Charlie Crist

The Quandary For Florida Democrats And Progressives: Charlie Crist Or Kendrick Meek?

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Two of the three candidates for the US Senate seat in Florida this November appeared on CNN this morning, and in so doing, they demonstrated the quandary faced by Florida Democrats, as well as progressives and liberals!

Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who was a Republican until he broke with the party and announced his candidacy as an Independent; and South Florida Congressman Kendrick Meek, who surprised many with his overwhelming victory over Jeff Greene, a billionaire who spent many millions to try and take the Democratic Senate nomination away from him, both were interviewed by Ed Henry!

Based on polls, Meek is way behind both Crist and Republican nominee Marco Rubio, the former State House Speaker in Florida! Meek gains only about 16 percent of the vote, while Crist and Rubio keep switching the leadership in the race!

Remembering that Florida tends to be a Republican state in the past 15 years, but that Barack Obama won the state in the electoral vote two years ago, the situation faced by those voters and citizens who are not favorable toward conservatives and Republicans, and therefore would not support Rubio, is who do they support financially and vote for in November?

Crist disappointed many Democrats and progressives and liberals as he repudiated the Obama Health Care plan although he says he would work to change it in the Senate; as he refused to back gay marriage rights; as he refused to say how he feels about Sarah Palin, who he supported strongly when she ran for Vice President in 2008; and most importantly, when he refused to say if he would back the Democrats or the Republicans for Senate organization in 2011 if he wins the seat–a fact that his vote COULD decide whether Harry Reid or Mitch McConnell would be Senate Majority Leader next year! 🙁 Instead, he said that he would do what was good for the people of Florida, refusing to commit himself!

It is obvious that Crist wants to keep his options open, but that is not encouraging to Democrats and progressives and liberals who have to decide if it is worth it to support him, or go over to Meek’s camp, despite his apparently small chance, at least at this point, of being competitive in the race!

As Meek pointed out in his interview with Ed Henry, he had overcome a billionaire spending millions of his personal fortune, and that he is the only TRUE Democrat in the race!

So the Florida Senate race is a major problem, particularly for those who want to assure that Marco Rubio does not take over the seat, with what would seem like a likely victory for the Tea Party, and the ultimate advancement of Rubio to a presidential run at some point in the future!

The Power Of Personal Fortune In Florida Politics: Yes For The Republicans, No For The Democrats!

Ronald 1 Comment

Florida has just seen what everyone should have realized all along! 🙁

The Republican Party is beholden to big money, while the Democrats reject it! The Republicans have just nominated a crooked health care executive, Rick Scott,who has no shame, and no limit on personal fortune investment and self aggrandizement, having spent $50 million to win the nomination for Governor!

Meanwhile, billionaire Jeff Greene, who spent $14 million of his own fortune to compete against Kendrick Meek for the Democratic Senate nomination, lost by 25 percentage points, a whopping defeat!

The concept that a crooked, arrogant health care executive who was involved in Medicare fraud, is now the Republican nominee for Governor of the fourth largest state is an absolute outrage! The idea that a man who basically has “bought” the nomination by dividing and splitting the party he wishes to run, and will find it difficult to unite the GOP for the fall election, due to such bitter feelings by party leaders toward him, is a welcome sign for Democratic nominee, Alex Sink, the state’s Chief Financial Officer!

Kendrick Meek will become the only African American nominee for the US Senate, and made a great comeback, despite the heavy spending by an arrogant, corrupt stock market manipulator, Jeff Greene, and it gives Democrats hope that the voters rejected someone trying to buy the job!

The Florida results are a sign of the battles raging across the country in November, a clear cut choice between a candidate for Governor (Rick Scott) who is strongly anti abortion and in favor of bringing the Arizona immigration bill to Florida, against a Democrat (Alex Sink) who is a uniting and healing force for the Democrats, and gives them a real chance to win the Governorship, due to the split in the GOP and the horrific background of Rick Scott!

Meanwhile, the three way race of Kendrick Meek-Marco Rubio-Charlie Crist for the Senate will be one of the most watched races, with Crist in the lead for now! The question will be whether Meek can be a serious challenger and hurt Crist, or whether Crist will win many Democratic votes and be able to overcome conservative Marco Rubio!

