Dems hope to win Rubio's Senate seat by sidelining liberal

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Democrats see a chance to pick up the Florida Senate seat that Republican Marco Rubio is vacating - but only if U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson stays out of the race.

Democratic leaders fear Grayson could spoil the party's chances for capturing the seat if he challenges fellow Democratic Congressman Patrick Murphy in the primary.

Grayson is known for using fiery rhetoric to knock down opponents. He made headlines for describing the GOP health plan as "don't get sick, and if you do get sick, die quickly." He called a Republic opponent "Taliban Dan" in order to paint him as a religious extremist.

Democratic leaders see Grayson as too liberal and too inflammatory to win a general election. They have coalesced around Murphy and don't want him bloodied in a contentious primary.

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