Raul Martinez blasted in "Wheel of Corruption" ad

The National Republican Congresional Committee is wading into the Raul Martinez-Lincoln Diaz-Balart race with this haymaker

Diaz-Balart and Martinez debate on Sunday local TV shows

   Incumbent Republican Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Democratic challenger Raul Martinez, a former Hialeah mayor, pressed their congressional campaign Sunday with appearances on local public affairs television programs. The most contentious of the appearances came on the Spanish-language Univision program Al Punto where Diaz-Balart and Martinez traded barbs and sharply disagreed on Cuba policy, their records and whether a U.S. president should sit down and negotiate with America’s enemies. Sunday’s appearances were the latest for the candidates from Florida District 21 which stretches from south Broward County to south Miami-Dade County.

Sunday’s first appearance came on the NBC6 show Decision08 where Diaz-Balart and Martinez were interviewed separately by Nick Bogert, the NBC6 reporter who moderated last week’s Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce candidate forum (photo above).

Diaz-Balart was the first to be interviewed.

Asked if his policy of supporting travel and money remittance restrictions for Cuban exiles had “failed’’ since the Castro regime was still in power in Havana, Diaz-Balart did not directly answer the question.

But he said that he had helped craft laws that ensure that the embargo on Cuba can only be loosened when the Havana regime frees all political prisoners and schedules free elections.

Diaz-Balart also did not directly answer Bogert’s question on whether he met with two Puerto Rican politicians, one of whom claimed they had carried money to the congressman several years ago from a prominent Puerto Rican family.

“That’s defamation by the Raul Martinez campaign,’’ Diaz-Balart said, adding that his campaign had received contributions that were “duly reported.’’

Bogert interviewed Martinez next.

When he asked Martinez how he would justify to voters his legal past, Martinez said the 1990 indictment against him on extortion and racketeering charges was politically-motivated.

“There’s such a thing as a political indictment,’’ he said.

Martinez said that when he disclosed he was going to run for the seat of the late Democratic congressman Claude Pepper, the U.S. Attorney at the time opened an investigation that ultimately led to the indictment in 1990 and a conviction in 1991.

The U.S. Attorney at the time was Dexter Lehtinen, husband of Ileana Ros-Lehtinen who ran for Pepper’s seat and won. Both Dexter and Ileana have denied any political motivations.

An appeals court later reversed Martinez’s conviction and two subsequent trials ended in hung juries. Then the government dropped the case.
“You can say all you want about me and my past, but I was a very effective mayor,’’ Martinez said.

Asked about Cuba policy and the embargo on the island, Martinez said those issues are potential negotiating tools.

“First,’’ he replied, “the embargo is a tool for us to negotiate. Negotiate political prisoners, negotiate human rights in Cuba. That’s a negotiating tool.’’

For now, he added, he has called for the immediate temporary lifting of travel and money restrictions for Cuban exiles so they can help victims of recent storms.

Immediately after the NBC6 show, Martinez and Diaz-Balart appeared together on Univision’s Al Punto.

Exchanges between the two men became contentious when Diaz-Balart mentioned Martinez’s legal record, noting that the former Hialeah mayor had never been acquitted. Martinez maintains that in the last of three trials against him in 1996 jurors “acquitted’’ him because they voted to acquit on one conspiracy charge and deadlocked on five remaining counts. Then the U.S. Attorney at the time, Kendall Coffey, dropped the case.

“Mr. Martinez was not exonerated,’’ Diaz-Balart said. “He was never acquitted.’’

Martinez shot back: “Are you an attorney? You say you are an attorney…The government on three occasions…’’

Diaz-Balart interrupted Martinez to say: “Kendall Coffey, a Democrat U.S. Attorney, who took you to trial, the jurors voted 9 out of 12 to find you guilty.’’

Martinez quickly added: “And what happened in the second trial? Wasn’t it 11-1 to acquit?’’

Diaz Balart asked, sounding incredulous: “Have you been once acquitted?”

Martinez: “Totally and absolutely. I have never been 'condenado' (a Spanish word that can mean sentenced, found guilty or convicted) in this country.’’

Diaz Balart, smiling: “This is incredible. Something incredible.’’

Tune in Sunday

Lincoln Diaz-Balart and challenger Raul Martinez will go head to head Sunday on Univision's Al Punto. Univision promises the two will discuss the economy, U.S. policy towards Cuba and Latin America, "pre-conditions for meeting with rogue states, and why they should be elected to the US Congress."

The show will also feature a candidate running for another office: Republican presidential contender John McCain. The show says host Jorge Ramos asks McCain "about the increasingly negative tone his campaign has taken this past week" and that in a "candid exchange, Senator McCain explains why he thinks Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is dangerous for the country, what his foreign and military policy would be towards Venezuela, his plan for immigration reform, what role the Latino vote will play come November, and why he thinks the U.S. was justified in going to war in Iraq.

The show airs at 10 a.m.    

GOP leader predicts a rocky November

Speaking to a lunch crowd today at the National Press Club in Washington, Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., predicted a tough election season for the GOP.

"I will readily concede you're going to see an election where we're going to lose double-digit seats in the House," Davis said.