Charlie Crist Abandoned By Two He Promoted To Their Public Positions! :(

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Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who is running as an Independent for the Senate this fall, is learning rapidly what it is to be abandoned by two people that he promoted to their public positions, and it does not make either of these individuals look very appreciative! 🙁

First, he was abandoned by George LeMieux, who he appointed to replace Senator Mel Martinez almost a year ago, to fill the remaining 16 months of that term, but who chose to endorse Marco Rubio for the Senate! Now it is rumored that LeMieux plans to challenge Democratic Senator Bill Nelson for his reelection contest in 2012, although the appointed Senator has shown no statesmanship or principle at all, and is obviously a traitor as well! 🙁

Now, the news comes that Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp, who was an obscure state senator when Crist picked him to be his running mate in 2006, is also abandoning his boss, and backing Marco Rubio for the Senate! Kottkamp was a nonentity as Lieutenant Governor, except for the news that he was very loose in his use of an expense account to travel, at the expense of taxpayers! In other words, he was as irresponsible in the use of public money as Marco Rubio was while Speaker of the state House! 🙁

Both LeMieux and Kottkamp will go down as traitors to Crist, who made them what they became, and with Crist ahead in the polls for the Senate race, what they are trying to prevent, his victory for the Senate seat, will hopefully be a failure!

And then when either one goes for higher office, such as LeMieux for Nelson’s Senate seat, it would be appropriate for Crist to support Nelson based on record, but also based on incompetence that LeMieux has demonstrated in his short time in the US Senate, plus disloyalty! 🙁

Charlie Crist: Possibly The Most Important US Senator Next January?

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Governor Charlie Crist of Florida continues to lead public opinion polls over Marco Rubio, since he left the Republican Party and started an Independent race for Senator!

Crist is gaining a large portion of Independents, as well as Democrats, who are not thrilled by either Congressman Kendrick Meek , or his primary opponent, billionaire real estate investor Jeff Greene!

Crist could become the third Independent Senator next January as a result, joining Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, both of whom ally with the Democratic caucus and often vote with the party!

The question that arises is what Crist would do if he won the Senate seat, but it seems likely that he would ally with the Democrats as an Independent, similar to Lieberman and Sanders!

This issue could be more than just interesting; it could be decisive in organizing the Senate if the Republicans, somehow, manage to gain eight seats, and Crist joins the Democratic caucus, creating a 51-49 Democratic Senate!

Of course, if the Senate was evenly divided, Joe Biden could organize the Senate by his tie breaking vote! But a nine seat gain could also be resolved without Biden, if Crist declared he was in the Democratic caucus!

So Charlie Crist could be the man of the hour and the year, and in some ways, become the most important US Senator next January!

I am sure the thought must please him greatly, particularly after the collapse of his GOP support, which led to his Independent candidacy in the first place! 🙂

The Growing Impact Of Florida As A Microcosm Of The American Political Scene For 2010!

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Chuck Todd on MSNBC this morning referred to the state of Florida as a microcosm of the American political scene for 2010!

The Florida political scene includes the role of independent candidacies (Governor Charlie Crist); the impact of “outsiders” becoming factors (Rick Scott and Jeff Greene); the battle within the major party structures (Bill McCollum vs. Rick Scott in the Republican party and Kendrick Meek vs. Jeff Greene in the Democratic Party); the impact of the Tea Party Movement (Marco Rubio); the effects of the Great Recession (mortgage foreclosures and effects of the BP Oil Spill on the economy); and the constant change in the Florida electorate due to immigration and population growth and migration!

As the late Tim Russert once said, Florida has become the center of American politics in so many ways, as it has become the fourth largest state, on its way to number three, although delayed a bit by the Great Recession in its population boom!

So the primaries on August 24 and the elections on November 2 will be closely watched as barometers of the American political future in so many ways!

Democrats Shifting Toward Charlie Crist Due To Kendrick Meek-Jeff Greene Primary Battle!

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It is amazing how Charlie Crist seems to be a “cat with nine lives!” 🙂

Two years ago, Crist was seen as being on the short list for Vice Presidential running mate for Senator John McCain!

