Miami lawmaker launches congressional bid

[Freddie Stubbs]

Seeing a chance for his party to pick up a seat in Congress, Democratic state Rep. Luis Garcia launched his campaign Wednesday to challenge U.S. Rep. David Rivera, a Republican.

Garcia, a retired Miami Beach fire chief and former city commissioner, told several dozen supporters at Tamiami Park in West Miami-Dade that he is running to help the middle class in Florida’s 25th Congressional District, where he said he lived for 31 years until 1999.

Garcia spoke from a podium under a festive arch of red, white and blue balloons, but he struck a somber tone during his 20-minute speech — a departure from typical campaign inaugurations.

“This was a successful, middle-class district,” he said. But now, Garcia argued, “that American Dream has disappeared. The American family has been under attack. The middle class has been under attack.”


more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/07/20/2322653/miami-lawmaker-launches-congressional.html