Saying the Republican party has left her and is now owned by ideologues, former GOP state Sen. Nancy Argenziano, 56, of Crystal River says she will run for the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat. Argenziano will seek the District 2 seat now held by freshman Republican Steve Southerland of Panama City, who unseated longtime Democrat Allen Boyd in November 2010.
"The Republican Party has left me, and I will run as a Democrat, in a sense permitting a claim to ultimate bipartisanship, along the lines of Ronald Reagan. The current iteration of the party abandoned real Republican principles long ago to cater to ideologues and corporations – the Koch entities, most notably – whose interests lie in the profiteering of America and the sacking of the middle class," Argenziano wrote in a letter announcing her candidacy. "Current Republican leaders have neither patience with nor allowance for honest elected officials, and they demand that members of the various legislatures – who, after all, have sworn to uphold the Constitution – instead just follow the hijacked party line and shut up."
She says she plans to file for the race by Aug. 10.
Argenziano has long been a vocal critic of the Republican party. An avid motorcyclist, she earned a reputation as a state lawmaker for her salty language and as a consumer advocate and defender of nursing home patients. She left the legislature when Gov. Charlie Crist appointed her in 2007 to the Public Service Commission. She left the PSC in October 2010 to help Democrat Alex Sink with her failed run for governor.
Argenziano was involved in one of the most bizarre incidents in Tallahassee when she sent a 25-pound box of manure to a lobbyist with whom she clashed on a nursing home bill.
Republican or Democrat, she is still a self-absorbed bag of wind.
Posted by: Lois | August 01, 2011 at 05:04 PM
Nonsense is all you get from her.
Posted by: Martin | August 01, 2011 at 05:26 PM
I always suspected Argenziano was a closet Independent/Democrat. Bless her, and kudos to her for her courage to express her true mission!
Posted by: Darlene | August 01, 2011 at 06:56 PM
Yay Nancy!
Posted by: TheNoseKnows | August 01, 2011 at 08:34 PM
I think Rep. Southerland's solid fundraising and consistent performance has done just what we had hoped. If a loopy past Republican who sends poop through the mail is the best the Democrats can throw at a district that until now hadn't elected Republican since reconstruction, I think it says alot for their perceived chances.
Rep. Southerland is strong and doing a fantastic job...
Posted by: adam | August 01, 2011 at 09:35 PM
Are she and Rocky Pennington still a duo?
Posted by: Nadal | August 02, 2011 at 07:07 AM
What a joke and an opportunist!
Argenziano will need to shovel a lot more than a 25-pound box of manure. Americans are sick of the politics she is famous for and especially tired of her liberal pals in DC. Guess she learned a lesson from her mentor Charlie and at least is honestly switching to the losing party of liberals. It will be entertaining to watch her crash and burn.
Posted by: Cindy Graves | August 02, 2011 at 08:24 AM
Floridians wised up with Charlie - maybe he will be her campaign manager! LOOSER EXPRESS
Posted by: Susan | August 02, 2011 at 10:13 AM
Steve Southerland is a rightwing Nutter. His native language is cliche, e.g, "The US is broke." At least she provides a choice. Until somebody better challenges Southerland, she has my vote and a little bit of my cash.
Posted by: Gerry | August 02, 2011 at 12:14 PM
Jennifer Ripley
jgustason@yahoo.com
1304 S Magnolia
Tallahassee, Fl 32301
850-980-0240
44040 On Twitter
Posted by: Jennifer Ripley | August 02, 2011 at 01:41 PM
Of coarse there are going to have some Republicans ticked off about her move from the Party of NO compassion for the poor, sick, minorities. That also carry the christian faith on their sleeve for ProLife, but have this oxymoron of gun carrying ,proWAR of losing lives. Such as the Iraqi war to fight NO weapons of mass destruction where 1 million Iraqi casualties occured to their civilians that no one talks about.
Good for her, I'm sure we will see more and more Republicans becoming Democrats GOD BLESS AMERICA!
Posted by: Jim | August 02, 2011 at 04:00 PM
If you notice some of the votes about the national debt taken the last few days, Southerland is well beyond people that one would normally consider extremists, such as Allen West, Paul Ryan, Joe Barton, and Mike Pence. Southerland is an outlier, residing on the fringes, like Steve King, Michele Bachmann, Paul Broun and yes, Connnie Mack. I think Southerland is proud of his immoderation, wouldn't mind being a one-term Congressman, wouldn't mind martyrdom for his ideological purity, or says he wouldn't.
Posted by: Gerry | August 02, 2011 at 08:23 PM
We Floridians will be inundated with so called turncoat Republicans,because their butts won't get elected otherwise..........
We won't be fooled
again!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Charlotte Akbari | August 03, 2011 at 04:59 PM
Argenziano has accomplished the impossible: she makes Southerland look cultured, knowledgeable, measured, and above all, a deep thinker. Congrats, Nancy: I didn't think any of that was possible.
Posted by: Fank the Wank | August 28, 2011 at 09:42 PM