Sink Silence on Health Care Bought and Paid For By Big Labor

In Case You Missed It–For more than two months, Floridians have been waiting for Democrat Gubernatorial Candidate Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink to take a position on the Democrat’s $900 billion health care experiment.

If the vast majority of Floridians are opposed to this bureaucratic takeover of the health care industry, why won’t Alex Sink take a position? Perhaps because opposing the Democrat’s health care bill could cost her hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the labor unions who finance her campaign.

The pressure for Sink to take a position on this controversial legislation has been mounting in recent weeks, but given the recent financial fate suffered by her Democrat colleague Congresswoman Suzanne Kosmas, Floridians will likely have to hold out in Alex Sink’s Health Care Waiting Room.

Orlando Sentinel: Unions Halt Kosmas Support Over Health Care Vote
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, D-New Smyrna Beach, is taking more hits from the left over her vote against the Democratic health care plan that barely passed the House this month – without her support – and the fallout continued over the weekend from her previously staunch labor supporters.

Volusia/Flagler Central Labor Council President Stacy Stepanovich sent a letter to Kosmas this weekend letting her know that Central Florida labor groups will halt all contributions to her campaign until further notice, due to the Kosmas 'no' vote.

While the labor groups' early 2010 endorsement still holds, the Central Florida, Space Coast and Volusia/Flagler AFL-CIO's all voted unanimously Thursday night to suspend check-writing, flier walks, and any other efforts for the Kosmas campaign, according to this letter to Kosmas.
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The Progressive Change Campaign Committee came out against Kosmas last week for the same reason.

McCollum Shows Comfortable Lead

A statewide Mason-Dixon poll released today shows Attorney General Bill McCollum leading Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink in the Florida Governor’s Race – 41 percent to 35 percent. General McCollum posted name recognition numbers near 90 percent, compared with CFO Sink, who barely broke 60 percent. Additionally, General McCollum receives four times the support among Democrats that CFO Sink does among Republicans and beats CFO Sink among Independents by an almost 2-1 margin, demonstrating his electability and appeal to Republicans, Democrats and Independents.

Here’s what they are saying…

McCollum leads Sink in another poll
Orlando Sentinel
Republican Bill McCollum holds a slight lead over Democrat Alex Sink in Florida's 2010 governor's race, according to the latest Mason-Dixon poll released Tuesday. McCollum, Florida's attorney general, held a 41 percent to 35 percent edge over Chief Financial Officer Sink in the poll commissioned for Ron Sachs Communications, a public relations firm in Tallahassee…McCollum enjoys high name recognition from 87 percent of registered Florida voters, while Sink is recognized by 61 percent.

Sachs/M-D poll shows McCollum leading Sink
Tampa Tribune
A new installment of the Florida Poll, done by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research for Ron Sachs Communications, shows Republican Bill McCollum leading Democrat Alex Sink in the governor’s race by 41 percent to 35 percent. That result is little changed from the last installment of the same poll, done in mid-May, which showed McCollum with a 40-34 percent lead.

McCollum leads Sink if governor's race were held today
Tallahassee Democrat
Attorney General Bill McCollum has a comfortable lead over a rival in the governor's race, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, according to a Mason-Dixon poll that was just released. McCollum, a Republican, would beat Sink, the leading Democrat, 41 percent to 35 percent, according to the poll…McCollum also has an edge in name recognition over Sink, his fellow Cabinet member, 87 percent to 61 percent.

I'm Alex Sink and I'm Kind of a Big Deal

My Office Is Filled With Democrat Operatives and Leather Bound Books and Smells of Fine Mahogany

I’m Alex Sink and I’m Kind of a Big Deal

Tallahassee—The St. Pete Times reports today that Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink is essentially campaigning for statewide office already…from her current statewide office. Which means taxpayers are paying for her campaign.

The Times notes that Sink is staffing up with Democrat operatives from Planned Parenthood and the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee. The article also highlights Sink’s recent high-profile political attacks on Republican elected officials and says, “She has added veteran political hands to her office payroll. And at a time when many state politicians are consumed with the budget crisis in Tallahassee, Sink has been organizing campaign fundraising receptions from Tallahassee to Tampa to Miami.”

“Alex Sink is clearly running for statewide office, and she’s doing it on the taxpayers’ dime through a not-so-stealthy stealth campaign run out of the first floor of Florida’s Capitol building,” said RPOF Chairman Jim Greer. “Her campaign staff should be moved off the state payroll immediately so that Florida’s taxpayers do not have to foot any more of the bill for Alex Sink’s campaign.”

The St. Pete Times continues, “In January, her office issued nine press releases, compared with 15 so far this month. In recent days she has been front and center at a PTA rally in Tallahassee, and holding news conferences…She has brought in a politically savvy new deputy chief of staff, Stephanie Grutman, who previously worked with U.S. Rep. Ron Klein and with Planned Parenthood. Her new communications director, Jennings, is a veteran of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.”

“Alex Sink has her campaign staff in place and she has held at least three fundraisers this month alone,” concluded Greer. “Alex Sink is running an active campaign and Florida’s taxpayers are footing the bill.”

Yesterday, Sink suggested that it might be a good idea for the state to buy toxic assets that banks and private investors won’t touch.

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Florida CFO Wants the State to Buy Toxic Assets

That's right--Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink declared today that she would consider having Florida buy toxic assets. That means you, the taxpayers, buying up bad, risky assets that no one else wants.

The RPOF just issued the following release:

Banks Don’t Want ‘Em, Investors Don’t Want ‘Em, But Alex Sink Does!

Tallahassee—As if Florida families don’t have enough to worry about, the Associated Press reports today that the state’s Chief Financial Officer Official wants to buy toxic assets for investment purposes.

“There is a reason they’re called ‘toxic,’” noted RPOF Chairman Jim Greer. “The federal government doesn’t want them and private investors don’t want them. Why should the people of Florida?”

“Alex Sink may be willing to make a deal with devil to in an attempt to enhance Florida’s investment portfolio, but taxpayers will not support this incredibly risky move with their dollars. As a former bank executive, Alex Sink should know the perilous potential outcome of even considering purchasing toxic assets, which could damage the entire state’s credit and hurt taxpayers.”

Breaking: Sink Not Running for US Senate?

From (yet again) Politico, just posted:

Sink not running against Martinez

One of the Democrats’ leading candidates to challenge Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) in 2010 has decided to pass up the opportunity, according to a source familiar with her thinking.

Florida’s chief financial officer, Alex Sink, has decided to run for a second term as CFO and forego a run against Martinez. She made the decision over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Sink’s office did not return phone calls seeking comment.