FL 16: The waste of a good Democrat. The harm done there now.

[madfloridian]

David Lutrin was already running in FL 16. Then the Democratic Congressional Campaign committee butted in, and chose a Republican to run as a Democrat. More about David Lutrin.


David Lutrin, a school teacher, union activist and staunch supporter of immediate withdrawal from Iraq, decided to run against Foley before Mahoney entered the race. After Mahoney declared his candidacy, Lutrin was contacted by field organizers for the DCCC who asked him to drop out and let Mahoney run unopposed.

More about Tim Mahoney and the harm done.


In this Oct. 26, 2006 file photo, Democrat Tim Mahoney waits for the start of a debate, at a West Palm Beach, Fla. TV station. Mahoney on Monday Oct. 13, 2008 called for an ethics investigation of himself amid reports that he had an affair and then paid the woman to keep her quiet. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter, File)

He is admitting to multiple affairs, and most likely this seat will go Republican again.

It was an odd situation from the start.

Lutrin said that he also met personally with Mahoney. During a three- hour breakfast meeting, Mahoney offered Lutrin a higher-paying job if he agreed to drop out of the primary. "Mahoney tried to get me to run in a different district. He offered me a job at one of his non-profit organizations where he said that I would make more than I was making as a teacher. He said I could campaign full time while working at his non-profit as long as I agreed to drop out of the race," Lutrin said. Lutrin declined the job offer.

According to Lutrin, when he refused to step aside, the DCCC shored up local political support for Mahoney. The local AFL-CIO chapter, of which Lutrin was a member, came out with an early endorsement of Mahoney's campaign. According to Lutrin, the union told him that "they would like to back a fellow union brother, but Mahoney has more money and more political support from the party." Lutrin eventually dropped out of the race when the local teachers' union decided to support Mahoney.

I have been writing about this since Rahm Emanuel and state Democratic chairwoman, Karen Thurman, started their visits to South Florida to recruit Mahoney.

Stu Rothenberg met with Mahoney and warned he was not a strong candidate.

Stu Rothenberg.
House Handicapping Is Getting Very Silly, Very Quickly

"The test for the Democrats will be in open seats that lean Republican and in districts where Republican incumbents are seeking re-election - and in those districts, the Democrats’ achievements so far are mixed.

The DCCC can rightly boast about recruits such as Diane Farrell (Connecticut 4th), Lois Murphy (Pennsylvania 6th), Ron Klein (Florida 22nd), Patricia Madrid (New Mexico 1st), and former Reps. Nick Lampson (Texas 22nd) and Baron Hill (Indiana 9th). Each has demonstrated an ability to run a strong campaign, and each has significant personal accomplishments.

But some of those the DCCC is promoting as "strong candidates" have far fewer assets, and much more to prove, before they merit the strong candidate label.

For instance, I met businessman Tim Mahoney, who is challenging Rep. Mark Foley (R) in Florida’s 16th. He’s on the DCCC’s list, but if he’s a top-tier candidate, then I’m Thomas Jefferson. I found Mahoney to be an unpolished second- or third-tier House candidate who is not yet prepared for a U.S. House race. He may have some personal money to put into his race, and he may ultimately become a good candidate. Time will tell. But he isn’t one now."

And this article forgets to say that Mahoney was recruited while a registered Republican.

Democrats say Venus man can beat Foley

It took a trip to Venus, but Democrats may have finally found a challenger to take on U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, a Republican formerly of Jupiter. While it sounds like the start of an interplanetary battle, Democrat Tim Mahoney said it's really a contest for the 16th Congressional District, which covers eight counties, including most of Charlotte County.

"He's got real competition this time," said Mahoney, a 49-year-old venture capitalist who lives in rural Highlands County in the town of Venus.

..."Mahoney is chairman of vFinance Inc., a financial services company based in Boca Raton.

Democrat David Lee Lutrin, an elementary school gym teacher from Palm Beach Gardens, has also opened a campaign account to run for the seat, but national Democrats are already encouraging their party to get behind Mahoney. Rep. Rahm Emanuel, head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, has donated money to Mahoney's campaign and was in South Florida earlier this month to help Mahoney raise money. Mahoney said Emanuel is the person who convinced him to run against Foley. "

From a MyDD diary in August....quote from a Palm Beach Post article with a dead link. It does point out that Mahoney was recruited by state party Chairman Karen Thurman and the DCCC. It also mentions he has not been active politically, but was a registered Republican. He is very rich, though.

Diary from MyDD about Mahoney

"The last few Democratic attempts to unseat U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, R-Jupiter, have been spectacular failures, but some Dems in Washington and Tallahassee still dream of finding a credible challenger.

New Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman and folks at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in D.C. have had serious talks recently with vFinance Inc. Chairman Tim Mahoney, whose business finances high-growth companies and has more than two dozen offices in the United States.

It's a red area, but in this climate we could have had a good chance. We are going to lose a seat that might have been ours in 2006 with an honest to goodness Democrat running.