His ratings as Florida Governor were very high, and he was hailed as one of the best governors in the nation!

Then, Crist decided not to run for a second term as Governor, and instead to cast his future in running to replace retiring Senator Mel Martinez. But meanwhile, he appointed a close friend and supporter, George LeMieux, to finish up the 16 months of the unexpired term.

But then, former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio challenged Crist for the GOP nomination, and gained the backing of the Tea Party Movement, and suddenly surged ahead of Crist in public opinion polls in an unprecedented way!

So Crist was faced with the humiliation that he was likely to lose the Senate Republican nomination, and many Republicans endorsed Rubio, including John McCain and Crist’s appointee, LeMieux!

As a result, Crist bolted the Republican party at the end of April, declaring an Independent race. Since then, he has vetoed two bills that have gained him major kudos from Independents and Democrats, one on teacher tenure and the other on abortion restrictions!

Meanwhile, the supposed Democratic nominee for the Senate, Congressman Kendrick Meek, suddenly had a major challenge from a billionaire named Jeff Greene, who came out of “nowhere” and has become a real threat to Meek and the party, which has no interest in backing a man who benefited big time from the housing collapse, and has been associated with controversial people, including Heidi Fleiss and Mike Tyson! 🙁

The thought that an extremely wealthy person with no political experience, but with an image of being a manipulator on Wall Street, being the Democratic nominee, has turned off many Democrats who are ready to jump to support of Crist, some openly, some behind the scenes!

In recent polls, Crist leads Rubio, with Meek way behind, and with Jeff Greene the “menace” in the background. Crist is looking more and more appealing, and it seems clear that IF Crist were to win the Senate seat, he would fit a role similar to Joe Lieberman, as an Independent who would ally with the Democrats.

Crist’s moderate views are becoming more liberal, and he is a very appealing candidate to many Democrats, so to read him out as having a chance to be the next Senator from Florida is NOT a wise gamble!

It seems more and more likely that Charlie Crist may be the only way to prevent Marco Rubio and his Tea Party Movement, and right wing conservative views from representing Florida in the US Senate!

Florida Governor Charlie Crist Defies His Former GOP Colleagues A Second Time!

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Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who left the Republican Party more than a month ago, and is running for the US Senate as an Independent, took one last swipe at his former colleagues in the extremely conservative GOP legislature yesterday, when he vetoed an abortion bill that would have mandated that all women wanting an abortion must pay and go through an ultra sound test, and see and hear the results, unless they signed a refusal form after paying and going through the procedure.

The only women who would have been able to avoid the procedure would be those who could prove rape, incest, human trafficking, or domestic violence.

The bill would also have banned abortion coverage from health insurance plans in any way supported by taxpayer funding.

Also, it would have been legally easier for Attorney General Bill McCollum, who is running for the GOP nomination for governor, to pursue his plan to sue President Obama over the new Health Care Reform plan passed by Congress in April.

Crist received more emails supporting the bill than opposing the bill, so he went against that trend, but at the same time, he probably has gained greater support from women, Democrats, and Independents, as he battles in the three way race shaping up this fall for the US Senate.

Crist had earlier angered Republicans when he vetoed the proposed teacher tenure bill back in April!

The ultrasound abortion bill will come up in the Florida legislature next year with a new governor, and if either Rick Scott or Bill McCollum is elected, it will certainly be signed into law. If Democratic nominee Alex Sink, however, is elected, she would clearly veto the legislation as Charlie Crist has done!

Charlie Crist’s Major Problem As An Independent Candidate For The Senate

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Now that Charlie Crist, Florida’s Republican Governor, has declared as an Independent candidate in this year’s Senate race, he faces a major problem!

Unfortunately, it will take major efforts and commitment by Florida voters who wish to vote for him on the November ballot, as his name will be at the bottom or near bottom of all the candidates on the list, the usual place for an independent candidate with no party line!

Since there will be minor parties listed along with Republican nominee Marco Rubio and Democratic nominee Kendrick Meek, there will be growing concern that many voters might be confused by not finding Crist’s name right below them, or even near them on the voting cards!

