unless, say, they talked to a disproportionate number of African-American Republicans ...

Bearing out my suspicions, if you drill down even further, you'll see that the overall sample was 44% GOP, 40% Democratic, and 16% independents, in a state where Democrats hold a modest edge of about 41% to 37% over the Republicans in total voter registrations, with 22% registered as independents or with some other affiliation*. Now, granted, many of those Democrats may support Huggy, since historically central and northern Floridians often register as Democrats but vote Republican for president ... but we just don't know that from this poll. We're talking about very small counties anyway, for the most part, so the effect on the poll would -- should -- be minimal.

So we're left with two conclusions: first, take SUSA, or any poll showing Huggy with the lead in Florida, with a grain of salt; and second, we can't let up now. Keep working, keep pushing, keep hustling, right on through November 4. True, Obama doesn't have to win Florida to take the White House ... but it'd be much nicer if we could turn Florida blue.

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* These numbers are based on my own calculations, estimated from 2007 voter registration numbers plus the influx of over 430,000 new registered voters in 2008, some 58% of whom are Democrats. Putting the two together and rounding the numbers just a bit, I estimated:

4,350,000 Democrat
3,900,000 Republican
2,400,000 Independent/Other

for an approximate total of 10,650,000 registered voters in Florida. Again, just an estimate ... but any discrepancy probably would be in the actual tallies rather than in the percentages derived therefrom.

Why Obama can win Florida

The new polls showing Barack Obama in the lead in Florida notwithstanding, there is more proof -- more viable, long-range proof -- demonstrating that Obama has an excellent chance of winning Florida's 27 crucial electoral votes next month.

The Palm Beach Post today published a study of new voter registration statistics in Florida, and the news is very good for Democrats. Of the 430,000 new voters in the state, Democratic numbers increased twice as much as Republicans. Moreover, the new voters skew more culturally and ethnically diverse and younger than before.

According to figures from the Florida Division of Elections:

• Of all newly registered voters since Jan. 29, 58 percent are Democrats.

• Republicans account for about 24 percent of new voters, while 18 percent have registered in a third party or as independents.

• The rush of new voters in the past seven months has flipped the registration lead from Republican to Democrat in Pinellas and Orange counties, two swing counties on opposite ends of the Interstate 4 corridor, the biggest battleground in the state.

The Post analysis of the data shows:

• The number of black voters between 35 and 49 years old increased 13 percent in seven months in Florida, while the number of white voters of the same age remained about the same.

• For every woman who registers Republican, 2.3 females are signing up as Democrats.

• The average age among registered voters in the state's largest county, Miami-Dade, dropped by almost six months since Jan. 29.

"The data echoes what we've heard from the Obama campaign, that their emphasis would be on registering voters and increasing the electorate," said Harold Stanley, a Southern Methodist University political science professor. "But these are groups of voters who normally aren't so enthusiastic about participating, particularly those under 30."

Naturally, the Republicans pooh-pooh those statistics, suggesting that "getting back to discussing Mr. Obama's aggressively liberal record and how he will be too risky for America," according to McCain adviser Greg Stimple, will be the way to go for this election. It's funny -- they must be living in an alternate universe if they think Obama is liberal. Granted, he's more liberal than Huggy Bear, but most normal people are ...

Anyway, the point is that there are literally hundreds of thousands of new voters in a key swing state, and the vast majority of them are going to vote for Obama. Not only will that have major implications for the presidential race, the down-ticket races are going to be affected as well.

For once, the news isn't good for Huggy ...

Wexler to speak at convention

Good for the Democrats ... and good for Florida, too.

Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), the fire-breathing liberal himself, will speak at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. He'll be on the program on Wednesday, August 27, during the program entitled "Securing America's Future: A Tribute to Veterans, Active Duty Military and Military Families."

So at least there will be one person on the podium in Denver who can speak truth to power and not get all mealy-mouthed about "getting along" or "reaching across the aisle."

Juxtaposition

Two stories on the front page of the Palm Beach Post today about members of Congress and some recent, um, irregularities in their conduct. One is about a Democrat and the other is about a Republican. See if you can tell the difference between the two.

First, the Democrat:

Acknowledging that accusations that he doesn't really live in Florida are raising "concerns" among his constituents, Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler said Tuesday that he will begin leasing an apartment in his congressional district rather than continue to claim residency at his in-laws' home near Delray Beach.

Wexler made the announcement on the same day that his two challengers produced records showing Wexler received property tax breaks by declaring his house in Potomac, Md., a "primary residence" from 1999 to 2002. He also signed a loan document with his wife in 2005 describing the house as "my/our principal residence."

Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler says he will lease an apartment in his congressional district rather than declaring residency at the home of his in-laws.

Wexler's chief of staff, Eric Johnson, said Wexler mistakenly signed paperwork declaring the Maryland house his primary residence when he bought it in 1997 and corrected the error in 2003 when it was brought to his attention.

Johnson said the signature on the loan document was not the same as a legal declaration of residency but was an affirmation that Wexler would be living in the house "for a good majority of the time" rather than renting it out.

Even if Wexler called the Maryland home his primary residence, Johnson contended, he still would be a Florida resident. Johnson cited an 1879 Florida Supreme Court ruling that said a Gainesville man did not lose his Florida residency when "attending to the duties of a public office" in Washington.

And now the Republican (link is to original source, which the Post picked up):

Alaska's Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in U.S. history, was indicted yesterday on seven charges of making false statements about more than $250,000 that corporate executives doled out to overhaul his Anchorage area house.

A federal grand jury in the District accused Stevens of concealing on financial disclosure statements lucrative gifts from the now-defunct oil company Veco and its top executives, including a Viking gas grill, a tool cabinet and a wraparound deck. At one point, Veco employees and contractors jacked up the senator's mountainside house on stilts and added a new first floor, with two bedrooms and a bathroom, the indictment says.

The senator, who once oversaw more than $900 billion in federal spending each year as chairman of the Appropriations Committee, said he has "temporarily relinquished" his senior posts on several committees, in accordance with Senate rules, while he focuses on the legal battle ahead.

Stevens, 84, the first sitting U.S. senator to face criminal charges in 15 years, adamantly denied the allegations in a statement yesterday afternoon.

Two points:

1. Will the people, especially local bloggers, bleating about how horrible Wexler's situation is, kindly shut the fuck up?

2. Once again, Republicans outdo Democrats on the scale of criminality. Quite an honor to uphold, there, GOP.

Heckuva job, Teddy.

(There also was a front-page teaser about a story on a 15-year-old local golfer making great strides. I went to high school with the golfer's father, who was two years behind me. I feel old.)

Ever the hypocrite, Lieberman visits south Florida

If you've been reading Blast Off! over the years, you know the one thing that really grinds my gears is hypocrisy. And if there's one person who takes the prize as the Greatest American Hypocrite, it may well be Sen. Joe Lieberman (D? R? I? Who the fuck knows?-Conn.).

Holy Joe was in America's Glans™ yesterday stumping for his newest, bestest buddy and big toe, Huggy Bear. And he's as unrepentantly asinine and hypocritical as ever.

"Why do I remain a Democrat?" Lieberman mused to reporters on the McCain campaign bus.

"I've been a Democrat all my life and I still nurture the hope that the Democratic Party will, on matters of foreign and defense and even homeland security policy, return to where it was, not just when I joined it when John F. Kennedy was president, but, frankly, where it was when Bill Clinton was president just eight years ago.

"I think the party has changed dramatically on foreign policy and a lot of economic policy," Lieberman said.

Lieberman's biggest break with his party has been over his support for the war in Iraq and for the McCain-advocated "surge" of U.S. troops there.

At The Shul synagogue in Surfside, after young girls from a day camp serenaded Lieberman with the Hebrew song "Haveinu Shalom Aleichem," Lieberman told the town-hall crowd that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's current visit to Iraq wouldn't have been possible if the United States had followed Obama's calls for a speedy withdrawal of U.S. troops while McCain called for increasing forces there.

"McCain was right and Obama was wrong. The surge is working," Lieberman said at The Shul.

In a reflection of growing voter anxiety over the economy and soaring gasoline prices, Lieberman also spent time criticizing Obama for opposing offshore oil drilling and a free-trade agreement with Colombia.

Both McCain and Obama have pro-Israel voting records in Congress, Lieberman told the synagogue audience. "But I respectfully think you have to go beyond that" and consider factors such as Obama's stated willingness to meet without preconditions with the anti-Israel leader of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he said.

No, Joe, the party hasn't moved away from you -- certainly not in the eight years since Bill Clinton occupied the White House. No, you most definitely have moved away from the party.

Setting aside for a moment that no Democrat would have endorsed the opposition party's candidate for president before you -- let alone embraced him as sickeningly as you have, Joe -- your attitude is hyper-hawkish, narrow-minded, wrong and, to put it bluntly, Republican. You're no more a Democrat than my family is, Joe, and my most fervent hope for this fall's election is that the Democrats can win a large enough majority in the U.S. Senate to render you completely marginalized.