His Democratic counterpart, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, suggested the Dems will pick up at least one in Florida: "Down in Florida's Eighth District, that's the Ric Keller seat," he said. "Democrats have a candidate, Alan Grayson, who came out of the primary -- on the Republican side, a very divided primary. We have a good shot at that seat."

Martinez scores at Versailles (the blog)

Versailles Beat, a conservative blog, has made what it acknowledges is a surprise endorsement in the clash of the Titans, backing Democrat Raul Martinez over incumbent Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart.

"Go ahead, punch yourself now to make sure you're not dreaming. You're not," wrote blogger Pepe Pena. "I am supporting Raúl Martínez for two main reasons: Raúl was an effective Mayor, and Lincoln was an ineffective Republican congressman."

Yowza.

Cocoplum fundraiser to bring in a cool half mil

President Bush's fundraiser today in upscale Cocoplum is expected to raise an estimated $500,000 with 90 people in attendance, a GOP official said.

The money will benefit congressional races across the country; not one of the three Miami Republicans running for re-election was to attend.

Miami -- the Republican ATM

President Bush isn't the only GOP bigwig in town today to raise money for Republican candidates. House GOP leader John Boehner stops by to host a fundraiser for Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart.

A little further up the coast, National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Tom Cole will be in Palm Beach County next week touting Tom Rooney, a Republican challenger to Rep. Tim Mahoney.

President Bush: Cuba stalwart ... and the one who gave Dems a potent wedge issue?

President Bush is in town today for what is likely his last visit as president. After a closed door fundraiser for embattled Republicans, he'll meet privately with a group of Cuban-American leaders.

The Republican who won the presidency with the help of Miami's Cuban-American community remains perennially popular among hard-line exiles for his steadfast refusal to blink when it comes to relaxing U.S. policy toward Cuba.

But Democrats suggest it was Bush's decision in 2004 to further tighten sanctions against the island that has given them what may be their best shot ever at unseating Miami's three Cuban-American members of Congress. For the first time, they say, there is an opportunity to compete for votes among an electorate once considered diehard Republican.

Read more here.

Consorting with the enemy

A new flyer looks to cast a wide enemies net around Democrat Joe Garcia. It's apparently not enough to link him solely with Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez. Witness:

Andy Diaz, a spokesman for Garcia, called the flyer "exactly the kind of politics Joe Garcia is running to change."

Garcia: "Guess who's coming to dinner?"

Mario Diaz-Balart won't be joining President Bush at a Coral Gables fundraiser tomorrow, but that's not stopping his Democratic challenger from seeking to tie the Republican to the increasingly unpopular president.

Joe Garcia's campaign is launching a website, it says, to "hold Mario Diaz-Balart accountable for his reckless judgement that has left South Florida's middle-class families behind."

www.Bush-Balart.com

PR pol: The accusations are "false and malicious"

One half of the team of Puerto Rican policitians who allegedly delivered a "suitcase" of campaign contributions to Lincoln Diaz-Balart says the accusation leveled by indicted Puerto Rican Sen. Jorge de Castro is "false and malicious" and part of an attempt to hurt those who pushed for de Castro Font's resignation after his indictment.

''In no way are any of Mr. de Castro's statements true,'' Luis Fortuño, now Puerto Rico's nonvoting resident commissioner in Washington, told the Herald via e-mail. "I consider them part of a vicious and retaliatory effort on the part of this accused individual.''

Democrats used the accusations -- made by de Castro in interviews in Puerto Rico -- to try to link Diaz-Balart to the case.

Read more here.

"Mojo" provides the momentum: the Big 3 spar at forum

South Florida's hot congressional races have had their share of drama: name-calling, fierce disagreement on foreign and domestic issues, and competing political ads blasted over local radio and television airwaves.

What there hadn't been, until Wednesday, was a joint public appearance by all six candidates. Read more about the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce candidate forum here.

Here for Lincoln Diaz-Balart vs. Raul Martinez. Here for Mario Diaz-Balart vs. Joe Garcia. And here for Ileana Ros-Lehtinen vs. Annette Taddeo.

Ros-Lehtinen touts new poll

A new poll for Univision 23 shows Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen with a solid lead over her Democratic challenger, Annette Taddeo.

The polls shows Ros-Lehtinen at 52 percent, with Taddeo at 27 percent. Still, a significant chunk -- 21 percent -- are undecided. The poll was done by Florida International University.

The poll shows Ros-Lehtinen with a huge lead among Cubans -- 75 percent to 10 percent -- and a lead among nonCuban Hispanics -- 49 percent to 34 percent. Taddeo notes in the interview that she's still introducing herself to the district and is newly up on the air.

Taddeo and Ros-Lehtinen turned in spirited appearances at a chamber forum today, with Taddeo continuing to assail her opponent hours after the event for supporting privatizing Social Security.

More wrangling over the PR pol

Florida Democrats -- who have accused Lincoln Diaz-Balart of accepting a "suitcase" full of cash -- are now accusing him of lying about how much money he's accepted from Puerto Rico.

Diaz-Balart's campaign says the Dems have their facts wrong and it's "not embarrassed that Puerto Ricans have helped us."

Dems earlier today charged that Puerto Rican senator Jorge de Castro Font, who was arrested by the FBI, had "implicated" Diaz-Balart by alleging to "have traveled to Miami with Congressman Luis Fortuño of Puerto Rico to deliver a suitcase full of cash for Diaz-Balart's re-election campaign." The money was allegedly from a prominent PR family.

