Katherine Harris

I thought that Alan Keyes run for the Senate in 2004 in Illinois was the most ridiculous ever. Katherine Harris is determined to takeover that title.

Katherine Harris' attempt to boost her campaign with a series of high-profile endorsements wilted Thursday when none of the officials appeared at her campaign rally and one of them said Harris wrongly included him on her list of supporters.

State Sen. Daniel Webster, R-Winter Garden, said he has not endorsed Harris and instead is supporting one of her challengers, Orlando attorney Will McBride. . .

Webster said he had no idea why Harris listed him as one of her supporters. He said he never endorsed her.

Harris insisted that Webster promised to attend her rally Thursday at Orlando Executive Airport.

"They called back twice and said he'd be here," Harris said. "He said he was going to be here on the stage with me today."

Webster's office said he had never confirmed his attendance.

He wasn't the only no-show for Harris' "Soaring for the Senate" rally.

None of the nine officials listed on her event flier appeared, leaving Harris on her own to address a group of about 40 supporters, reporters and campaign-staff members. . .

Harris spoke in an airplane hangar that seemed to highlight the modest size of the crowd. She said a last-minute location change -- required because a tree fell on the hangar where the event was supposed to be held -- kept crowd numbers down.

Airport officials, however, said no hangar had been damaged by a tree and that the rally was in the hangar that had been originally booked. . .

[T]he event underscored Harris' struggle to generate support from GOP leaders and comes a day after Harris removed from her Web site the names of several elected officials she had listed previously as endorsing her.

Earlier this week, U.S. Reps. Mark Foley, Ginny Brown-Waite, Jeff Miller and Cliff Stearns all appeared on Harris' site.

Thursday, they were gone.

A spokesman for Foley said his boss had never endorsed Harris in the primary.

"It was a mistake," Jason Kello said. "It shouldn't have been up there."

Harris has encountered similar problems in the past. A fundraising letter sent in June said she had been formally endorsed by Florida Republican Party Chairwoman Carole Jean Jordan.

Jordan has not endorsed Harris and in May sent Harris a letter suggesting she drop out.

The same Harris mailer said Gov. Jeb Bush has "pledged to back" her campaign, but Bush recruited other candidates and said he does not think she can beat Nelson.

Harris also maintains that Democratic members of Congress from Florida have privately said they want her to unseat Nelson. But several weeks ago, each member of the Democratic delegation told the Sentinel that is not true.

"She's truth-challenged," McBride said this week. "She has problems with the truth."