Is Carlos Curbelo a closet Democrat in disguise?

During the primary campaign last year, our new Congressman Carlos “Crybaby” Curbelo painted himself as a conservative Republican and said attacks on him for being soft on GOP issues and aligned with Obama and former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist were slanderous.

But since elected to the office in November, Curbelo has seemed to prove he’s a RINO (Republican In Name Only). He’s almost more blue than red on several high-profile issue, including immigration and, most recently, climate change. He co-sponsored flood insurance legislation with U.S. Reps. Patrick Murphy and Lois Frankel and voted with the Democrats a number of times, including one of only 20 Republicans who broke with their party in a close vote to allow illegal immigrants in the military. He also voted against 97% of his red colleagues on the Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act.

Curbelo’s even put together a coalition of 22 high-profile Democrats who, much to Taddeo’s chagrin, support him — including Aventura Mayor Enid Weisman, Florida City Mayor Otis Wallace and consultant Freddy Balsera, who is working with the other Democratic presidential hopeful,, Hillary Clinton, on her Hispanic outreach.

The Congressman hitched a ride with Obama on Air Force One — practically begged to be invited on board — and on Wednesday, he hung out with Vice President Joe Biden who may very well run for the Democratic presidential nomination. Biden thanked him for what exactly? For being there? Or for voting with the other side of the aisle so much?

Was that really necessary? Que pinta Carlos Curbelo at a Joe Biden event that could precipitate his announcement, any minute now, that he’s running for president? And does he have to look so happy about it? He’s got that same giddy look he had with Crist in 2009.

When does this become an embarassment?

Nelson Diaz, the chairman of the Republican Party of Miami-Dade, is very forgiving.

“Standing next to the vice president doesn’t make you a Democrat,” Diaz told Ladra. “If he comes out in favor of Obamacare and tax increases and more government spending, that’s another story.”

Curbelo told reporters there that education was a bipartisan issue. And he may be right about that.

But he also told reporters that there was a “space” for Biden in the presidential race. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for his party issued a different sentiment in a statement: “Whether it is Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton, Democrats are just repackaging President Obama’s same old partisan rhetoric and stale ideas. Americans want new ideas, new leadership, and a new direction from their next president.”

While Ladra might ordinarily praise a more moderate and inclusive, bipartisan approach from our electeds — otherwise wtf are you ever going to get done? — it smacks of hypocrisy in this case: A short year ago, Curbelo beat his tiny bird chest really hard to show he was more Republican than anybody else.

Now, I half expect him to join the VP again Thursday as he tries to convince a group of South Florida Jewish leaders and activists that this Iran deal is a

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Annette Taddeo, Carlos Curbelo, Joe Biden

Is Carlos Curbelo a closet Democrat in disguise? added by Ladra on September 2, 2015
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