Diaz-Balart's campaign has called it a "desperate attack" (de Castro Font never names a dollar amount or mentions a suitcase) and the congressman told reporters today that he got two checks from the family in 2006 -- totalling $400.

Martinez: We need someone who will cross aisles

Raul Martinez suggests DC needs some non-partisan lawmakers, and notes, "You know what Raul Martinez has always done? Worked with the other side."

(Except of course if that 'other side' is represented by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. (Her husband, Dexter Lehtinen, was the U.S. attorney when Martinez was tried on federal corruption charges and he told the Herald last September, "I will never work with Ileana."

He noted there's two roads named for him -- agreed to by a Republican-held Legislature and a Republican governor. "That's bi-partisanship," he said.

Mario Diaz-Balart: "I'm not going to bicker"

Taking the stage after his challenger assailed his knowledge of the financial markets among other subjects, Mario Diaz-Balart says he's taking the high road.

That came after challenger Joe Garcia suggested Diaz-Balart's "ignorance of how Wall Street works and the economy works is frightening."

Garcia just called the Iraq war the biggest foreign policy blunder in US history and says the country is spending billions there while bridges and roads in the US are crumbling.

Diaz-Balart is paying tributes to the troops -- "who are willing to put on our country's uniform." He acknowledges he's not a "military expert" and says he relies on military commanders "to make those decisions."

Was it a mistake to go to Iraq, moderator Bogert asks Diaz-Balart?  "In hindsight, knowing that we know now the intelligence was wrong....Sen Clinton was wrong...and President Bush and everyone else,.. the reality was then, 'Do I support troops?," Diaz-Balart said. "I'll vote to support the troops every time."

For a forum that's not a debate, there's a lot of debating

The candidates might have known the questions ahead of time, but there's still a lot of scrapping over the answers at the chamber event.

"If you didn't like the bill, you could've done something about it!" Annette Taddeo just exclaimed to Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, as she assailed the Republican congresswoman for voting 5 times against a push to expand a childrens' health care plan.

Ros-Lehtinen suggests Taddeo doesn't understand lawmaking and said the bill was run by Democrats and was deeply flawed.

They're also sparring over Iraq. Taddeo says let's get out. Ros-Lehtinen says we want to leave with honor and dignity.

"I think the red light just burned out," said moderator Nick Bogert after trying unsuccessfully to get the candidates to stick to the prescribed time limit.

Bogert challenges the GOP incumbents to a real debate

Forum host Nick Bogert opened the chamber event with a plea to the Republican members of Congress to participate in a real, live debate.

Noting the candidates at the chamber event already know the questions, he says it will likely "lack some of the spontaniety" of a real debate.

"I hope the candidates accept invitations to future debates," he said, noting that "for the record, "the campaigns of Taddeo, Martinez and Garcia had accepted" his station's debate -- but the Diaz-Balarts have not -- and Ros-Lehtinen has declined.

Lincoln Diaz-Balart says he's accepted 5 debates and that he doesn't "dictate whether it's a forum or debates, I accept the guidelines provided by the hosts," he said.

The gloves are off!!

Annette Taddeo has accused Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of being a rubber stamp for President Bush; Joe Garcia accused Mario Diaz-Balart of being absent on the Wall Street bailout and now Raul Martinez is accusing Lincoln Diaz-Balart of lying about him.

"He's distracting from his own record," Raul Martinez said. "He has been accepting money from people he's doing favors in Congress."

Stay tuned.

"President Bush is going, you need to go as well," Taddeo said, to Ros-Lehtinen

Watch the fun!

The congressional forum at the chamber is off and running.

Annette Taddeo just sent out a press release urging supporters to log onto their computers and watch her and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen meet on-stage today for the forum at Parrot Island.

"Tune in and watch Annette and Ileana go back and forth on the economy, health care, and the war in Iraq," she says.

Watch here.

Dems attack Diaz-Balart, look to tie him to indicted PR pol

Now things are really heating up! Raul Martinez and state Democrats at a Miami press conference today looked to tie Lincoln Diaz-Balart to Puerto Rican senator Jorge de Castro Font, who was arrested by the FBI.

Dems charge that de Castro Font has "implicated" Diaz-Balart by alleging to "have traveled to Miami with Congressman Luis Fortuño of Puerto Rico to deliver a suitcase full of cash for Diaz-Balart's re-election campaign." The money was allegedly from a prominent PR family.

Diaz-Balart's campaign has called it a "desperate attack" and the congressman told reporters today that he got two checks from the family in 2006 -- totalling about $400.

CQ Politics: South Florida Dems gaining strength

CQ Politics is changing its rating on Mario Diaz-Balart's re-election challenge from Republican favored to Republican leaning, noting that Democratic challenger Joe Garcia's campaign "continues to show signs of strength."

CQ notes that some recent polls show Diaz-Balart leading, but with less than 50 percent -- including a Telemundo poll that showed Diaz-Balart up by just 43 percent to 41 percent for Garcia.

"The 25th District leans Republican," CQ notes. "But not by an overwhelming margin: Bush received 56 percent of the vote there in 2004."

