Straughn
17-03-2006, 08:24
Okay, THIS woman HAS TO have a better message than tight pink spandex and "Yep, i threw one, you know i got moxie"! :mad:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/14108237.htm
Harris contributing $10 million to her Senate campaign
BY TAMARA LYTLE
The Orlando Sentinel
WASHINGTON - Rep. Katherine Harris, R-Fla., used a national television audience Wednesday night to try to jump-start her faltering Senate campaign, announcing that she would pour $10 million of her own money into the race.
Harris' appearance on the Fox News program "Hannity & Colmes" capped weeks of speculation about whether she would drop out of the race against Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., because of problems with fundraising, staff turnover and the fallout from her acceptance of illegal campaign contributions.
Harris, not a popular choice among party leaders who tried to recruit other candidates to run, kept her decision mostly to herself until Wednesday night.
"I'm in this race. I'm going to win," Harris said. "I'm going to put everything on the line ... everything that I have, and I am going to put it in this race."
The $10 million will come from an inheritance from Harris' father, she said, who died earlier this year.
Republican strategists had joked they should start a betting pool on whether she would drop out or not after she announced last Saturday that a "major announcement" was coming soon.
Political analysts had differing views Wednesday on whether an infusion of her own wealth would change the dynamics of the race. She has lagged far behind Nelson in the polls (20 points in the most recent survey just hours before her announcement) and has come under fire for taking tainted money from a defense contractor who pleaded guilty to bribing Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif.
"I'm convinced her campaign is mortally wounded," said Jim Kane, a pollster for the nonpartisan Florida Voter. Harris is running against a popular opponent who appeals to independent voters in Florida, while Harris is a "very polarizing figure," he said.
But David Johnson, a Tallahassee political consultant and former state party director, said Harris' decision to finance her campaign could turn things around.
"Money begets money. If she's willing to make that investment, people will say `Okay, I'll invest in her.'" Johnson said.
Jennifer Duffy, who handicaps Senate races for the Cook Political Report, said the money will free Harris' time for campaigning, which is a strong suit. But Duffy said Nelson still has the advantage in the race.
Nelson spokesman Dan McLaughlin said the announcement doesn't change the problems Harris has had.
"Basically the past week or so has been nothing but a stageshow - a series of theatrics which would seem to be intended to deflect attention from all her troubles," McLaughlin said.
Harris was just beginning to get GOP leaders behind her bid when the news hit that she had accepted money from Mitchell Wade and his company MZM Inc.
She also asked House leaders for $10 million in federal aid for his company because, she said, MZM would have brought jobs to her Sarasota district.
She returned $50,000 in checks from Wade and his associates after finding out he had illegally repaid MZM workers for their personal donations to Harris.
Thomas Rooney, whose family owns the Pittsburgh Steelers, has considered running in the GOP primary against Harris. He said Wednesday he will weigh how Republican leaders react to the latest announcement before deciding whether to run. Rooney, 35, who runs an orphanage, said he could only put $100,000 of his personal money into a race so he needs to be practical.
Harris can draw on family money for her donations. Her grandfather, Ben Hill Griffin, was a citrus and cattle baron. Last year, she sold $5 million in family stock to settle a family dispute over the inheritance.
Harris and her husband were worth somewhere between $7.8 million and $36.9 million, according to federal financial disclosure reports, which list assets in wide ranges.
That does not include the value of her homes. And it does not include anything she inherits from her father, George Harris, a banker who died of a heart attack in January.
McLaughlin said Florida's Senate seat is so coveted by the national GOP that Nelson knew his opponent would have plenty of money.
"We knew whoever the GOP candidate was going to be was going to be well funded. I guess it doesn't matter if it was her money or someone else's money - or in this case her inheritance."
Harris' personal infusion of money will help close a big fundraising gap that has plagued her campaign. At the end of the year, Nelson had $8 million in his war chest, compared with $1 million for Harris, despite her national connections and name recognition.
That name recognition could swing both ways, though. While her role as Florida's secretary of state during the controversial 2000 presidential election might help her with Republicans, GOP insiders know it also could motivate Democrats to turn out in droves to vote against her.
Nelson also could be helped by a 2002 campaign finance reform law. That law includes a "millionaires amendment" meant to help candidates whose opponents pump big money into their races.
It allows the person not using personal funds to triple or even multiply by six times the usual limits of $2,100 per individual donation. But the amendment also includes provisions for when the opponent has substantial funds raised himself.
Harris would not be the first candidate to use personal wealth to run a campaign. Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J., pumped $60 million of his Wall Street riches into a winning campaign. Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., put more than $10 million of his department store riches into his last two campaigns.
Massie Ritsch of the Center for Responsive Politics said most of the millionaire candidates lose - but not because they are millionaires. Most are challengers whose odds are generally longer than incumbents'.
Nick Nyhart, head of Public Campaign, which advocates public financing of campaigns, said the personal donation does help candidates claim they aren't beholden to special interests.
