Quick update on Joe Biden’s Staffers Held Pool Reporter in Closet at High-Powered Florida Democrat Fundraiser. Here are both of Scott Powers’ posts from March 23, 2011:

Waiting for Joe and Bill

Not looking for sympathy here, but the life of a political reporter isn’t all champagne and canapes. Consider our man Scott Powers, who was sent over to the Winter Park home of Alan Ginsburg this morning as the designated “pool reporter” — aka scribe — for the fundraiser where Vice President Joe Biden is appearing on behalf of U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.

Turns out the veep hadn’t arrived, but about 150 guests (minimum donation $500) were already in the house. So to prevent Scott from mingling with the crowd, a member of Biden’s advance team consigned him to a storage closet — and then stood outside the door to make sure he didn’t walk out without permission.

Scott e-mailed us this photo from his temporary prison. “Sounds like a nice party,” he wrote.

Veep Biden calls for investment, Nelson’s re-election, at Winter Park fundraiser

Now that I’ve come out of the closet — literally, not figuratively — here’s my full pool report on Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Winter Park to raise money for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Florida:

America must invest in innovation and infrastructure such as the high-speed rail project offered to Florida but rejected by Republican Gov. Rick Scott, Vice President Joe Biden said at a lunchtime fundraiser today for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson’s 2012 re-election campaign.

“No business is going to build its own ports, its own runways, its own broadband networks. None are able to that,” Biden said. “The government provides seed money. That’s how we built the transcontinental railroad. That’s how we got the Internet.

“That’s why Sen. Nelson and I both thought the high-speed rail made sense.”

Scott turned down $2.4 billion in federal funds despite assurances by backers that the train would cost the state of Florida nothing to build or operate for 20 years. The governor, though, said he was convinced the project would lose money and become a state liability.

Biden said the administration’s strategy is to address the national debt long-term, and said Republicans are trying to address it short-term, which he said means eliminating investment in growth. In particular he called in investment in education and technology.

“Does anybody think we can lead the world if we don’t pioneer the next generation of communication technology. IF we don’t invest in research and development in the private sector by encouraging it in the public sector?” Biden said. “This is about more than just jobs. This is our future.”

An estimated 150 people donated a minimum of $500 apiece to hear Biden at the Winter Park home of developer and philanthropist Alan Ginsburg, in a sprawling estate on the south shore of Lake Maitland.

In Ginsburg’s home theater room, against a backdrop of blue curtains and Florida and American flags, Biden gave a 25-minute speech, mostly praising Nelson and the accomplishments of President Barack Obama.

He said he came to raise money for Nelson not just because they are friends and long time political allies but also because, “as goes Bill Nelson in Florida, go Barack Obama and Joe Biden in Florida.”

The vice president has had his hands full lately as the lead White House lead negotiator in the talks with Congress over passage of a new spending bill, which has seen House Republicans press for $60 billion in cuts while Democrats have offered about $10 billion. Meanwhile, Obama has been in South America this past week while the U.S. Joined Great Britain and France in attacking Libya’s air defenses and creating a no-fly zone to protect Libyan rebels.

Biden never mentioned Libya and only talked about the budget fight in broad terms.

Biden said the Obama administration took over the country at a time when the world is changing dramatically, economically and geo-politically. It was the closest he came to discussing Libya, when he noted the sweeping regime changes and protests spreading through the Middle East.

“The world is changing with or without us,” he said.

Biden blasted nay-sayers who claim China’s economy is outpacing the United States.

“I want China to do well. The simple truth is our economy is two and a half times as big as China’s,” he said.

Under the theme of changing strategies for a changing world, Biden declared the federal bail-outs of American banks and auto companies as successes, and predicted faster economic growth.

He said Obama is responding to world geo-political changes the same way.

“Today, because of Barack Obama, we’ve regained respect in the world,” Biden said.

He declared improving situations in Iraq and Afghanistan and predicted good outcomes.

He called Nelson a principled man who brings civility to the Senate.

“He’s a truly, truly decent guy who has the absolute respect of his colleagues, and I’ve heard that from both sides of the aisle,” Biden said.

Biden took no questions. Press coverage was limited to a single pool reporter, who was allowed to listen to the remarks but not given an opportunity to talk with anyone at the event. Immediately after his speech, Biden left with Nelson for an evening fundraiser in Tampa.

In his own brief remarks, Nelson also raised the issue of high-speed rail, which finally closed last week although Nelson attempted several strategies to convince Scott to change his mind.

“If I had to stand up and try to find a way around the governor still keep high-speed rail going then I was going to do it,” he said. “You give me the privilege of standing up and fighting for Florida and fighting for you.”

Biden initially planned a brief “community” stop at an unannounced Orlando location but that appearance was canceled Tuesday night.

The Ginsburgs have long supported Nelson, though their political contributions have been scattered across the spectrum, donating thousands of dollars over the past decade to both Democrats and Republicans, as well as $10,000 last year to the Tea Party of Florida, a group largely disavowed by many Tea Party activists.

Their charitable donations have been more dramatic. In 2007 the family gave $20 million to Florida Hospital for its new cardiovascular institute, now located in a new building named the Ginsburg Tower. The family also has donated millions of dollars to Rollins College and the University of Central Florida, including $4 million to the university’s new medical school.

In introducing Nelson, Ginsburg declared the responsibility of big campaign donors to step up early in that and other races.

“We have a job to do,” Ginsburg said. “If we’re happy with the way things are going and we want to see more changes and more improvements, it’s our job as Americans to try to do what we can to be heard and to help elect people who speak for us.”

The 150 or so guests snacked on caprese crostini with oven-dried mozzarella and basil, rosemary flatbread with grapes honey and gorgonzola cheese and bacon deviled eggs, before being served a lunch of grilled chicken Caesar and garden vegetable wraps, croissants with roasted turkey breast and ham and Swiss cheese on ciabatta rolls.

Posted by WM on Sunday, March 27, 2011, at 12:25 pm | Tweet

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