Conservatives duke it out for congressional seat

By DARA KAM
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

PENSACOLA, August 15, 2016 .......... At a recent candidate forum in the Panhandle, the man who elicited one of the biggest rounds of applause never held a microphone.

It was his blue "Hillary for Prison 2016" shirt that made the attendee one of the most popular people at the Gulf Breeze community center.

The anti-Hillary Clinton statement reflected the sentiments of the Republican congressional hopefuls vying for a rare open seat in the Northwest corner of the state.

Home to a large number of military installations and retired veterans, Congressional District 1 is one of the most conservative congressional districts in the country.

And the rare open seat, made possible by the decision of U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller --- who's held the post for 15 years --- not to seek re-election, has drawn a crowded slate of GOP candidates united on almost all fronts except who should be the fifth member of Congress in more than six decades to represent the region.

State Rep. Matt Gaetz, State Sen. Greg Evers, Cris Dosev, Brian Frazier, James Zumwalt, Rebekah Johansen Bydlak, Mark Wichern and Gary Fairchild --- a candidate who hasn't appeared at any of the numerous forums or done any visible campaigning --- are competing to replace Miller in a primary election whose victor is almost certain to go to Washington.

As with many other primaries in heavily conservative areas, the congressional race has been a run to the right.

Gaetz, a Fort Walton Beach lawyer whose father, Don, is a former Senate president, released an ad pledging to "kill Muslim terrorists."

Evers, a farmer from Baker, created a firestorm when he launched a contest to give away a gun similar to one used in the attack at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, just a week after the worst mass shooting in the nation's history occurred.

Frazier, Dosev and Zumwalt --- a former Miller aide whose grandfather was an admiral who oversaw the Navy during the Vietnam war --- contend that their military expertise makes them the best fit to represent the region, home to seven military installations and numerous retired vets.

In the weeks leading up to the Aug. 30 primary, the race has become something of a referendum on Matt Gaetz, who has eclipsed his opponents in fundraising and has broad name recognition. The other candidates are attacking Gaetz, including hammering him on allegations of campaign-finance wrongdoing.

The allegations center on the activities of state and political committees that can be crucial in lending support to candidates.Three days before getting into the congressional race in March, Gaetz stepped down from two state political committees, the Economic Freedom Foundation and the Free Enterprise Fund, he had created two years earlier. Amanda Clark, the wife of his father's former longtime aide, Chris Clark, took over as chairwoman of the committees.

The committees were shut down in May, and the funds --- about $370,000 --- were transferred in June to North Florida Neighbors, an already-existing federal campaign committee known as a "super PAC." North Florida Neighbors, which announced in May that it supported Gaetz, has spent about $300,000 since June supporting his candidacy. The PAC is also backing Neal Dunn, who is running in nearby Congressional District 2.

Super PACs are not allowed to coordinate with individual campaigns. While state committees are allowed to accept contributions from corporations, federal committees are restricted to accepting money from individuals. Funds in Gaetz's old committees included contributions from corporations.

Dosev, a real estate developer and Marine Corps veteran who's contributed $110,000 to his own campaign, is blasting Gaetz on the issue.

"This is the kind of thing people are sick and tired of in politics. And they're fed up with it," Dosev, 54, said in a recent telephone interview.

Gaetz denied any coordination with the super PAC, saying he did just what the law required by resigning from the old committees prior to entering the race.

"My understanding of the law is that (federal candidates) can have no relationship with any entity that solicits corporate funds. I terminated that relationship when the law required. Anything that happened subsequent to my termination of that relationship has occurred by the hands of others," Gaetz said during an interview at a Starbucks in Crestview prior to the Gulf Breeze forum on Tuesday.

Dosev has also run a television ad featuring Gaetz's 2008 mug shot from a DUI arrest. The charges were later dismissed. The two candidates got into a heated argument at a candidate forum late last month about Gaetz's driving record --- he received more than a dozen traffic violations.

Evers, 61, painted Gaetz as "person who doesn't have to follow the rules other people have to follow."

Gaetz earned a reputation as a firebrand in the GOP-dominated Legislature, where he played a major role in the passage of a law legalizing non-euphoric marijuana two years ago. But he also was criticized privately by some who credited the younger Gaetz's success to the influence of his father, who served as Senate president from 2012 to 2014.

Others in the race question whether Gaetz, 34, is too inexperienced for the post.

But over coffee in Crestview, Gaetz said he represents a new brand that is crucial for the GOP's success.

"The Republican Party needs young, earnest voices," he said. "(Voters) want nothing more than to see fired-up young conservatives speaking up for conservative principles."

Evers, who gave out his cell phone number to the audience at the forum Tuesday, pledges to bring "farmer values" --- "someone who works hard, has integrity, says what he'll do, and does what he says" --- to the nation's Capitol.

"Do folks want a folksy person they can count on or another slick politician?" he said, referring to Gaetz, after the event. "It's up to the people."

Zumwalt, a former Navy bomb-squad commander who served two tours in Iraq, is capitalizing on his military career and time in Washington as Miller's adviser while at the same time criticizing Congress.

"I'm the only one up here who's fought ISIS face to face," Zumwalt told the audience at the forum. "The biggest threat is not in the Middle East. It's in Washington."

Frazier, a retired Navy captain who lives in Gulf Breeze, entered the race before Miller announced he was not seeking re-election in March. He contends he's the only candidate who has the national security expertise for the job.

"If Jeff Miller hadn't dropped out, we'd be the only two candidates in the race," Frazier told the audience. "We need a veteran to take care of veterans."