"For the rest of America it's terrible. It says if you want to run for office you have to be independently wealthy or depend on people who are. In a democracy neither of those choices is a good one," Nyhart said.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/14108237.htm
Harris contributing $10 million to her Senate campaign
BY TAMARA LYTLE
The Orlando Sentinel
WASHINGTON - Rep. Katherine Harris, R-Fla., used a national television audience Wednesday night to try to jump-start her faltering Senate campaign, announcing that she would pour $10 million of her own money into the race.
Harris' appearance on the Fox News program "Hannity & Colmes" capped weeks of speculation about whether she would drop out of the race against Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., because of problems with fundraising, staff turnover and the fallout from her acceptance of illegal campaign contributions.
Harris, not a popular choice among party leaders who tried to recruit other candidates to run, kept her decision mostly to herself until Wednesday night.
"I'm in this race. I'm going to win," Harris said. "I'm going to put everything on the line ... everything that I have, and I am going to put it in this race."
The $10 million will come from an inheritance from Harris' father, she said, who died earlier this year.
Republican strategists had joked they should start a betting pool on whether she would drop out or not after she announced last Saturday that a "major announcement" was coming soon.
Political analysts had differing views Wednesday on whether an infusion of her own wealth would change the dynamics of the race. She has lagged far behind Nelson in the polls (20 points in the most recent survey just hours before her announcement) and has come under fire for taking tainted money from a defense contractor who pleaded guilty to bribing Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif.
"I'm convinced her campaign is mortally wounded," said Jim Kane, a pollster for the nonpartisan Florida Voter. Harris is running against a popular opponent who appeals to independent voters in Florida, while Harris is a "very polarizing figure," he said.
But David Johnson, a Tallahassee political consultant and former state party director, said Harris' decision to finance her campaign could turn things around.
"Money begets money. If she's willing to make that investment, people will say `Okay, I'll invest in her.'" Johnson said.
Jennifer Duffy, who handicaps Senate races for the Cook Political Report, said the money will free Harris' time for campaigning, which is a strong suit. But Duffy said Nelson still has the advantage in the race.
Nelson spokesman Dan McLaughlin said the announcement doesn't change the problems Harris has had.
"Basically the past week or so has been nothing but a stageshow - a series of theatrics which would seem to be intended to deflect attention from all her troubles," McLaughlin said.
Harris was just beginning to get GOP leaders behind her bid when the news hit that she had accepted money from Mitchell Wade and his company MZM Inc.
She also asked House leaders for $10 million in federal aid for his company because, she said, MZM would have brought jobs to her Sarasota district.
She returned $50,000 in checks from Wade and his associates after finding out he had illegally repaid MZM workers for their personal donations to Harris.
Thomas Rooney, whose family owns the Pittsburgh Steelers, has considered running in the GOP primary against Harris. He said Wednesday he will weigh how Republican leaders react to the latest announcement before deciding whether to run. Rooney, 35, who runs an orphanage, said he could only put $100,000 of his personal money into a race so he needs to be practical.
Harris can draw on family money for her donations. Her grandfather, Ben Hill Griffin, was a citrus and cattle baron. Last year, she sold $5 million in family stock to settle a family dispute over the inheritance.
Harris and her husband were worth somewhere between $7.8 million and $36.9 million, according to federal financial disclosure reports, which list assets in wide ranges.
That does not include the value of her homes. And it does not include anything she inherits from her father, George Harris, a banker who died of a heart attack in January.
McLaughlin said Florida's Senate seat is so coveted by the national GOP that Nelson knew his opponent would have plenty of money.
"We knew whoever the GOP candidate was going to be was going to be well funded. I guess it doesn't matter if it was her money or someone else's money - or in this case her inheritance."
Harris' personal infusion of money will help close a big fundraising gap that has plagued her campaign. At the end of the year, Nelson had $8 million in his war chest, compared with $1 million for Harris, despite her national connections and name recognition.
That name recognition could swing both ways, though. While her role as Florida's secretary of state during the controversial 2000 presidential election might help her with Republicans, GOP insiders know it also could motivate Democrats to turn out in droves to vote against her.
Nelson also could be helped by a 2002 campaign finance reform law. That law includes a "millionaires amendment" meant to help candidates whose opponents pump big money into their races.
It allows the person not using personal funds to triple or even multiply by six times the usual limits of $2,100 per individual donation. But the amendment also includes provisions for when the opponent has substantial funds raised himself.
Harris would not be the first candidate to use personal wealth to run a campaign. Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J., pumped $60 million of his Wall Street riches into a winning campaign. Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., put more than $10 million of his department store riches into his last two campaigns.
Massie Ritsch of the Center for Responsive Politics said most of the millionaire candidates lose - but not because they are millionaires. Most are challengers whose odds are generally longer than incumbents'.
Nick Nyhart, head of Public Campaign, which advocates public financing of campaigns, said the personal donation does help candidates claim they aren't beholden to special interests.
"For the rest of America it's terrible. It says if you want to run for office you have to be independently wealthy or depend on people who are. In a democracy neither of those choices is a good one," Nyhart said.