President Bush heading to Miami to raise $$$

With polls suggesting several close congressional races in Florida -- including challenges to Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart -- President Bush heads to Florida Friday to raise money for the GOP.

The White House says Bush -- who has low popularity ratings but remains a formidable fundraiser -- will attend a fundraiser at a private residence in Coral Gables benefitting the Congressional Trust 2008, a joint fund-raising operation that benefits both the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican National Committee.

Following the fundraiser, Bush is to meet with Cuban-American community leaders, the White House says.

Bush hosted a fundraiser in Naples for the Diaz-Balarts several months back, but neither made the event, saying they had to cast votes in DC.

"Little more than a dumb show"

So says Michael Putney, the one-time moderator of today's congressional candidates' forum. Putney dropped out of moderating duties after learning that the candidates would already know what questions will be asked -- and will likely recite "some well-rehearsed answers.

"That's why I withdrew as the moderator of this 'forum,' which promises to be little more than a dumb show -- a play done in pantomime. Kabuki theater," Putney writes in today's Herald, suggesting a few questions himself for the candidates.

He notes it's not clear which candidate wanted the questions in advance, noting "all the candidates deny it, and I tend to believe them. Such high-handed shenanigans are usually handled by campaign managers and/or media consultants, and my guess would be that one of the Republican incumbent's managers is responsible. The Democrats are desperate to debate anytime, and they're not about to start setting conditions. Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart, on the other hand, have refused almost all invitations to debate or set requirements for their participation that are almost impossible to meet.

"As for Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, today's chamber forum is the only event where she'll appear in close proximity to her opponent, Annette Taddeo. 'Everybody knows who I am and what I stand for,' Ros-Lehtinen told me the other day," Putney wrote.  " 'They don't need to see me debate.' ''

Fireworks forecast for congressional candidates forum

With polls suggesting increasingly competitive races, all six South Florida congressional candidates will be at the same place at the same time Wednesday -- a first in this year's heated campaign.

The six will field questions at the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce's congressional forum, which despite the structured environment -- the participants already know the questions -- still may provide some drama.

NBC6 and Telemundo 51 plan to stream the noon event live on their websites. To watch, go to www.nbc6.net or www.telemundo51.com.

Allegation seeks to link Lincoln Diaz-Balart to indicted Puerto Rico senator

   

 Democrats on Wednesday are expected to seek to tie Miami Republican Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart to a video posted on a Puerto Rican television station featuring indicted Puerto Rican Senator Jorge de Castro Font claiming he and another island politician, carried money to Diaz-Balart from a prominent Puerto Rican family.

De Castro Font does not provide the amount of money and does not say precisely when the flight took place or for what purpose the money was being sent.

De Castro Font, who faces a 31-count federal extortion indictment, says in the video that while the other politician -- Puerto Rico’s non-voting resident commissioner in Congress, Luis Fortuño -- sought to distance himself from De Castro Font, in fact he and Fortuño had carried the money to Diaz-Balart.

“Fortuño says he had never been with me, that he hasn’t talked to me in four years, that he hasn’t ever traveled with me,’’ De Castro Font says. “Ask him if he did not go with me to bring some money to Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart in Miami. We sat in first class together. Ask him who carried the money. See if he says he never brought the money.’’

 De Castro Font said the trip took place before Fortuño became resident commissioner in 2005. De Castro Font and Fortuño are considered political rivals.

Diaz-Balart’s campaign aides did not respond directly to De Castro Font’s claim. Instead, Diaz-Balart's campaign called the decision to publicize the allegation Wednesday in Miami an "act of desperation by a campaign that knows it's defeated." Diaz-Balart’s campaign aides said they planned to attend the press conference to "respond accordingly."

   Rumors about the allegation surfaced Monday when an aide to former Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez told reporters that on Wednesday the Martinez campaign planned to make a blockbuster revelation against Diaz-Balart, the incumbent Martinez is running against.

Campaign political consultant Jeffrey Garcia would not provide details about what they planned to allege. Then on Tuesday the Florida Democratic Party issued a press advisory announcing a press conference Wednesday for a “major announcement about Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart’’ that might warrant a “federal investigation.’’

Eric Jotkoff, a party spokesman, also refused to discuss details of the mysterious revelation.

But when asked if the planned announcement was connected to the De Castro Font video on the website of the Puerto Rican television station WAPA TV (http://www.wapa.tv/), Garcia said there was a connection. Jotkoff declined to say.

Anti Diaz-Balart 527 launches a new website

One South Florida, a 527 political organization taking aim at Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart, has launched a new website -- www.diazbalart-truth.org that takes on the Republican incumbents.

The group says it hopes to serve as an "independent source of information" about the brothers' voting records. The group is funded largely by Carlos Saladrigas, the chairman of the Cuba Study Group, a moderate exile organization and Jorge Mas Santos, chairman of the Cuban American National Foundation. Both have been at odds with the Diaz-Balarts over Cuba policy -- and the website accuses them of being "out of touch" on U.S.-Cuba policy.

Florida Dems to Crist: Suspend "no-match"

Five Florida Democrats have written to Gov. Charlie Crist, asking him to suspend enforcement of the state's "no match" voter registration law until a federal lawsuit challenging it has been heard.

