Jeb Bush, Charlie Crist Potential Senate Contenders

The Senate seat Florida Republican Mel Martinez will vacate after the 2010 election has begun drawing the interest of several of the state's biggest political names. According to Aaron Deslatte of the Sun-Sentinel, the top Republican prospects are current Governor Charlie Crist, former Governor Jeb Bush and state attorney general Bill McCollum. Florida's chief financial officer, Alex Sink, is widely considered the top Democratic prospect.

Could the popular current Florida governor face off against the popular former Governor in a primary for the Republican nomination? Not likely. It seems like Bush and Crist would be able to sort out which of them would be the candidate behind the scenes. With Crist a likely contender for the 2012 Republican nominee for President, Deslatte suggests that Crist would likely feel upstaged if Bush became Senator. Bush sent an email to reporters expressing interest in the seat after Martinez announced his retirement.

Even if Crist wins a second term as Governor and Bush wins the Senate seat, the true battle between the two would be for influence over the state party. The two represent a stark contrast in styles. Crist is a more pragmatic, centrist politician, while Bush is more conservative, which fits the traditional temperament of the state's party.

Bush's flirtation with the office has drawn, predictably, wide derision from liberal bloggers. MyDD blogger LeftistAddiction wrote, "Republicans insist that Jeb has never been handicapped by his brother's troubles, but this is somewhat disingenuous: Jeb has not faced voters since 2002, a year in which Dubya was still highly popular. It is difficult to know how formidable Jeb would be now that the Bush name has become so toxic." President Bush weighed in on the possibility of his brother running by telling The Politico that Jeb would "be an awesome U.S. Senator." Deslatte writes that Bush's aides indicate that Bush would not use the Senate seat as a stepping stone for the Presidency.