Playing the illegal immigrant card

Democrats are exploiting illegal immigration for political gain in a special state House race.

Voters in Brevard and east Orange next week will elect a replacement for former Rep. Bob Allen, who stepped down after he was convicted of soliciting a male police officer for sex. In the race between Democrat Tony Sasso and Republican Sean Campbell, an independent group mailing makes a dubious charge that Campbell has been working to bring illegals to central Florida.

The mailing, by "Citizens for Political Responsibility," notes that Campbell was a registered lobbyist for a day labor company (true) and that "companies like Campbell's exploit loopholes in federal law to hire illegal immigrants and bring them to our community." (Democrats say Campbell owned the company.) Campbell withdrew as a registered lobbyist for Southeast Staffing of Melbourne last Sept. 7.

The mailing was funded by the Orange County Fund for Children, an education group; the Florida Justice Association (trial lawyers) and long-time Orlando Democratic activist Doug Head. The piece ends with: "Sean Campbell. Great for illegal immigrants. Bad for us."      

Comments

The trial lawyers?? What a shock!!

funny, they can't run on their own candidate, they have to lie about the other one!

The FJA should be ashamed of themselves

hilarious that republicans are getting a piece of their own medicine

These idiots from "Citizens for Political Responsibility" want to play huh?

Republicans can play too. We will SWIFTBOAT their candidate and Obama Karl Rove style.

Trust me, just wait til summer time.

How about huge billboard on interstate 4 saying "Do we really want an admitted user of cocaine in the White House? JUST SAY NO TO BARACK OBAMA"

"Obama & sketchy slumlord in bed together"

These guys are amateur status Swiftboating.

You have not seen anything yet. 527's are being formed as we speak.

5:01 - I think we want the cocaine user who is currently in the White House out.

A quick check on sunbiz.org and lobbyist registrations shows that Campbell DOES own the company he lobbied for, Southeast Staffing.

So it doesn't just "sound" like he owns the company, he DOES own the company.

Maybe it's not so dubious after all?

5:07 no proof GW Bush ever used coke.

Barack Obama admitted to using cocaine.

big difference

509-

i think the important issue is not if he OWNS the company, but does his company hire illegals....and there is no proof or else the trial lawyers would have used it!

Slimy

Ambulance Chasers.

It is fun to make generalizations isn't it?

that's not a generalization...that is the FJA or whatever the hell they call themselves this Session.

[Dee]

So what they both support illegal immigration. One for cheap labor and the other for cheap votes.

The Democrats are so wrapped up in illegal immigration that it is dishonest that they sent the hit piece out in English instead of Spanish.

Where is Greer to straighten this out and get a decent candidate, even if her name is Candi or Mandi.

[Susie]

I thought Sasso was better than that-he knows that Southeast Staffing can prove they do not hire illegals--they have social security cards on all the people they employ--guess what they pay taxes too. Sasso you lost my vote and the three other members of my family votes too

5:12 Bush's cocaine use is well documented. He's just not man enough to admit it.

Susie, stop crying. And for the record, it didn't "come" from Sasso. He can't stop people or groups from sending mailers out. I will admit though, this mailer was tacky and really not needed. If anything I think it hurts him in that district.

yeah, southeast staffing makes them show social security cards. Only the guy named "Pablo" has a social security card of a guy named "Frank"

Too bad the mailer did not bring up the issue of GOP Chair Jim Greer's alleged unruly behavior in a Brevard Co. strip club. Greer is coming to town to campaign for Campbell so maybe Greer will take Sean out to his old hangout to see if any of the "dancers" are illegal immigrants.

11:01 Nice job working the Greer thread back in. That was mucho fun and closed down way too prematurely, in my opinion!

[Republican for Sasso]

Republicans ought to think before they vote the party line. Mr. Sasso's Republican opponent, Merritt Island builder Sean Campbell, is woefully unprepared to serve in Tallahassee. The other option, independent Jerry Maynard, is not a serious candidate.

Mr. Campbell lacks even the basic knowledge of how Florida's tax structure or its school system works. Such lack of knowledge would leave little hope he could be effective.

Mr. Sasso, on the other hand, served on the Cocoa Beach City Council for six years. During that time, he's been a champion of managed growth, and he has a plan to lure high-tech industry as the shuttle program winds down.

Orlando Sentinel, February 20, 2008

District 32 needs a public servant who will represent all the interests of the district's constituents. It needs someone who has worked successfully on environmental and quality of life issues, while supporting and encouraging economic growth and diversity through better planning and more collaborative efforts.

As a registered Republican, I am concerned that Sasso's opponent for the District 32 seat lacks the civic experience important to this political office, which represents part of Brevard and some of Orange County.

[No Problema!]

In order to be born again into the highest echelons of the "family values" party, you first need to manage a strip club. So it naturally follows that if you want to make your mark in the "anti-immigration" party, you should have some experience importing a few illegals.

11:06
Greer will bring the strip club issue up by showing up to campaign with Sean "What illegal immigrants?" Campbell.
The Dems should hire some strippers to hold posters welcoming Greer while the VIPs of the party of disgraced Rep Bob Allen speak about family values and how they need Campbell on their team in Tallahassee.
Hope that the GOP rally won't be in a public park with restrooms.