"Last minute enforcement of this law right before the presidential election will stand to add to our abysmal history of protecting the voting rights of our citizens," Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Corrine Brown, Alcee Hastings, Robert Wexler and Kathy Castor wrote.

Read the voter_letter.pdf .

Fireworks at congressional candidate forum in Miami-Dade

Many expected Republican Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart and his challenger, former Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez, to provide the fireworks Monday night at the Kendall Federation of Homeowner Associations candidate forum. But while Martinez and Lincoln Diaz-Balart were polite and civil to each other, the real pyrotechnics erupted when the turn came to speak for Diaz-Balart's brother and congressional colleague, Mario, and his opponent, former Cuban American National Foundation executive director Joe Garcia. It all started when Mario Diaz-Balart jokingly alluded to his claim that Garcia does not live in the 25th Congressional district he hopes to represent -- an allegation Garcia denies.

"I want to thank my brother and colleague, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, for being here, his opponent, Mayor Martinez, my opponent, I particularly want to thank him, because he had to drive through four congressional districts to get here,'' Mario Diaz-Balart said, smiling.

Pandemonium ensued as Mario Diaz-Balart finished the sentence. The crowd, about evenly divided between Mario Diaz-Balart and Joe Garcia supporters, erupted in screams and cheers for their candidate trying to down out each other.

When Garcia rose to speak, he was visibly angry and immediately took on Mario Diaz-Balart's district comment.

"You know Mario made a joke,'' Garcia said, but, you know I was born and raised in this community and went to college in this community while he was busy dropping out of college in central Florida.''

Pandemonium again.

Mario Diaz-Balart's supporters booed loudly and for minutes chanted "Enron Joe, Enron Joe, Enron Joe'' making it impossible for Garcia to continue for several minutes. Mario Diaz-Balart did not respond to Garcia's allegation at the event but told The Miami Herald Tuesday that he dropped out because he had to go to work.
.

  Toward the end of his speech, as Mario Diaz-Balart's supporters again took up their "Enron Joe'' chant, Garcia turned to Mario and said: "You know,

that line is a lie.''

The "Enron Joe'' line is a reference to Mario Diaz-Balart's accusations that Garcia, a former Florida Public Service Commission chairman, approached the infamous energy giant Enron for a job with the Bush administration. Garcia has denied the allegation.

    -- Alfonso Chardy

Union protest against the "outrageous staged debate"

The South Florida AFL-CIO plans to protest what it's calling an "outrageous staged debate" between the congressional Republican incumbents and their Democratic challengers Wednesday at Parrot Jungle Island.

President Fred Frost says the event, sponsored by the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce, "will clearly tilt in favor of the Republican incumbents ... because the questions being posed to the candidates will be devised by a pro-business group that have traditionally aligned themselves with the right-wing ideologies of the Bush Administration and 'Fat Cat' corporate Wall Street lobbyists."

Frost says Reps. Mario and Lincoln Diaz-Balart agreed several months ago to debate challengers Joe Garcia and Raul Martinez at an AFL-CIO-sponsored event, but "backed out at the last minute." The GOP'ers cited scheduling problems.

Dems tout "huge surge" in voter registration

With the voter registration window now closed, Florida Democrats are boasting of "another huge surge" of people registering as Democrats during the month of September.

The party says during the month, 20,119 more newly registered Floridians signed up as Democrats than registered as Republicans. Between the beginning of January and the end of September, 170,341 more newly registered voters joined the Democratic Party than joined the Republican Party.

"Floridians are enthusiastic about change and are excited to elect Democrats up and down the ticket,"  Florida Democratic Party chair Karen Thurman said in a release. "Now that our unprecedented voter registration effort has come to an end, we now must focus on making sure that every voter in Florida casts their ballot between now and Election Day for Barack Obama and other Democrats."

The party says that according to the Secretary of State's office, 72,189 people registered as Democrats while 52,070 people registered as Republicans, during the month of September. Between Jan. 1, 2008 and Sept. 30, 2008, 803,909 people have registered to vote, including 360,478 Democrats, 253,294 Independents and NPAs, and 190,137 Republicans.

Poll suggests trouble for Diaz-Balart

A new poll done for Telemundo 51 shows a tight race between Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Raul Martinez, with the GOP incumbent failing to break 50 percent.

The poll shows Diaz-Balart leading Martinez 48 percent to 43 percent, with 9 percent undecided. (The poll was 300 voters; margin of error 5 percentage points)

Diaz-Balart -- first elected to the seat in 1992 -- has a decided advantage among the district's Cuban American voters, where he leads Martinez 61 percent to 30 percent with 9 percent undecided. But the former Hialeah mayor leads Diaz-Balart 53 percent to 37 percent among non Cuban Hispanics and 47 percent to 39 percent among Anglos and blacks.

The poll also shows independent voters breaking for Martinez, 51 percent to 32 percent for Diaz-Balart. Seventeen percent were undecided.

Polls show contests for Dems in South Florida

Polls done for Telemundo 51 suggest increasingly competitive situations for the Democrats looking to oust Miami's three Republican members of Congress. The poll shows Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart with a narrow lead over Democratic challenger, Joe Garcia, 43 to 41 percent, with 16 percent undecided.