You're worse than a hypocrite, Joe: you're a craven opportunist who gleefully abandoned your party -- a party that, foolishly in hindsight, applauded and supported your inclusion on the presidential ticket in 2000 -- and accepted Republican help and money to reverse the wishes of your own state's Democrats after you lost your primary in 2006. Actually, Joe, now that I think of it, you and Huggy belong together, because you both lack even the most rudimentary sense of integrity and honor that every human -- let alone every lawmaker -- should have.

Enjoy political purgatory, Joe. That's your destiny after November, pal, and you so richly deserve it.

Like a complete unknown

Electoral shenanigans continue in Palm Beach County ... and the question arises, is the GOP responsible again?

Five people suddenly and mysteriously filed for Green Party candidacy right at the deadline in several area legislative races -- and no one seems to know who they are.

All changed their affiliations, and some their addresses, before or shortly after qualifying in June.

"I'm shocked and I'm suspicious," said Echo Steiner of Lake Worth, the state co-chair of the Green Party.

Party officials have sent certified letters, e-mails and even tried knocking on doors so they can vet the candidates and officially endorse them. The candidates have until July 21 to fill out a questionnaire.

Democrats, who often lose votes to third-party candidates in competitive races, are accusing Republicans of being responsible.

"If it's true, this will be the first time in history that a state party has had a coordinated effort to put sham candidates on a ballot to manipulate an election," said [state Sen. Dave] Aronberg, D-Greenacres.

Republicans say they have no idea what the candidates are up to.

"These folks obviously are playing games here, but they certainly are not coming from us," said Republican Party of Florida spokeswoman Erin Van Sickle. "I've never heard of any of them."

Meanwhile, Florida Greens are scratching their heads.

"We're being used," said Julia Aires, Green Party of Florida spokeswoman. "Simple as that. This is the first time this has happened to us in Florida."

Green Party candidates have traditionally used petition signatures to qualify for elections, costing them little or nothing, Aires said.

Not so this time.

The five unknowns each paid the $1,915.92 fee to qualify for three House races and two Senate races.

Of the five (all of whom are in their 20s with only one older than 23), two recently changed their voter registration from Unaffiliated to Green, one each from Republican and Democrat to Green, and one from an even more minor party. There's no pattern in the races they've entered, either -- there are Republican incumbents, Democratic incumbents (including Aronberg), and open seats involved.

So, while it's easy to point fingers at the Republicans because third party candidates, especially from the Green Party, usually draw votes from Democratic candidates, it's just too early to say for sure that it's a GOP dirty trick. Even the Green Party doesn't seem to know what's going on. Then again, I wouldn't put it past Republicans to ... bend the rules a bit.

Prediction: Democratic landslide victory

Perhaps I'm putting too much stock in anecdotal evidence. But it is nice to look forward to an election for once.

I was in a store in the heart of blood-red America's Taint™ (the Florida panhandle) today, wearing my Obama '08 T-shirt. A gentleman not too much older than I spotted me and said, smiling, "Nice shirt! Vote early and often!"

"I'm doing my best," I said, returning the smile.

"Please do," the man replied. "My son's in the Army."

I stopped short and looked him in the eye. "We'll bring him home," I vowed.

We need to bring them all home. And the best way to do that is to elect as many Democrats -- preferably of the progressive variety -- as possible. For the soldiers. For their families. For America.

Obama vs. and Clinton

I have to hand it to Hillary Clinton. She's swallowing her pride -- at least publicly -- and getting out regularly on the campaign trail with Barack Obama ... and she's urging her supporters to set the rancor aside and support the Obama-Player to Be Named Later '08 ticket.

But according to an insightful article in today's Chicago Tribune, Clinton's supporters aren't quite so eager to bury the hatchet.

But, given the former rivals' raw and recent past of ravaging each other on the campaign trail, it may take more than a tango to keep their passionately partisan supporters in tandem, according to political observers, conflict resolution experts and family therapists.

"Clearly, over this primary, many grievances have built up between these two groups," said Jo Ellen Patterson, a professor of marital and family therapy at the University of San Diego.

Grievances so deep that in May, when Obama's victory seemed inevitable, some 115 former Clinton donors made substantial contributions to presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain of Arizona, according to an analysis done by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics for the Wall Street Journal. And, disgruntled Clinton supporters have put up Internet sites in protest, such as Together4us.com.