Republican Sean Campbell, recently said of bills he would sponsor if elected:

"Well, I'm sure you're all going to find this really hard to believe, but I really haven't given it a whole lot of consideration. I've been so focused on this race and winning this race."

Campbell has been missing opportunities to speak with and meet voters face to face, choosing instead to go to Tallahassee looking for more money.

Campbell doesn't know what the hell he's doing. If Republicans in Brevard elect this selfish, money hungry man, they will never have a voice in Tallahassee.

As a Brevard County firefighter, I strongly encourage all residents of district 32 to VOTE FOR SASSO on February 26th!

I'm so sick of the religious right that I switched parties this year. Vote for Change. Vote for Obama.

HA! Take that Republicans! FJA Rocks!

[Paul Waters]

Republican Sean Campbell proclaims "lower taxes" at every turn. But at the recent debate the only idea he could come up with to save money was to fire the county commissioners' assistants.

[Dan Woodard]

Ten people drowned on our beaches last year. When a meeting was held to discuss what could be done, Tony Sasso was there. Sean Campbell was not.

[Could this be rock bottom?]

Let's review...

Sean Campbell says he is for tackling illegal immigration, but he was a lobbyist for day labor companies.

He says Tony Sasso is a liberal, but it is Tony Sasso that has the A rating from the NRA and it is Sean Campbell with the F rating.

Is this guy for real?

[Does Crist really endorse this Campbell guy???]

It is not often that the Orlando Sentinel and Florida Today agree on politics. In the case of the HD 32 race between Tony Sasso and Sean Campbell, they are solidly in the same corner. Looks like Crist is standing alone on this one.

For those who have not had a chance to read the complete endorsements from both papers, here you go:

orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/orl-ed20208feb20,0,1718742.story
OrlandoSentinel.com
EDITORIAL
Our position: The Cocoa Beach man has far better grasp of issues than opponent
February 20, 2008
Voters have a clear choice in Tuesday's election for House District 32: Democrat Tony Sasso.

Mr. Sasso has the experience and command of the issues facing the district made up mostly of Brevard County, including Kennedy Space Center and parts of east Orange including the communities of Vista Lakes, Lake Nona and Wedgefield.

The resignation of former state Rep. Bob Allen forced this special election, and we recognize Mr. Sasso will have a tough battle in this district, where Republicans far outnumber Democrats.

But Republicans ought to think before they vote the party line. Mr. Sasso's Republican opponent, Merritt Island builder Sean Campbell, is woefully unprepared to serve in Tallahassee. The other option, independent Jerry Maynard, is not a serious candidate.

Mr. Campbell lacks even the basic knowledge of how Florida's tax structure or its school system works. Such lack of knowledge would leave little hope he could be effective.

Mr. Sasso, on the other hand, served on the Cocoa Beach City Council for six years. During that time, he's been a champion of managed growth, and he has a plan to lure high-tech industry as the shuttle program winds down.

The Sentinel endorses Tony Sasso for state House District 32 in Tuesday's special election.

Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel

FLORIDA TODAY editorial, 2/13/08 - Endorsement of Democratic candidate Tony Sasso
Sasso has the knowledge and experience to represent citizens in House District 32

Space Coast voters go to the polls Feb. 26 in a special election to fill a vacant seat in the Legislature.

It's in House District 32 where scandal forced Republican Rep. Bob Allen from office. The district includes parts of Brevard and Orange counties, with NASA's Kennedy Space Center within its boundaries.

State lawmakers face extremely hard problems when they return to work next month, with a sinking economy forcing deep budget cuts and unfinished tax and insurance reform topping the agenda.

The citizens in District 32 need someone with experience and a solid knowledge of the issues to hit the ground running. They've got it in Democrat Tony Sasso, who offers the kind of moderate, bipartisan leadership that Republican and independent voters should recognize and support.

Sasso has spent the past six years as a member of the Cocoa Beach City Commission, where he developed the reputation as a hard-working official who listened to his constituents and practiced what he calls "open, honest, straight-forward government."

He pushed for televised commission meetings, more town hall gatherings and helped get the city to join the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast -- the kind of inclusive outreach that voters expect and which serves the community well.

Sasso, a marine engineer, also served as vice chair of the Space Coast League of Cities. That put him at the center of the meat-and-potato issues that District 32 residents care about most. He's done his homework on all of them:

He understands the public's tax revolt sentiment but also the impact tax cuts will have on local services and education -- an insight that would serve citizens well in Tallahassee.
He says the state must "get its act together" to help lure post-shuttle industries and jobs to Kennedy Space Center, and wisely wants the Legislature to create a public-private aerospace and high-technology investment fund.
He's a leader in environmental protection, pressing hard for growth management and passage of the Clean Oceans Act that would ban Port Canaveral gambling ships from dumping their waste off our coast.
· He believes the Legislature must get tough with insurance companies that continue canceling policies, raising rates and dumping more risk on consumers through the state's catastrophe fund.