(Numbers for the marquee race featuring Lincoln Diaz-Balart v Raul Martinez are due up later tonight... stay tuned)

Mario Diaz-Balart leads Garcia among Cubans 59 percent to 30 percent, with 11 percent undecided; but trails him among non Cuban Hispanics, 49 percent to 36 percent and Anglos and blacks, 41 percent to 37 percent.

The same poll shows Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen with a larger margin against Annette Taddeo, but her numbers, too, are below the 50 percent comfort threshold -- 48 percent to 35 percent, with 17 percent of those surveyed undecided. (The station was to release those numbers tomorrow, but Taddeo's campaign jumped out with a press release, titled "Taddeo Narrows Race - Ros-Lehtinen Now Dangerously Under 50%")

"No incumbent under 50 percent in the polls is safe," said Taddeo campaign manager Anastasia Apa, who notes the poll suggests Taddeo has narrowed the gap since a June poll showed her 27 points down. "Ros-Lehtinen’s dated ad and focus on 90 miles away is catching up to her. The people are ready for real leadership, and Ros-Lehtinen is dropping fast in the polls."

House Republican leader hits trail for GOP'ers

House Republican leader John Boehner is hitting the campaign trail -- including Florida -- for what he calls an "aggressive month long tour" on behalf of GOP candidates nationwide.

The stops include a reception Saturday for Tom Rooney, one of the party's brighter spots in the state: Rooney is challenging Democrat Rep. Tim Mahoney, who was narrowly elected in 2006 to succeed former Rep. Mark Foley.

Oklahoma Republican Rep. Tom Cole, who heads up the Republican Congressional Committee, will make a stop for Rooney next Tuesday. Republicans, on the defense across the country, believe the Palm Beach County district represents one of their best opportunities to pick up a Democratic-held seat.

Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart's earmarks raise eyebrows

Lincoln Diaz-Balart has procured millions in federal funding to benefit a small Miami-Dade defense-contracting group that has donated tens of thousands of dollars to his political campaign and that of his brother, Mario Diaz-Balart.

Medley contractors Locust USA and Mark Two Engineering began contributing to the Diaz-Balarts in 2001, the year Locust secured its first small defense contract. Through this year, those contributions totaled more than $67,000.

Locust was awarded $20.8 million in Pentagon research and development contracts from 2001-2007, federal contracting records show. The Herald reported Sunday that at least 44 percent, $9.2 million, came through Congressional earmarks sponsored by Lincoln Diaz-Balart.

Moderator calls congressional debate a "farce"

Days before a lunchtime forum to showcase all six South Florida congressional candidates, the event has lost original moderator Michael Putney because he objected to letting the candidates see the questions beforehand.

All the candidates denied setting such a condition for their participation Wednesday in the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce's ''Congressional Forum 2008'' -- a hot ticket expected to attract some 500 movers and shakers.

WPLG-ABC 10 political reporter Putney had agreed to be the moderator, but dropped out -- calling the forum ''a farce'' -- when he learned the candidates would be allowed to review the questions before the luncheon. ''I had not understood that the candidates would get to see the questions beforehand. That reduces the moderator to some kind of puppet and if that's what they wanted, they can hire an actor,'' Putney said.

Read more here.

Diaz-Balarts explain nays on rescue plan

Republican Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart said round two of the bailout package, which Congress approved Monday, still did not do enough to switch their votes.

Lincoln Diaz-Balart said insurance to guarantee troubled asseets held by financial institutions should have been mandatory.

"I understand the justification for Congressional action, but by requiring mandatory government insurance we would greatly reduce the cost to the taxpayer, and Wall Street would be contributing to the solution of the problem that to a great extent it created," he said in a statement.

Said Mario Diaz-Balart: "It is vital that we make sure that Wall Street has its skin in the game before we put one penny of taxpayers' hard-earned dollars on the hook."

Meanwhile, their challengers, Raul Martinez and Joe Garcia, kept their stances, with Martinez opposing the plan and Garcia supporting it.

"The bill only requires the Treasury Department to encourage loan modifications, and placing our faith in the Bush Administration to voluntarily fix a housing mess they created is simply not going to cut it," Martinez said.

Garcia, who held a press conference Wednesday highlighting South Florida's economic troubles, has said the bill has problems but should be passed.

Update: Garcia's camp issued a statement attacking Mario Diaz-Balart for his vote, saying "he lacks the courage to stand up and fix the problem he created” by voting for Bush administration policies.

Flip-flopping on the bailout?

Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who voted against the Congressional bailout package on Monday, supported it on Friday, saying the revised plan would offer tax breaks and ease the current crunch.

Her opponent, Annette Taddeo, called her a flip-flopper -- but would not say how she would have voted on the tweaked plan.

"In the past few days, I have heard from struggling homeowners, small business owners, students, and retirees who are deeply concerned about their financial future," Ros-Lehtinen said in a statement Friday. "I am voting to help put our economy back on track."

Taddeo, who rejected the plan Monday, said her opponent did not do enough to improve the bill and caved to pressure from the Bush administration and Washington special interests.

On Friday, Taddeo continued to call the bill flawed, in part because it did not give bankruptcy court judges more leeway to make decisions. But she did not say what her vote would have been on the bailout the second time around.

