Mitt Romney boosts Connie Mack’s Senate bid
Miami HeraldBy Erika Bolstad and Marc Caputo
Posted on Feb 2, 2012
One of the unexpected winners in Tuesday’s Republican presidential primary in Florida wasn’t even on the ballot: Congressman Connie Mack.
The leading Republican candidate in the U.S. Senate race, Mack earned national media exposure stumping across the state for Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor went so far as to anoint the 44-year-old Mack in campaign stops as "the next senator from Florida."
That endorsement helped drive Mack’s opponent, Adam Hasner, out of the race this week and into a congressional race in South Florida. Another GOP challenger, Craig Miller, exited to run for a congressional seat, too, leaving only former Sen. George LeMieux as a serious challenger.
Other Republican candidates may remain in the race, but Mack is acting the part of frontrunner, and is backed up by polls. Among likely Republican voters, Mack leads former Sen. George LeMieux 38 to 12 percent, according to a Mason-Dixon poll released Jan. 27 and conducted for the Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald, the Tampa Bay Times, Bay News 9 and Central Florida News 13. Mike McCalister registered 7 percent in the poll.
Mack has aimed his campaign rhetoric squarely at the incumbent Democrat, Sen. Bill Nelson, 69, whose last election was his 2006 trouncing of then-U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris, the state’s former Secretary of State.
Mack supported Romney in 2008, too. But he called the week he spent on the campaign trail with Romney "a huge benefit" in developing a relationships with a presidential campaign that will also be running hard in Florida."
I had the opportunity to be with the guy who won the primary, and to work with him and on his behalf," he said.
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Romney speaks to overflow crowd in Naples
WINK NewsBy Staff report
Posted on Jan 29, 2012
Rep. Connie Mack, himself a Senate Candidate, has been one of Romney's most reliable surrogates in Florida. He spent the last week on Gingrich attack mode, though Sunday he only alluded to Romney's top rival.
"There are others in this race who have a very checkered past when it comes to ethics and honesty...but not Mitt Romney," said Mack.
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Fort Myers Congressman Mack bets his future on Romney
Ft. Myers News-PressBy Bob Rathgeber
Posted on Jan 28, 2012
Connie Mack IV and Mitt Romney have been joined at the hip as Romney campaigns for the Republican presidential nomination in Florida.
If Mack isn’t at Romney’s side joining hands in a touchdown salute, he’s serving as the former Massachusetts governor’s surrogate at Newt Gingrich campaign stops, cranking up a Mack attack on Freddie Mac.
This is how Mack, the Fort Myers Republican congressman who is running for the Senate, has been spending his time leading up to Tuesday’s presidential preference primary in Florida.
Mack has gone all-in with Romney. It’s a risky example of political gamesmanship to the nth degree, a move that could propel Mack into the Senate.
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Nelson faces tough Senate race
Bay News 9By Staff report
Posted on Jan 27, 2012
For the first time in his race for the US Senate, Senator Bill Nelson, D-Florida, could have a tough road to re-election ahead of him.
That's according to a new, exclusive News 13 Florida Decides Poll.
That's assuming the GOP Candidate for the Senate is Rep. Connie Mack, IV, who is currently far ahead of the rest of the pack. The poll shows Mack is favored by a large margin, receiving 38 percent of the vote. The next closest competitor, George LeMieux, comes in with only 12 percent of the vote. Behind him is Mike McCalister wtih 7 percent, Adam Hasner with 4 percent and Craig Miller with only 1 percent.
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Connie Mack Leads GOP Senate Pack
Sunshine State NewsBy Kevin Derby
Posted on Jan 19, 2012
A Sunshine State News Poll of likely Republican presidential primary voters finds a large chunk of them -- 42 percent -- remain undecided in choosing a candidate to take on Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, but those who have a preference are breaking heavily toward U.S. Rep. Connie Mack.
Mack, whose father held the Senate seat for two terms, takes 40 percent in the poll, conducted by Harrisburg, Pa.-based Voter Survey Service (VSS) and has a sizable lead over the rest of the pack of Republican hopefuls.
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Connie Mack's statewide finance team
St. Petersburg TimesBy Alex Leary
Posted on Dec 6, 2011
Connie Mack today announced the initial members of his statewide finance team. Two of them -- Lew Eisenberg and Marty Fiorentino -- had been Adam Hasner supporters.
