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BETTY'S BLOGGERS: Betty Castor might not be the fiery Howard Dean type, but she's ripped a page from his campaign playbook to position herself as the grass roots favorite in Florida's U.S. Senate race.
The Tampa Democrat's newly revamped campaign Web site (www.bettynet.com) offers features on "Bettyheads" (big fans) and has a blog, or online diary, for people to weigh in with their own musings.
Some recent examples:
"Does anyone know what kind of music betty likes because im a fan of michael jackson he's the greatest."
Response: "I have no idea ... but I'm betting Betty gets down with Clapton/Cream, Zep, Jimi, etc. ..."
For the record, the campaign says Castor, 63, prefers Paul Simon and Jimmy Buffett.
VEEP WATCH: While U.S. Sen. Bob Graham has been regularly helping John Kerry by talking to national press people in conference calls, North Carolina Sen. John Edwards has been barnstorming the country campaigning for Kerry.
Graham and Edwards are both considered possible Kerry vice presidential running mates.
Next month, Edwards will headline the state Democratic Party's annual Jefferson-Jackson fundraising weekend in Hollywood, June 12-13. Edwards is expected to make a Tampa Bay area visit.
MIAMI NOT NICE: A minor taint of Miami-Dade politics rubbed off on Kerry's presidential campaign last week when a leading Florida fundraiser for Kerry stepped down from a county transportation board over ethical questions.
Former Democratic state Rep. John Cosgrove, who has raised more than $50,000 for Kerry, resigned from the local Citizens Independent Transportation Trust when Miami-Dade's inspector general questioned whether Kerry inappropriately sought to help the father of Kerry's Florida finance director win county contracts.
As reported by the Miami Herald, a draft inspector general's report questioned Cosgrove arranging a meeting between county officials and an exec with a South Dakota environmental cleanup firm whose son is Kerry's Florida finance director, Kory Mitchell.
JUNKET WARNING: When more than a dozen state legislators returned home last week from an all-expense-paid, weeklong economic summit to Taiwan, it wasn't the first time such an elaborate junket had been considered.
Last October, Rep. Stacy Ritter, D-Coral Springs, asked House lawyers whether such a trip was legal under Florida's ethics laws.
The answer: No.
"It is my opinion that you may not accept this offer," House counsel Tom Tedcastle wrote.
His advice was based on the fact that the Republic of China on Taiwan lobbied lawmakers in 2003 to get a resolution passed. Tedcastle noted in a memo that lawmakers can't accept gifts from a lobbying entity for 12 months after the end of the session.
The trip went off this month instead - safely outside the one-year prohibition.
TARGETING MEL: The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which will be at the forefront of the general election campaign to hold Graham's Senate seat, is quietly looking to hire a full-time operative based in Florida. The operative's job: Tear down Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mel Martinez.
The strategy suggests that Democrats may view Martinez as the toughest potential GOP opponent in November.
SENATORIAL BLISS: A proud state Sen. Victor Crist, R-Tampa, made no secret last week that, at 46, he was finally ready to tie the knot. His bride-to-be is Angela Severino, 30, of Tampa, a university administrator.
After faxing press releases announcing his engagement to local newspapers Wednesday, he also mailed a few dozen to media contacts. But even though the announcement listed a state employee, Crist aide Brandon Wagner, as a contact, Crist said the mailing was not done at taxpayer expense.
"I listed Brandon because he's easier to get hold of and knows how to reach me," Crist said. "But it was my private stationery, my envelopes, my stamps. It was my spit on the envelope. I mailed it."
- Times staff writers Joni James, Adam C. Smith and Steve Bousquet contributed to this week's column.