"I hate to say I'm against it because I know we need to do something, but this bill is still not good enough," she said in an interview.

Taddeo on the attack

Annette Taddeo is out with her second TV ad -- and unlike the first one, "Pea Pod" is all about her opponent, Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.

The spot tries to tie Ros-Lehtinen to President Bush -- complete with both their heads popping out of a pea pod -- and to Wall Street, saying she received "almost a million dollars" from them and "special interests."

The ad is also up in Spanish, where the comparison switches from peas in a pod to two drops of water.

Diaz-Balart/Martinez smackdown now a toss-up?

So says the Cook Political Report. The independent political observer today changed the rating on the race from "lean Republican" to "toss up," saying the race "is finally living up to its billing as an invective-filled grudge match worthy of the Jerry Springer Show."

Cook says Lincoln Diaz-Balart's first TV ad is "a 30-second tour de force of (Raul) Martinez’s 'years of
embarrassing our community,' highlighting his early 1990’s corruption convictions and a brief appearance in a movie called 'Cocaine Cowboys.' "

But the blurb notes "multiple media outlets have criticized the ad for omitting that Martinez’s convictions were overturned on appeal, and that Martinez was not shown anywhere near cocaine in the mentioned drug-trafficking documentary.

Ros-Lehtinen, Wall Street nay now a yay

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who voted against the Wall Street bail out plan on Monday, said today she plans to vote for the new Senate version, saying it now includes "meaningful economic relief for struggling families."

The Senate bill -- which cleared with a 74 to 25 vote -- was modified to include a number of "sweetners" and tax break extenders which Ros-Lehinten pointed to in favor of changing her vote.

Among them, extending the deductibility of state and local taxes for people in states without income taxes like Florida, along with the college tuition tax deduction.

Her switch came as President Bush and House leaders furiously made the rounds to convince lawmakers to back the legislation. The White House said Bush planned to call about 3 dozen House members.

A spokeswoman for Ros-Lehtinen said she hadn't received a call from the president, but talked this week with worried business owners in the Keys and seniors in Miami.

Dem to Nelson: "You're entitled to your own opinions, not your own facts"

Missed in all the vote drama last night: Senate Banking Committee chair Chris Dodd's rebuke of Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, who was one of 25 senators to vote against the Wall Street bail out.

After the Florida Democrat spelled out his opposition to the bill, including that the "CEO's who caused this crisis in the first place will benefit from this bailout and will also walk away with golden parachutes," Dodd took to the Senate floor.

"We're all entitled to our opinions," the Connecticut Democrat said, directing his remarks to Nelson. "Pat Moynihan used to say, 'Everyone is entitled to their own opinions but not their own facts.' "

Dodd, who helped write the bill, said it prohibits golden parachutes in a number of situations for many of the troubled institutions.

"For the first time ever in the history of the Congress, we are going to pass legislation dealing with golden parachutes," Dodd said. "More will be done but this bill does take very concrete, specific actions in that regard. Again, you're entitled to your own opinions, not your own facts."

The "vulnerable" Cuban Americans

The independent Rothenberg Political Report -- which earlier this week bumped up the competitive nature of the South Florida races -- says the current state of the races "is a mixed bag for Democrats.

Political Editor Nathan Gonzales writes that Democrats earlier this year "declared all three Cuban Republicans in South Florida vulnerable, despite flimsy quantitative evidence to back up their assertion."

But he notes that although "public and private polling now confirms that brothers Mario Diaz-Balart (R) and Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R) are in very competitive races, (against Joe Garcia and Raul Martinez).. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R) still looks very strong in her re-election bid."

He also writes that Martinez's "high negative ratings, stemming from a somewhat tumultuous time as mayor, is one reason why one GOP strategist believes Mario Diaz-Balart may, in the end, be the most vulnerable of the three Cuban Republicans."

Senate to the rescue? Votes for Wall Street bailout, 74 to 25

Bill Nelson voted no; Mel Martinez voted yes, saying earlier in debate that though "this is a very difficult moment, it's a moment that we can not shrink from.

"While Wall Street got us into this mess, the fact of the matter is this is impacting every day Americans, this is impacting Floridians of every walk of life," Martinez said. "To fulfill our responsibilities, every now and then there's a tough vote that has to be taken. This is a tough vote, it isn't easy -- a lot of people have great angst about it and I understand their angst and I share their anger. But at the same time, we're here to solve problems and get things done."

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama voted for the measure, along with Dem veep candidate, Joe Biden.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is congratulating the Senate for rising above partisanship -- some 5 weeks before the election.

The vote increases the pressure on the House, which is scheduled to take up the Senate version on Friday. No votes include most of Florida's Republicans -- including Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.

Garcia takes a stand on the economy

Democratic congressional challenger Joe Garcia today used a foreclosed home in West Miami-Dade as a backdrop to make a point that South Floridians are feeling the country's financial crisis worse than other parts of the country.

"We are ground zero. We are not on the cutting edge; we're on the bleeding edge," Garcia said, in front of the $400,000 home whose owner had gone financially belly up.

He charged that his opponent, Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, who earlier this week voted against the $700 billion Wall Street bail out, has been "missing in action'' when it comes to helping struggling South Floridans deal with the financial crisis.

