Miami Herald: "Katherine Harris can boast successes despite light record"

Posted on Mon, Jan. 02, 2006

U.S. SENATE RACE

Katherine Harris can boast successes despite light record

BY LESLEY CLARK lclark@MiamiHerald.com

U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris arrived in Washington, D.C., as a Republican celebrity, renowned for her role as Florida's secretary of state during the contested 2000 presidential election.

Harris, 48, whose Senate campaign got off to a rocky start when GOP leaders made no secret of their belief she's too divisive to oust Nelson, insists voters will embrace her as they get to know her. And Harris has had her victories -- most significantly, her American Dream Downpayment Act, which offers low-income families help with buying homes, was signed into law by President Bush in 2003 when Harris was still a freshman. ''They told me it would take six years to happen,'' Harris said.

And last summer, Harris was tapped as a GOP whip, wrangling votes for the party during a frenzied push for the Central American Free Trade Agreement. It passed, if by only two votes and aided with aggressive campaigning by President Bush. ''It was a hugely important deal for all parties,'' said Harris, a member of the House International Relations Committee and a staunch supporter of free trade. CAFTA backers said Harris worked the issue with determination. ''She was always willing to meet and strategize and support those who were working in favor of CAFTA,'' said Ana Navarro, a Republican strategist who helped the lobbying efforts of the government of El Salvador.

''No matter what move she'd make, she'd attract attention,'' said Joel Wood, senior vice president of government affairs for the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers and familiar with Harris' work on the House Financial Services Committee. ``But Katherine's set herself apart as a team player. She's made herself consequential in a short amount of time.''

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/13532202.htm

illegitimate "win" in Florida 2000 is now the anti-bush* candidate for 2006. How quickly the worm turns...

while being light in the head.