Miami-Dade School Board Member Carlos Curbelo finally came out of the political closet and announced he has a “congressional exploratory committee” and an imposing “finance team” working on his long-rumored run for U.S. Congress in what many state Republicans apparently view as the opportunity seat in 2014.
Less than two weeks after Cutler Bay Mayor Edward “Mac” MacDougall had his kick-off for his U.S. Congress campaign, the most buzzed about Republican contender came out of the shadows and made his presence known. Ladra is told by insiders that he’s been committed to the race longer and I suspect MacDougall’s first shot on the heels of his public campaign against the Dolphins stadium forced Curbelo to act sooner than he expected.
He’s also sending a message loud and clear to the other Republicans flirting with the seat — mainly State Rep. Jose Felix “One More Pepe” Diaz (R-Kendall) and former Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez, who should run for mayor again instead (more on that later) — that he’s the GOP go-to boy on this one and everyone else better just back off.
Of course, in his aw shucks way, Curbelo says nah.
“I’m operating on my own timeline. I’ve not filed as a candidate,” Curbelo told Ladra. “All I did was put out a list of commitments I have sewn up.”
Yeah. But what a list of commitments it is.
His finance team includes people like former Sen. George LeMieux, with whom he worked, former House Speaker Dean Cannon, LBA President Bernie Navarro, lobbyist Rodney Barreto, developers Armando Codina and Pedro Munilla, Greenberg Traurig Chairman Cesar Alvarez, Republican habitual contributor Stanley Tate, Cuban community icon businesswoman Remedios Diaz Oliver, former Jeb Bush spokesman Justin Sayfie and Bush insider Kathleen Shanahan.
Expect a Bush endorsement if Curbelo runs. Along with mailers from the DeeBee Brothers, former Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart and his heir and baby brother Congressman Mario Diaz Balart, whose campaigns Curbelo cut his teeth on as a teenager and in college.
Because, while he’s only been on the school board for three years, Curbelo is a longtime insider in political circles who has made those years seem longer. He’s been a paige in D. C., campaigned for U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio— before the rising politico star became Florida House Speaker and was in charge of Republican campaigns statewide — and later for former Gov. Charlie Christ in ’06 against Jim Davis, before Christ became a turncoat, and Rick Perry in 2012.
He’s got chops. He’s good at media. And he knows what he’s doing. He’ll probably have the heavy support of the Republican Party of Florida, which wants that seat back from Democratic Congressman Joe Garcia, who took it with an empowering 11-point lead from longtime U.S. Rep. King David “Nine Lives” Rivera, who apparently ran out of lives and is now allegedly running from here to Nicaragua via Costa Rica to see his missing friend, political consultant Ana Sol Aliegro, who is wanted for questioning by the FBI in connection with the potential case against Rivera for tampering in elections by planting a Democratic candidate against Garcia. Ol’ King Nine Lives was in the midst of these allegations and the headlines — as well as Obama’s coattails — helped Garcia, who had lost that race twice before.
Republicans by and large think they can get this district — which stretches from Tamiami Trail to Key West and which Obama won with a scant seven percent — back with the right candidate in a non presidential year.
“Republicans do need a strong candidate to run against an incumbent, even if he’s a Congressman by default,” Curbelo said. “I’m taking it very seriously. But whenever you’re going to run for office, you want to make sure it’s the right thing, not just for you and your family, but for the area.” He added that he would be meeting with different groups and individuals in the district in the coming weeks to get a feel for the community (read: to get a feel for his base, both financially and in votes).
Curbelo would not admit that his announcement was meant to scare the bejesus out of MacDougall, Martinez and Diaz, especially the latter, who is sitting pretty in what may be the most Republican (read: safe) district in the delegation — or any other potential contenders, not including Sen. Anitere Flores (R-Kendall) who is not interested and is rumored to be eyeing a commission seat once Miami-Dade Commissioner Javier Souto retires to become mayor of the new city of Westchester (more on that later).
And while Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla (R-Coral Gables) also flirted with the idea, that was before he got snatched up by a national legal/lobbying firm and he still has two terms left in the Florida Senate. He didn’t respond to calls and texts but he’s a busy man and Ladra suspects he’ll stay put in the Senate where maybe he can become Senate President or something, especially since he is sitting pretty having been unopposed in the last run and looking at the same clear field in the future.
Diaz did not return a call to his cell phone, but he has already raised $9,000 toward his re-election next year. His Rebuild Florida PAC has about $14,000 in it, mostly left over from last year; he only raised $1,500 this quarter.
Other names batted about in the same breath as this race are not even worth mentioning at this point.
Curbelo told me he spoke with both Martinez and Diaz about his possible intention but did not tell them to stay out. “I didn’t encourage them to run, but I didn’t discourage them either because they are my friends,” Curbelo said. Besides, that’s what the announcement was for. My words, not his.
His are “I am taking a hard look at this and I want people to know that. That’s why I put out a release. Otherwise, I’d do it quietly,” Curbelo said.
MacDougall, for his part, said he would not back down.
“Of course not,” said the war veteran and former Miami-Dade cop on his cell phone from California, since he is currently traveling the country via motorcycle to gather the pulse of the people (more on that later). “That’s the last thing I’ll ever do and something I’ve never done in my life.”
In fact, he is confident that he can beat Curbelo in the primary. “I’m not running against anybody. I’m running for the people,” MacDougall told Ladra. “I’m not overly concerned. My strategy is not built on who’s going to run, it is built on the people.
“You can gather all the political friends you want and I’m sure that’s going to happen, people are going to scramble to get political support. But I’m going to stay on track. It’s pretty simple to me. I’m not over-complicated with who you know and all that,” MacDougall, who owns a family-run real estate office in his hometown, said.
“I know I’m the underdog,” he said. And he’s comfortable with that.
He hasn’t given up, either, on the Republican Party support. “When the time comes, they will give their support based on who is the best candidate, not who they know,” he told Ladra, adding that he was a lifelong member. He and others also think that a good strategy, going into who can beat Garcia in the general, may be to go with someone who appeals more to independent voters and some Anglo Democrats. After all, he does have name recognition.
And his best bet might be to divide the Hispanic vote, something that could happen if Martinez stays in and steals votes from Curbelo, as he said Thursday that he would. Martinez said he was not discouraged and would file and open an account in July.
“I’m not backing out of the Congressional race,” said the former chairman of the county commission whose longtime district overlaps with the Congressional district. He disagreed that Curbelo goes into it with a mighty upper hand.
“He’s going to have the money. It’s my district, though,” Martinez said.
“I know him, but that doesn’t change anything,” he said, painting a different picture of the friendship than Curbelo did. “There’s some personal issues and let’s leave it at that.”
But he just couldn’t leave it at that: “Curbelo should stay on the School Board one more term and be a friend as I was to him.”
Ladra doubts very much that is going to happen.
Let’s get ready to rumble.
Carlos Curbelo jumps into, changes Congressional contest added by Ladra on
View all posts by Ladra →