Ambassador Francis & Kathleen Rooney
Joe & Leslie Fogg
Senate President Mike Haridopolos
Senator John Thrasher
Marty Fiorentino
Brian & Kathryn Ballard
Charlie Dudley
Lew Eisenberg
Jorge Arrizurieta
Dr. Zachariah Zachariah
Bill & Bonny Smith
Carlos & Janelle Beruff
Tramm Hudson
Senator Pat Neal
Robert Watkins
Stephen Diaco
Mark Bostick
Scott Barnhart
Garrett Walton
Connie Mack grabs huge lead in GOP US Senate race
Orlando SentinelBy Scott Powers
Posted on Dec 1, 2011
As shown in previous polls, U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fort Myers, has a huge lead over four candidates who’ve been campaigning much of the year for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, even though he officially entered the race only this week.
A Public Policy Polling survey found Mack with 40 percent support in Florida, more than tripling the second-place sitting candidate, former U.S. senator George LeMieux, who came in with 12 percent.
The poll, released late Wednesday, notes that Mack has a huge advantage of name recognition. He is the son of Connie Mack III, who was Florida’s U.S. Senator for 12 years, until 2001. And he is the great-grandson of the Baseball Hall of Fame team owner and manager Connie Mack.
PPP found Connie Mack IV has 57 percent name recognition among Republican voters in Florida, compared with 29 percent name ID for LeMieux, 18 for Hasner and 17 for Miller and McCalister.
But the poll also notes that among voters who are familiar with the other candidates, Mack still is heavily favored.
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Connie Mack officially enters GOP Senate race
Tampa TribuneBy Staff report
Posted on Nov 28, 2011
U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV made it official Monday night, announcing he would run for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.
"I am going to run for the United States Senate because, frankly, I think the people of Florida have had enough," he said, on Fox News' Sean Hannity show.
Mack called incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson one of President Barack Obama's "go-to" guys in the Senate for programs that he said just bring more government regulation and more taxes.
"Senator Nelson doesn't understand that the people in the state of Florida want somebody who believes in them – not somebody who believes in more government," Mack said. "The American people and the people in the state of Florida have said 'we've had it, enough is enough. We want to go in another direction.' "
Mack's entry into what has been a lackluster race to date to challenge Nelson will likely propel him into the frontrunner's position.
A poll conducted two weeks ago showed Mack starting the race with the support of nearly one-third of registered GOP voters. The poll, by Quinnipiac University, showed Mack at 32 percent, George LeMieux 9 percent, Mike McCalister 6 percent, Adam Hasner and Craig Miller 2 percent each – but a majority still said they were undecided or unwilling to pick one of those five.
Mack, son of popular U.S. Sen. Connie Mack III and grandson of baseball great Connie Mack Sr., may also be Nelson's biggest threat.
Top 10 Reasons to Support Rep. Connie Mack's Penny Plan
FreedomWorksBy Julie Borowski
Posted on Aug 5, 2011
1. It Would Cut Federal Spending By One Percent for Six Consecutive Fiscal Years.
The Penny Plan would require Congress to cut just one penny out of each dollar it spends every year for six years. These gradual cuts over the next six years will balance the federal budget.
2. It Would Cap Overall Spending at 18 Percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Starting in Fiscal Year 2018.
Congressional spending consumes approximately 25 percent of GDP. Federal revenue from taxes over the past 40 years has averaged about 18 percent of GDP, making 18 percent a reasonable limit for spending if Congress is in fact interested in balancing the budget for the long haul.
3. It is a Very Simple Plan.
The Penny Plan is simple and straight to the point. Cutting federal spending by one percent every year for six years is clear enough for everyone to understand. Unlike many Washington schemes, it’s not a complicated proposal.
3. It Would Reduce Overall Federal Spending by $7.5 trillion over the Next Ten Years.
Federal spending has risen to unprecedented levels which threatens our economic freedom. The Penny Plan would significantly cut government spending overtime and set us on the path towards fiscal responsibility.
4. It Would Balance the Federal Budget by 2019.
The current U.S. budget deficit is an unprecedented $1.6 trillion. The Penny Plan would bring the federal budget into balance this decade.
5. It is a Popular Idea with the American People.
The majority of Americans support balancing the federal budget. The Penny Plan which would balance the federal budget by 2019 should gain widespread support.