The other candidates in the race are Republican Sean Campbell of Merritt Island and Independent Jerry Maynard of Titusville.

Campbell, who runs a company that provides labor primarily for commercial and industrial construction, has a sincere desire to serve.

But he has a troubling lack of knowledge about key issues such as creating space jobs, improving education and revising tax policy. He also believes the Legislature is exempt from the Sunshine Laws that guarantee open government and the public's access to it, which should worry everyone.

There's no way he's ready for Tallahassee.

Maynard declined requests to meet with FLORIDA TODAY's editorial board to discuss his views.

Sasso is far and away the best candidate with a proven record as a public servant who knows how to work across the aisle. He can represent District 32 voters of all parties, which earns him our recommendation.

Crist endorses whomever Greer tells him to show up for. Maybe Greer has some pics from a strip club.

http://www.xenutv.com/int/darkside.htm

I say we invade Mexico and Cuba, and simply expand the US.

Just look up Sasso's record when he was a Cocoa Beach City Councilman! Every year he voted to raise taxes and fees!!!!!

He tries to come off as a moderate, but he is another Tax and Spend Democrat!

9:08- Sasso voted to cut the tax rate six years in a row. Nice try.

Campbell- Says he is for illegal immigration, lobbies for day labor industry.

Campbell- Says he is pro-gun, gets an F from the NRA.

how does campbell get an F, when he has no voting record? are dems normally that stupid, or just the ones on the sasso campaign?

10:08 you are not going to fool anybody on this board with that cut the millage but take in more due to rising property values shell game. State law says if they take in more money they raised taxes. They LOWERED the MILLAGE, but RAISED TAXES! PERIOD!

1:19- So that is reason to vote out every single Republican state house member who voted for the budget last year, since it raised property tax revenues for education?

Just want to make sure we are clear.

1:58 - Actually the house wanted to swap that with a penny sales tax (details, details...)

Also, how many districts levy the bare minimum (only RLE?) I wouold venture to be very few

2:09- No, read the budget passed by the legislature that raised like 400 million in higher required local effort revenues.

According to Sean Campbell, that is a tax increase. Is he saying he would have voted against the budget last year?

Illegal Immigrants… the new slave labor!

Now all they need is a Dr. Martin Luther Hernandez!

[Dan Woodard]

I saw both candidates in a recent debate. Campbell hasn't a clue how government works. He said he hadn't even thought about what he would do when elected. He'll just ask his boss, Ron Pritchard.

Tony Sasso is the most honest and bipartisan candidate I have ever met; he works with people from all political parties and finds solutions they can all support. The Republican mayor of Cocoa Beach has said Sasso is the better candidate.

Campbell claims all over his flyers that he will CUT TAXES. In fact that's the only thing he bothers to claim. But when he was asked how he would actually cut spending, the only thing he could think of was to fire the County Commisioners' three assisstants! This is absolutely laughable. He didn't for a moment suggest he would make do with fewer assistants.

In his mailer Campbell says he wants the schools to crank out laborers for local businesses. College, the professions, science and engineering, high technology are not even mentioned! Could it be because Campbell makes his money hiring out laborers???? Who needs college? Campbell is getting lots of money from Ron Pritchard, who also worked blatantly to pave the whole county with concrete.

But some of us have dreams for our kids. Suppose we don't want our kids working at menial jobs for Campbell and his cronies their whole lives, or living in a community that's nothing but concrete and houses? Tony Sasso knows this; he was an officer in the Merchant Marine. He has two sons, and both are Eagle Scouts! He has worked with many local organizaitons to improve our community through sustainable development.

Campbell acted like he deserved the office. He has lobbied against workman's compensation so that the laborers he employs will get no medical care if they are injured on the job. Astoundingly, at teh debate last Tuesday he derided our environment, saying the only clean water that was important was in the bottle he was drinking, and that as a builder he would crush endangered species to build a house.

If the Republicans can't come up with someone better than Campbell, I pity them.

[Pat]

How come Crist didn't show in Brevard today? Because some Brevard Republicans (not electeds) called and told him to stay away.

Erin had a nice line about a "Campbell scheduling conflict," but in no way was that the real issue.

If people want to read what conservatives in Brevard think about this race, check out this post by Bill Mick, the top conservative talk radio host in the county:

http://www.wmmbam.com/pages/insider_column.html

We might win this race because of the partisanship in the district, but in no way is this race showcasing the best our party can offer.

The biggest problem that Campbell has is David Wolfson.

Campbell got an F from the NRA. Marion Hammer needs to go. Apparently the questionaire for the primary got lost in the mail to the other candidates for this race in the primary when out of nowhere she endorsed another candidate. When staunch, lifelong NRA supporters called their candidates (not the one who got the endorsment), all said they had NO idea the NRA was endorsing and had no opportunity to discuss with the NRA. Marion acted "shocked" and used LIES and inuendos to explain why each candidate was not chosen over the one who got the nod. Then the final blow - Well, the other candidates did not "reach out" to the NRA.

She's an embarrassment and a great example of who this entire race is being controlled by interests in Tallahassee.