Vern Buchanan vs. Christine Jennings

At first glance, Vern Buchanan looks like -- and I write this with the utmost respect for such characters -- a villain from a Bruce Willis flick. Die Hard, maybe. He's tall and lean, with small, biting eyes, his thin hair combed back. Buchanan carries himself with an enthralling confidence, the way the bad guys do at the beginning of Willis' movies. This is going to work. And you can't fuck with me.

Max Linsky THE LAST BOY SCOUT: Vern Buchanan takes a question from the Young Republican audience at his penthouse fundraiser.

Of course, he was on his home court when I met him. After two weeks of trying to track the candidate down -- get a sense of who he actually is, instead of reading about the secret Ritz deal and how he left the printing company that made him rich -- I'd finally found Buchanan at a Friday evening fundraiser thrown by and for young Republicans in his downtown Sarasota penthouse. It's a dominating place; stepping out on the balcony, you can't help but feel bigtime. The Ringling Causeway stretches out in front of you, Longboat drifts off into the distance to the right, Siesta to the left. Everything is beneath you, below you.

And he doesn't even live there.

A campaign staffer told me it's rare that Buchanan actually sleeps at the place; usually it's just used for functions and parties. This evening it was filled with well-dressed 20- and 30-somethings sipping Coronas, talking capital gains tax and the future of the House. The District 13 race has become one of the hottest in the country -- you might have heard something about a presidential motorcade last week -- and most polls show Jennings with a slight edge, once-unthinkable prospect in the Republican-heavy district. For the 25-year-olds sitting on the balcony, Vern is the man for the job and the issues are clear.

Immigration, for instance.

"No more entrants -- we're full," said Rob when I asked which issues were important to him. "I don't want to pay their hospital bills after they come across the desert."

Max Linsky MYSTERY WOMAN: Christine Jennings listens intently at a Longboat Key Club luncheon.

The estate tax.

"Brutal," said Matt.

What about affordable housing?

"It'd be nice," said Corey. "But there's really nothing you can do about it."

Buchanan isn't quite so sure. "We've gotta have reasonable housing for families; my employees are commuting from North Port," he told me. As for plans to actually create it, though, he said that was "more of a local issue."

Judging from his speech to the young GOPers, Buchanan is sticking to the Republican playbook, focusing on tax cuts and immigration. "We've got to secure the borders, especially for your generation, because it's going to be 100 million [immigrants] soon," he told them. "You won't be able to recognize the place."

With the race so close, Buchanan is pumping in even more of his own cash -- over $4 million thus far -- and pumping up his Republican cred. When I asked about the decision to bring the president -- and his free-falling approval rating -- to town, Buchanan said the choice was a no-brainer. "He helps us energize the base," the candidate said. "We turn out Republicans, we win."

This is going to work.

If it does, Buchanan says he'll only spend a few days a week in Washington. "I want to get back to talk to the people."

That may not be a desire Christine Jennings shares. Her staff continually cancelled on me last week as the candidate was in turn sick, dealing with a family emergency and fundraising in West Palm. From the bit of her I did see, at a Longboat Key Club luncheon, I can tell you this: She's not going to be playing Bruce Willis' nemesis anytime soon. His accountant, perhaps.

My choice: This country is in dire need of new direction. Buchanan may have shorn up his Republican base by bringing Bush to town, but he lost any credibility with those not drinking the Kool-Aid. Christine Jennings is the choice, but with serious reservations about her accessibility once in Washington.

Table of Contents

Elections 2006

• This time It's Personal
• Governor: Charlie Crist vs. Jim Davis
• State CFO: Tom Lee vs. Alex Sink
• U.S. House, D-13: Vern Buchanan vs. Christine Jennings
• Fla. House, D-70: David Shapiro vs. Doug Holder
• Fla. House, D-69: Laura Benson vs. Keith Fitzgerald