"He should not have allowed the fat cats to get us into this mess, but he did because he benefits from them," Garcia said.

A spokesman for Diaz-Balart said of the bill: "Reckless and irresponsible Wall Street companies and executives made millions on the backs of hard-working American families, and now that they are in trouble they want the taxpayers to bail them out.
"On Thursday, Congressman Diaz-Balart will go back to Washington to fight for a good bill - putting taxpayers first," said spokesman Carlos Curbelo.

- LUISA YANEZ

Bill Nelson: A "no" on the bailout

Don't count on Bill Nelson to vote for the Wall Street bail out plan. He took to the Senate floor to say he opposes the measure, saying it "rewards the banks and leaves the little person with the short end of the stick."

He said the bill "forces taxpayers to bail out investment banks that caused the crisis in the first place and does nothing to address the real problem, which is home foreclosures..."

"I think Congress can do better," Nelson said. "It's true we have to do something but this particular legislation is not the right solution."

The stance leaves Nelson, a Democrat, siding with many Florida Republicans, including Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who all voted against the measure in the House Monday. And it puts him at odds with Democratic congressional challenger Joe Garcia, who held a press conference in Miami today to criticize Mario Diaz-Balart for not backing the measure.

Are we on? Battle of the titans, televised? Ground rules: No spitting?

Bring it on! Raul Martinez's campaign says it kept negotiating with CBS-4 in hopes of scheduling a debate with Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, and has agreed to one on Oct. 13.

Diaz-Balart's camp says he'll be there too! Of course the agreement did little to quell the sniping. As witnessed below:

Bill Clinton in town to raise $$ for Raul Martinez

Fresh off his first campaign stops for Barack Obama, Bill Clinton is in Miami tonight raising money for a longtime friend, Raul Martinez, whose challenge to Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart this week got bumped up to a toss-up in one national ranking.

The $1,000 per person fund raiser is at a private home; guests will include Democrat Joe Garcia, who is challenging Diaz-Balart's younger brother, Mario.

Reports out of Clinton's campaign stops were mixed, with the former president not mentioning Obama by name until 5 minutes into his 22-minute speech. Though he did tell the crowd he thought the Democratic nominee would do a better job than John McCain in running the economy.

Perhaps he'll be more effusive for Martinez: the former Hialeah mayor endorsed Hillary Clinton in the Democratic presidential primary.

Martinez, home in Florida, gets an "earful" about the House vote

Florida Sen. Mel Martinez says he's coming back to DC "very supportive" of the bill to bail out Wall Street. Interviewed on CNBC today, Martinez said he was in Florida Tuesday "and got an earful about the House vote.

"And so I'm going back, very much supportive of the package," he said. "I think it is time that the Congress acted. Obviously, a lot of frustration out there, but I think understanding that it is important that we do this."

Martinez said he heard from constituents who were baffled by the calls against the bailout. House members who shot down the bail out plan reported 1,000's of phone calls and e-mails -- almost all of them opposed to the measure.

"What I was hearing from a lot of people was the fact that, 'Gee, who is making these phone calls? I guess I haven't made the phone call. I need to call now because I didn't understand that it made a difference,' " he said. "To many members of the House, who are up for reelection -- all of them are up for reelection this year -- a ton of phone calls going in one direction, none going in the other, can make a difference."

Q Poll: Florida voters not sold on Wall Street bail out

The new Q poll shows Florida voters oppose the proposed $700 billion bid to shore up Wall Street, but not by a huge margin: 42 to 36 percent.

But 60 percent of Florida voters say the economy is the most important issue in the election, with voters post-debate saying they trust Barack Obama more than John McCain 53 percent to 39 percent.

And that's bad news for McCain, said Peter Brown, director of the university's polling institute. He says the "Wall Street meltdown has been a dagger to McCain's political heart. Roughly a third of voters, and almost as large a share of the key independent vote, say McCain did more harm than good in trying to resolve the financial crisis, and the share of voters who see the economy as the top issue has risen from roughly half to six in ten."

The poll suggests voters weren't all that impressed with McCain's call last week to suspend his campaign and return to Washington to solve the financial crisis: post debate, voters said 53-20 percent that Obama's role in trying to solve the economic crisis has been helpful more than harmful, compared to 45-31 percent for McCain.

Senate takes up Wall Street bail out, Nelson not necessarily a big fan

The Senate to the rescue? Two days after the Bush administration's Wall Street rescue plan crashed and burned in the House, the Senate is taking up the charge.

Florida Sen. Mel Martinez has been urging action for more than a week, warning that the turmoil in the markets was putting the U.S. "at the edge of a significant cliff."

But Sen. Bill Nelson has sounded a skeptical note, saying the U.S. "shouldn’t be bailing out banks that caused the problem in the first place - without guaranteeing that taxpayers don’t get the short end of the stick.

"If we hand the administration seven-hundred billion dollars, then we also must assure there’s tough oversight, profit-sharing for taxpayers, fair refinancing for homeowners facing foreclosure; and, we must make sure none of the money ends up back in the CEOs’ pockets," Nelson said.

A vote isn't expected until early evening and John McCain and Barack Obama both say they're coming back to participate.

Garcia hits back

Hitting back after a week of ads that call him Enron Joe, Joe Garcia is up with a new TV ad that accuses Ma