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Rep. Connie Mack’s penny plan for spending cuts worth another look
The HillBy Lanny Davis
Posted on Aug 4, 2011
Now that the national debt-ceiling deal is done — and liberals like me are unhappy and conservatives deservedly have more to cheer about — Thanksgiving 2011 will be more than about good turkeys.
This is the deadline for the so-called “super” congressional committee of six Democrats and six Republicans from the House and Senate to cut at least $1.2 trillion in the projected budget deficit for the next 10 years.
I favor at least one-half of this $1.2 trillion to be funded by a combination of tax reform — closing tax loopholes — and increases in marginal tax rates of upper-income taxpayers (including me).
But if you are an anti-tax conservative who sincerely believes that you have to cut spending and not “feed the beast” with more revenues, then one approach on spending cuts for the super committee to consider is the simple and creative “Penny Plan” introduced by Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fla.
Mr. Mack’s bill, H.R. 1848, would cut one penny out of every dollar actually spent by the federal government from year to year for the next six years, from FY 2012-FY 2017.
Beginning in FY 2018, there would be a budget cap of 18 percent of GDP (the average federal revenue as a percentage of GDP over the past 30 years). And by FY 2019, America would finally have a balanced budget — that is, assuming revenues naturally increase from the current 14.8 percent of GDP to 18 percent of GDP by 2019, after which the budget would be in surplus.
There is an automatic spending cut “trigger” under Mack’s plan — one he came up with well before the trigger used in the recently passed national debt ceiling bill.
If Congress failed to enact a budget implementing the 1 percent actual spending cut required under Mack’s measure, then there would be automatic, across-the-board actual cuts in all federal programs to meet the 1 percent reduction, and that means all: in defense, Social Security, Medicare, Food Stamps, defense, and national security spending. Everything.
Mack’s plan may seem draconian to some. It would cut the accumulated budget deficits by an estimated $7.5 trillion over 10 years — more than three times the amount achieved by the debt-ceiling deal that Congress approved last Tuesday.
But it actually has a rather modest impact on reducing our total national debt. It won’t be until eight years from now that the budget will be in balance and the national debt starts getting paid down.
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Rep. Mack: 'Penny Plan' Gaining Currency
NewsMaxBy Hiram Reisner
Posted on Aug 4, 2011
Rep. Connie Mack says his plan to cut one penny out of every dollar spent by the federal government works and is quickly gaining GOP support in the House and the Senate. The Florida Republican also told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Wednesday he expects some Democrats to sign on to the legislation.
“Yes, it works,” Mack said. “You know, before we introduced the bill, we make sure that as we went through the bill-writing process, we went and had everybody checked out the numbers. This is a plan that’s simple, as you know — it works — and it solves our problems.”
Mack said support is growing for the One Percent Spending Reduction Act, also known as the “Penny Plan,” in part because it will lead to a balanced budget before the end of the decade.
“It is really simple . . . . for six years, we’re going to cut 1 percent of spending for six years,” he said. “One penny out of every dollar — everybody has had to take more than one penny out of every dollar of their own budget, of their business budget. This isn’t a big lift — and Washington can do it."
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Conservatives Begin to Cozy-Up to Connie Mack's 'Penny Plan'
Sunshine State NewsBy Kevin Derby
Posted on Jul 25, 2011
Florida Congressman Connie Mack’s plan to reduce the size and scope of the federal government and balance the budget by 2019 continued to build momentum Friday, as both a U.S. senator and prominent conservative groups backed his One Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2011.
The proposal, which is being sponsored in the U.S. Senate by Republican Mike Enzi of Wyoming, also has the backing of tea party favorite U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and three of Mack’s Sunshine State Republican colleagues in the House: Jeff Miller, Dennis Ross and Allen West. It would mandate a 1 percent reduction in federal spending from 2012 until 2017, before imposing a spending cap in 2018. That cap would mandate the total cost of the federal government not to exceed 18 percent of the total Gross Domestic Product. Enzi maintains that the proposal, which backers have labeled the Penny Plan, would cut $7.5 trillion from the federal government over the next decade.
On Friday, Enzi’s Republican colleague from Wyoming -- U.S. Sen. John Barrasso -- said he was backing the proposal.
