Nelson and Mack spar in testy exchange during single debate of the campaign

Florida’s low-key U.S. Senate campaign got an hour of drama Wednesday as Democrat Bill Nelson and Republican Connie Mack IV sparred in an attack-filled televised debate that will serve as the only face-to-face match-up of the campaign.

Within minutes of opening the debate, the lines of attack emerged as Mack introduced himself as “a proud, mainstream conservative” and immediately attacked Nelson for voting to “gut our military,” cut Medicare and vote to raise taxes 150 times.

 “I’ve got a simple litmus test,’’ said Mack, the Cape Coral Republican. “If you voted for higher taxes 150 times, it’s time for you to go.” Nelson, 70, who is seeking his third term, responded that “everything the congressman’s just said, is not true.’’ It was a line he repeated often during the exchange.

He accused Mack, 45, of partisan, ideological attacks that he described as “the problem with politics today” and said he has spent his career reaching “across the partisan divide” to “build bi-partisan consensus.”

The fast-paced debate covered all the hot spots as a panel of journalists, including the Miami Herald’s Toluse Olorunnipa, asked the candidates about the budget, Medicare, debt, domestic violence, national security, immigration and the Cuban embargo. With each question, both Mack and Nelson came prepared with reprisals of the same attacks they have lobbed at each other in television ads for months: More here.  

PolitiFact Florida checks out claims from Nelson-Mack debate

U.S Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Connie Mack IV unleashed a slew of familiar attacks during the first and only debate of their U.S. Senate battle, hitting each other on health care, missed votes and, well, cows.

The banter provided plenty of fact-checking fodder for PolitiFact Florida.

Mack, the Republican challenger, went after Nelson for his support of President Barack Obama’s health care law with talking points we’ve checked before: that he was the deciding vote, and that he "voted to cut $700 billion out of Medicare to pay for Obamacare."

We rated Mack’s $700 billion claim Mostly False, noting that these “cuts” come from reduced payments to insurance companies and hospitals over the next 10 years, and that part of the savings cover lower prescription drug payments for Medicare recipients as well as free preventative care.

Mack stuck to another attack line throughout the night: Nelson voted to raise taxes 150 times.

"Bill Nelson voted for higher taxes 150 times, 150 times," Mack said. "I voted to cut taxes … if you voted for higher taxes 150 times, it's time for you to go."

Herald/Times poll: Nelson up 47-42 over Mack

Independent voters and party switchers are providing the edge for Democrat Bill Nelson as he maintains his lead over Republican challenger Connie Mack in the U.S. Senate race, according to a new Miami Herald/El Nuevo Herald/Tampa Bay Times poll.

Mack narrowed the margin to 47 to 42 percent, three points tighter than it was last month, but the Fort Myers congressman didn’t seem to benefit from the eight-point surge of support for Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Florida.

Nelson continues to lead among voters who are not affiliated with any party, getting 51 percent support among independent voters to Mack’s 37 percent.

The Orlando Democrat also enjoys some crossover appeal, with 6 percent of the voters surveyed voting for both Romney and Nelson.

“This isn’t a wave election so you may see some purposeful ticket-splitting because people are a little bit divided in their view over what the parties are offering,’’ said Mason-Dixon pollster Brad Coker.

The telephone survey of 800 registered Florida voters — all likely to vote in the November election — was conducted Oct. 8-10 for the Tampa Bay Times, Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald, Bay News 9 and Central Florida News 13. The poll, which included respondents using land-lines and cell phones, was conducted by Mason-Dixon, a nonpartisan, Jacksonville-based company. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points. Story here.

The Mack campaign issued the following statement from campaign manager Jeff Cohen:

Nelson out with new Mack attack

 

The drumbeat continues with a new ad out today from Democrat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, who is attacking Republican opponent Connie Mack for being a shill for the special interests. The allegations were first reported in a Tampa Tribune story here.

Mack's campaign responded that Nelson is more interested in defending Argentina's dictators than he is Americans. His campaign response follows:

Jimmy Buffett to serenade Nelson's statewide tour

Island troubadour Jimmy Buffett will headline an event for Democrat Sen. Bill Nelson in Orlando Friday as the candidate launches what his re-election campaign is describing as a "Florida First" tour.

Buffett will perform in Orlando in "a brief solo acoustic performance" in between concerts in San Francisco and Las Vegas.

The event is the first of Nelson's "19 planned stops across the Sunshine State leading up to Election Day,'' the campaign said in its statement.

Nelson challenger Connie Mack IV has announced a similar statewide bus tour beginning Oct. 18, the day after the two face off in their one and only debate in Fort Lauderdale.

