So the Democratic congressman from Orlando is warning his supporters that his real rival may be former U.S. Rep. Allen West, a hardline conservative Republican who has every bit the gift for inflammatory rhetoric that makes Grayson so popular among
hardline liberal Democrats.
West, whose Congressional base was in Palm Beach County, has stayed mum lately on the prospect of running for the U.S. Senate, but it's not out of the cards. He told the Tampa Bay Times in 2013 that he would run for the seat if U.S. Senator Marco Rubio decided to run for the presidency instead of re-election. And that's what Rubio is doing. West runs a media machine that keeps his voice prominent in conservative politics, and raises money. He's occasionally rumored as a Florida U.S. Senate candidate. And some polls -- notably a March Public Policy Polling survey -- have thrown his name out there, and discovered he'd lead Florida's Republican field.
So far, West's team has not responded to a Political Pulse inquiry Thursday about the U.S. Senate race.
Grayson must be able to taste it and wants his supporters to do so too: Alan versus Allen.
ACORN liberals versus Tea Party conservatives.
Thrower of such political rhetorical grenades as "Republican plan... die quickly" versus the thrower of such grenades as “Joseph Goebbels... proud of the Democratic Party."
The self-described "Congressman With Guts" versus the self-described "Guardian of the Republic."
The darling of liberal shows such as Real Time with Bill Maher versus the host of the conservative Internet streaming show Next Generation TV.
Such an election would promise to be one of the most politically polarizing and personally bloody on record. Think of the money that could attract.
So Grayson's campaign is sending out a fundraising pitch that declares, "We need to stop Allen West from entering the Senate. Please contribute whatever you can to our Stop Allen West fund. Every dollar counts."
Grayson said in the pitch that he decided to send it out because he got an email from West overnight, suggesting he's running.
Of course, that all ignores lots.
Murphy, for one. He already has beaten West. It was Murphy's debut Democratic candidacy for Congress that denied West a re-election in 2012. Murphy also is the heavily-backed establishment candidate in the race whom Grayson must beat in a Democratic primary.
DeSantis, for another. He's got a lot of the things West has -- a tough military record, a strong conservative platform, and Tea Party support. And DeSantis doesn't have West's polarizing personality. While splitting that base with DeSantis in a Republican primary, West would still have to overcome López-Cantera and Jolly, who both have strong establishment ties.
Still, Alan vs. Allen looms in the shadows.
"You thought that the Tea Party was dead. Well, apparently, it is undead," Grayson writes in his fundraising pitch. "And all of the reanimated corpses have an insatiable hunger to see Allen West in the Senate."
Source : orlandosentinel.com
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