“As more and more senators voice their support of the Penny Plan, it is becoming clear that a core of fiscally conscious conservatives are willing to do what it takes to stop the out-of-control, reckless spending in Washington,” insisted Mack on Friday. “Senator Barrasso knows that we must get serious about our debt crisis, which every day threatens to destabilize our economy even further. When it comes to Washington’s budget woes, voters have repeatedly said ‘enough is enough.’ I am proud that Senator Barrasso has joined us in this fight for a return to fiscal sanity.
“At a time when so many in our nation are hurting financially, the federal government needs to do its part to cut spending,” added Mack. “The Penny Plan is a straightforward answer to our nation’s overspending problem that asks government to eliminate only one penny from every dollar it spends -- a simple solution that all Americans can rally behind.”
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An (un)extreme view of Mack budget plan
Naples NewsBy Brent Batten
Posted on May 19, 2011
"It will be difficult for the free spenders in Washington to characterize the budget plan being forwarded by U.S. Rep. Connie Mack and others as extreme.
They’ll do it, but it will be difficult.
Difficult because the centerpiece of the plan is a 1 percent annual reduction in the federal budget for the next six years.
One percent and extreme just don’t go together. In this recession, anyone’s who’s experienced only a 1 percent reduction in income is doing pretty well. State and local governments have cut spending by similar amounts. Florida’s Legislature just passed a $69.7 billion budget, a cut of 1 percent compared to the year before. Tuesday, Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk announced his budget for the coming fiscal year will be 3 percent below the current year.
The government-must-do-more crowd will decry any real cut as draconian and argue that the only cuts that should be considered are cuts in the rate of growth. If a projected 4 percent increase becomes a 2 percent increase, then a cut of 2 percent has taken place, that thinking holds.
But voters, faced with real cuts in their own finances, aren’t as likely to accept that reasoning as readily as they did in previous years."
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Mack right to embrace a debt plan
Ft. Myers News-PressBy Editorial
Posted on May 12, 2011
Congress needs some kind of budgetary shackles, some mechanism that will force it to meet serious reduced-spending targets.
With the federal deficit headed toward $1.6 trillion this year, and total federal debt on track to pass $20 trillion by 2020, something new and radical is needed.
U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fort Myers, has thrown his weight behind one such mechanism, the One Cent Solution.
The News-Press Opinion page has been urging consideration of such mechanisms, including the One Cent Solution, for several weeks. The One Cent Solution is the brain child of Bruce Cook, a Georgian who has worked in both the public and private sectors.
In brief, the proposal - tracked by Mack's One Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2011 - would lock Congress into overall annual spending cuts of 1 cent per dollar for the next six years. Mack and Cook say that would cut government spending by $7.5 trillion and balance the budget by 2019."
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Guest opinion: Congress must stop fueling president’s liberal spending abyss
Florida News-PressBy Connie Mack
Posted on Apr 22, 2011
To borrow a maritime phrase, the presidency of Barack Obama seems to be caught in “irons;” like a sail flapping in the wind and an inability to steer onto a course of any kind to catch a breeze. This has occurred because this president refuses to change course and is convinced that big liberal government can spend us out of an economic mess.
Many in Washington have followed the president into this liberal abyss, refusing to listen to the voters from last November and their message of “no more” spending and taxation. In the absence of executive leadership, the tough spending decisions have been left to us in Congress.
Last week, a steadfast group of House Republicans took a tough, but important, stand and voted against the budget deal to fund government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2011. I believe that it didn’t cut spending to the point where we can balance the budget, which is necessary to get our nation’s financial house in order and which will reduce the price that our children and grandchildren will have to pay because of our current spending habits.
While Obama and Democrats in Congress continue to borrow and spend, we know that this path cannot be sustained. Instead of ensuring that we spend within our means, Congress simply increases the amount we can borrow — also known as raising the debt limit — every year that we overspend, in order to spend even more.
It’s this type of irresponsible borrowing — without real accountability — that has led to too many financial crises in this country and abroad. Until we break free from these spending chains, America’s economy will continue to be bound either to raise taxes on overburdened families and small businesses or to borrow and weaken the U.S. dollar to pay our nation’s bills.
In fact, just this week, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) put the U.S. government on notice that its credit rating could be downgraded because of the “very large budget deficits and rising government indebtedness and the path to addressing these is not clear to us.” We can no longer afford to ignore the warnings. We must act to balance the federal budget and reduce our nation’s debt.