Nelson reports raising $2.3 million, with $6.5 in cash available

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson announced today it will report raising $2.3 million for the third quarter of the year, slightly less than his challenger, Republican Connie Mack IV, raised for the period that ended Sept. 30.

Mack reported raising $2.7 million, his highest quarter yet, following lackluster fundraising in the first two quarters in the race.

By contrast, Nelson started strong and ends the quarter with more than $6.5 million in the bank, even after spending heavily on an aggressive television campaign. Nelson has raised a total of $16.2 million, his campaign said, while Mack has raised a total of $6 millon.

 

Now in the game for Mack: Ann Romney and Rand Paul

U.S. Senate candidate, Republican Connie Mack IV, is getting some fielding assistance from two very different places in his party as Ann Romney headlines a fundraiser in Sarasota on Thursday and Rand Paul's political committee released a one-minute ad attacking Democrat Bill Nelson.

Romney, who was scheduled to speak at a fundraiser for Mack during the RNC, agree to reschedule for the $2,500 per person event this week, said Mack spokesman David James.

The ad, paid for by RAND PAC, a political committee by the Kentucky senator, attacks Nelson for his support of foreign aid to Pakistan, Libya, and Egypt. Paul said he is spending six figures on the ad in Florida.

“Our country is $16 trillion in debt and faces yet another trillion dollar deficit,” Paul said in a statement. “It makes no sense to send our hared-earned taxpayer dollars overseas, especially to countries with hostile governments that hate us."

Meanwhile Tuesday, Mack picked up the endorsement of the Florida Medical Association PAC, which opposes the federal health care reform act.

FL Hispanic poll: Obama 61-Romney 31. About half know an illegal immigrant

Hispanic voters in Florida heavily favor President Obama, strongly back his immigration positions and are highly enthusiastic about voting, according to a new poll.

Also, about half of all the voters know someone who is illegally in the country, according to the survey of 400 registered Florida Hispanics conducted for America’s Voice, a group that advocates for liberal immigration policies.

Obama pulls 61 percent Hispanic support compared to 31 percent for Republican Mitt Romney, the poll showed.

The Hispanic support measured in the poll mirrors other Florida surveys that show Obama with a large lead among this crucial and growing segment of the Florida electorate, who comprises about 14 percent of the active voter rolls. Still, this 30-point margin is the largest Obama lead to date.

Unlike other surveys The America’s Voice poll delves more deeply into the issue of immigration with Hispanics and shows how it appears to play in Obama’s favor.

“Latinos are more engaged in this issue of immigration regardless of where you live in the country,” said University of Miami political science professor Casey Klofstad, who studies the nuances of Florida’s Hispanic vote.

Florida Chamber writes to Bill Nelson, Fla. Congressional delegation over understaffed MIA terminal

The Florida Chamber of Commerce is asking Sen. Bill Nelson to beef up government spending at Miami International Airport in order to address a problem of delays and missed flights.

Gov. Rick Scott sent a letter to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano last month asking for more customs officials at MIA, and the Chamber backed him up this week with a letter to Nelson and other members of the Florida Congressional delegation.

"As Gov Scott noted in his letter, the customs problem at MIA makes Florida less competitive on the international stage," Florida Chamber president David Hart wrote. "More than 30,000 international travelers missed their connecting flights at MIA after waiting for customs in August 2012."

It's not clear if the Chamber sent similar requests to Sen. Marco Rubio, or the other Republican members of congress who are from South Florida, where MIA is located.

Update: The Florida Chamber said it sent similar letters to other members of the Florida congressional delegation.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has targeted Nelson with millions of dollars in attack ads as he faces Republican challenger Rep. Connie Mack.

Read the Chamber's letter, which was re-posted by Scott's press office today, here.

@ToluseO

Nelson: Scott has unreasonable opposition to federal assistance

Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson said Tuesday he’s taking nothing for granted in his race against Republican Rep. Connie Mack IV despite a lead in the polls.

The bad news for Nelson? Outside conservative groups continue to pour millions into TV attacks targeting Nelson for his votes in favor of President Barack Obama’s health care law.

By his count, outside spending against him exceeds $18 million, he said during a Tuesday meeting with the Tampa Bay Times editorial board. Last week, American Crossroads and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce spent $3.6 million. This week, American Crossroads launched a $2 million buy that accuses him of "milking the system" by taking a greenbelt tax exemption on his family pasture.

“The good news is that it has not moved the needle very much,” Nelson said, acknowledging more money will come as the election nears.