"Of course there's bitterness," said Cora Weiss, a longtime peace activist and one of the hosts of Thursday morning's Women for Obama Finance Breakfast at the New York Hilton and Towers hotel. "It's a question of time and Hillary is saying 'Get over it.'"

Considering the Clinton-Obama history over the painfully protracted Democratic primary season, there is plenty to get over.

The candidates, or their camps, pounced on the other's smallest gaffes. They derided each other: She portrayed him as unready to lead, he depicted her as unready to change. She sapped his support among women and blue collar set. He stole her support among the Kennedys and the Hollywood elite. She refused to concede for days after her loss in the June 3 Montana primary clinched the deal for Obama. As recently as a Wednesday night fundraiser, Obama forgot to request donations for Clinton during his speech and had to make an awkward return to the microphone. Some of their staunchest donors still stubbornly take sides: his won't help retire her $23 million in campaign debt, hers won't help him in his fight for the White House.

But, as Clinton and Obama indicated in remarks Thursday, they need each other and the party needs both of them to recapture the White House in November.

That last sentence is the key. I wish I could talk to every one of those disgruntled Clinton supporters who say they'll support Huggy Bear out of spite now -- and a lot of them live in America's Glans™, I assure you -- and say, "Are you really willing to throw the country into the toilet just so you can get revenge on that nasty, mean Obama? If you stick to your guns and stay motivated by hate, then get ready for a third Drunky McStagger term, because that's that you're going to get."

In short, we can't afford to give Huggy an inch, because with the help of the right-wing mainstream corporate media and the Diebold-type election shenanigans, he won't just take a mile, he'll take the White House.

Democratic setback in south Florida

Disappointing news this morning out of Fort Lauderdale, as attorney and Democratic candidate Walter "Skip" Campbell (right) is reconsidering his candidacy for Florida Senate District 25, where he presently is slated to take on Senate president-designate Jeff Atwater (R-Palm Beach Gardens). Recent polls show Campbell with a slight lead, and this is a terrific opportunity to dethrone one of the Senate's most notorious GOP leaders. But Campbell's withdrawal could change all that.

"I would be not forthright with if you if I did not tell you that there are considerations as to whether I'm going to stay in the race," Campbell said.

Campbell, a Democrat who formerly served in the Senate, said he will make the decision before July 4, citing "personal reasons" for a possible exit.

"I am not dying," said Campbell ...

[Incoming Senate Democratic leader Al] Lawson said he will travel to South Florida on Thursday to scout potential replacements for Campbell, who qualified for the race before the Friday deadline, giving party officials the ability to pick a replacement for him on the November ballot.

But that may be hard to accomplish because some prospects who were interested in running have already qualified for other races and cannot switch.

"It puts us in a bad situation," Lawson said.

Indeed it does.

The timing is particularly unfortunate because Campbell was given a prime speaking slot at the Florida Democratic Party's Jefferson-Jackson Dinner on June 14, where he shared his vision for returning Florida to greatness following years of detrimental Republican control. There was a real buzz about him around the hotel that day -- I was there and I saw it for myself -- and there was real optimism about getting Atwater out of Tallahassee.

Now there's just uncertainty. Stay tuned ...

Irony

Following up on that last post, I'm thunderstruck by the juxtaposition of Barack Obama apparently clinching the Democratic presidential nomination on the bicentennial of Jefferson Davis' birth.

Wow.

Will she or won't she?

CNN.com had the curious juxtaposition a few minutes ago of a lead article proclaiming that Hillary Clinton will concede tonight, along with a "BREAKING NEWS" banner saying she won't.

I'm with Atrios on this one. She'll probably "suspend the campaign" or something like that rather than use the word "concede," but for all intents and purposes, she's stepping aside and I presume she won't fight this all the way to Denver. I'm glad, not because I think Sen. Clinton would be a bad nominee, but because it's well past time for the Democrats to unify.

Pay attention to the real evil out there. As a nation, we cannot tolerate -- indeed, I doubt we can survive -- a Huggy Bear presidency.

Blast Off! Radio 2:00 pm EDT today: deciding the Democratic nomination

I have no idea what's going to happen this summer as far as the Democratic presidential nomination is concerned, but I'd like to talk about it and hear your thoughts on it. Is Hillary Clinton really going to take things all the way to the convention in Denver, or will this week mark the end? Did her decisive win in Puerto Rico make any difference at all? And is her treatment thus far really an example of blatant sexism, or is it more "anti-Clintonism" at work here?

I really want to know. Please, join me today -- here's how you do it:

TIME: 2:00 pm Eastern TODAY

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Catch you later this afternoon ...