Republicans have an opportunity right now to take real steps to free ourselves from the chains of uncontrollable spending and massive debt. America is about to hit our current debt limit of $14.3 trillion and which means Congress will be asked to raise this limit once again. What’s the point of having limits on spending and debt if all we’re going to do is ignore these limits?
Last November, Americans sent a message to Congress to break free from the spending habits that have created the largest debt in our nation’s history. Now is the time to demand that we balance the federal budget instead of kicking the can down the road and allowing our country to face even greater threats to our economic freedom. Republicans in Congress must stand united against borrowing any more money to fuel the liberal abyss Obama has created. Enough is enough.
Connie Mack: Will Bill Nelson support extending tax cuts?
Orlando SentinelBy Connie Mack
Posted on Nov 17, 2010
Admitting he was wrong to oppose the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 would be a first step for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson to signal he "got the message" in the recent citizen revolt.
Nelson has an opportunity to make amends and lead the charge for Senate Democrats to extend the Bush-era tax cuts in the lame-duck session of Congress. Studies have shown throughout history that a reduction in taxes actually increases government revenues. The tax relief, therefore, would not affect all of the spending programs Nelson supports; this should be a no-brainer.
While politically, the citizen revolt of Nov. 2 might have benefited Republicans, it was a wakeup call to all lawmakers in Washington to reduce the size of government.
Extending this tax relief, without carve-outs, would be the right first step for members of both parties. Although actions of this measure could be taken up in the House as early as this week, cries for support of these extensions have been silent from Bill Nelson and his liberal colleagues in the Senate.
Also with his support of Obamacare, Nelson managed to increase the burden on small business owners by raising their health-care premiums by as much as 7 percent, according to some studies. This is a huge strain on small businesses like the restaurants and shops that fuel the economies of our tourism industry in Florida.
Those costs will be made up through pay cuts and increased costs on consumer goods. If Bill Nelson does not support extending the Bush-era tax cuts, it is clear that his allegiances lie in growing the size of our government at the expense of the workers who elected him.
Where Nelson, Sen. Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi miss the point time and again is that business relies on financial planning; and the uncertainty they place in the free market is stifling an economy already plagued by high unemployment.
In short, it's the not knowing that is hurting business and freezing new hires, and Bill Nelson could strike a major chord with Florida's major employers if he would lend his support to an extension of this vital tax relief.
Additionally, with Florida's retirement population at more than 3 million, increasing the estate tax to 55percent is not what our retirees want for their families and again lends uncertainty to their financial planning. Nelson's passage of Obamacare does nothing for our retirees except increase consumer costs on a fixed-income community.
Extending the Bush-era tax cuts is the only relief on the table in Congress to protect our retirees. If both houses of Congress do not act on extending this key tax relief soon, our major industries and the livelihoods of all Floridians will be affected for the worse.
Nelson should not be allowed to hide behind procedural maneuverings; or wait for the measure to come to the Senate. Floridians need his answer now, and the people and media must hold him accountable.
His support for the tax extensions would ensure the measures get voted on in the Senate, and Floridians could plan for the future knowing their interests are being represented.
Mack honored by NFIB with ‘Guardian of Small Business’ Award
Cape Coral Daily BreezeBy Staff report
Posted on Oct 5, 2010
Congressman Connie Mack (FL-14) was recently honored by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) with their "Guardian of Small Business" Award for his support of pro-free market policies in the 111th Congress.
The National Federation of Independent Business is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that advocates on behalf of America's millions of small businesses. NFIB based its ranking on seven votes in the House in 2009 and 2010, including votes against ObamaCare and legislation that would stifle free speech by imposing strict campaign disclosure requirements on certain special interest groups.
"Small businesses are the engine of our economy in Southwest Florida and across the state, but have become a target of the Democratic Leadership for more regulations and higher taxes," Mack said. "I'm honored to be recognized by the National Federation of Independent Business with this award, and I'll continue to pursue policies that make it easier for small businesses and not the government to create jobs."
"In the 111th Congress, Representative Connie Mack proved that he is a champion of small business. The Guardian of Small Business Award is a token of the deep appreciation that small business owners have for elected officials who promote and protect their right to own, operate and grow their businesses," said Dan Danner, the president and CEO of NFIB.
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