Florida Democrats’ intra-party squabbles began when the Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida hosted a conference call.
Progressives are criticizing the preferred candidate of establishment Democrats, Rep. Patrick Murphy, while throwing their support behind progressive Florida Rep. Alan Grayson. Grayson, who is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is strongly considering a Senate bid, but has yet to officially announce his candidacy.
The Palm Beach Post reports:
“Wall Street Democrats may have settled on Patrick Murphy, but progressive Democrats certainly have not,” said Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida President Susan Smith in a conference call organized by the group Monday. Members of the group said liberal firebrand Grayson, who has said he’s considering the race, would do a better job of inspiring the Democratic base.
Democratic Party of Florida officials quickly fired back:
St. Lucie County Democratic Chairwoman Celeste Bush released a letter calling for the FDP to "decertify" the progressive caucus.
"They [progressives] have assumed authority for party actions that was not theirs to command. A lot of work, money, and effort has gone into the decision that Patrick Murphy had made with the help of the true leaders of our Party," Bush wrote."The experiment with having a ‘Democratic’ Progressive Caucus has obviously failed. They have assumed power they do not have," Bush continued, adding that progressives apparently don’t have a spot in the Florida Democratic Party. "Decertify the ‘Democratic’ Progressive Caucus for this action. Let them be who they are: ‘Progressives.’ Let them try to get the attention of the media with that moniker."
Rep. Alan Grayson has done nothing to discourage his progressive supporters either. In fact, he’s actually encouraged them by attacking his would-be primary opponent, Patrick Murphy.
The Palm Beach Post notes that Patrick Murphy seems to be gaining ground, picking up new endorsements from popular Democratic figures such as Tampa Bay Mayor Bob Buckhorn, but Rep. Alan Grayson is still not on board:
While Buckhorn joined a list of Florida and national Democrats showing support for Murphy. Liberal Rep. Alan Grayson of Orlando, a potential Democratic primary foe, used his popular Facebook and Twitter accounts to take thinly veiled shots at Murphy.
Will the civil war between progressive Democrats and establishment Democrats ever reach a truce? Will Democrats in Florida ever get their act together?
Only time will tell…but for now, it’s a safe bet that the infighting will only continue as the Florida Democratic Senate primary continues to heat up.