Will Crist, who is certainly well known statewide, be able to motivate enough Floridians to go out of their way, search for his name, and actually vote for him? Will Crist be able to gain enough of a share of Republican voters? Will Democrats be willing to abandon their candidate, a Congressman in many ways a version of Barack Obama when he ran for the Illinois Senate seat in 2004, all because Crist vetoed a teacher bill that, therefore, preserved tenure and security for educators in his state, people who often would vote for Democrats? Will moderates and independent registered voters come over to Crist in large enough numbers to make him the winner with only 34-37 percent of the state’s total vote?

Finally, will Crist be able to raise enough money as an Independent to run a media campaign, so urgent in a state with so many media markets, and such a wide variety in voter characteristics in north Florida and the Panhandle; Central Florida and the I-4 corridor from Tampa and St. Petersburg to Orlando; and in the voter rich areas of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade Counties in South Florida?

Also, with Florida still in many ways a “Southern” and conservative state despite its large percentage of people who have migrated from the North and from Cuba, will it be willing to elect an African American senator in Kendrick Meek, or a Cuban American senator in Marco Rubio, when they have a chance to support a moderate, white “Anglo” Governor, who was very popular until recently?

It is true that Senator Mel Martinez, who resigned after four and a half years in office in the fall of 2009, was Cuban American, but he only had to deal with a white Anglo woman Democrat as his opponent! With Crist in the race, the whole dynamics of the race changes dramatically!

But again, will enough citizens be willing and able to look hard for Crist’s name near the bottom of the ballots? That is still the leading question of this race, above all others!

John McCain: Sarah Palin, Oil Drilling, Illegal Immigration, And Charlie Crist!

Ronald 3 Comments

Senator John McCain of Arizona has really lost ALL credibility on anything he has said or done since the beginning of his presidential campaign in 2008!

When Obama was inaugurated, McCain promised cooperation with the new President, but has proceeded to be totally destructive of unity, and demonstrated absolutely no sense of principle!

It was his independence and principled stands that made McCain so appealing to many liberals and progressives during the Bush Administration!

But then he selected Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his running mate during his Presidential campaign, and unleashed this unqualified woman on this nation, and we cannot rid ourselves of her presence on our political scene! Will we ever be able to forgive McCain for this? 🙁

Then he backed oil drilling during his campaign, promoting “Drill, Baby, Drill”, after years of advocating environmentalism and being against off shore oil drilling in the Gulf states region. Now in the midst of the Gulf Oil disaster, he looks totally terrible!

McCain promoted a reasonable immigration bill, also backed by Ted Kennedy and President Bush, but now he has backed the discriminatory, unconstitutional Arizona law, in a desperate attempt to save his seat in the Senate!

McCain has also showed no loyalty to his “friends” who helped to make him the GOP nominee for President in 2008, specifically Florida Governor Charlie Crist. Without Crist”s support, it is likely that Mitt Romney would have won Florida, and might have been the Republican choice for the Presidency in 2008.

One wonders how John McCain can sleep at night, having given us the “gift” of Sarah Palin, abandoned his views on oil drilling and illegal immigration, and betraying Charlie Crist! All of this makes him look much worse in history, and it would be very appropriate if his actions lead to his defeat for another Senate term.

John McCain once was a “Profile in Courage”, but NO MORE! 🙁

“Appointed” Florida Senator George LeMieux: A Traitor To Charlie Crist!

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In an unbelievable move, “appointed” Florida Senator George LeMieux, who has proved to be a total mediocrity in the Senate, with no mind of his own, has repudiated Governor Charlie Crist, who appointed him to fill out the 16 months left in the term of Senator Mel Martinez, who resigned in September 2009.

Can you imagine that your good friend, who you worked for and made you what you are, decides to repudiate you and back the party over friendship? Is that a man of principle or of opportunism? 🙁 What it comes down to is that George LeMieux is “Benedict Arnold”! 🙁

Supposedly, LeMieux understood that he was simply filling a seat temporarily, and had no ambition to seek the Senate seat himself, and that is why Crist appointed him!

But now there are rumors that LeMieux may suddenly have interest in running for the Senate himself against Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in 2012, and obviously, if that is his ambition, he cannot afford to antagonize the GOP establishment in his state if he wishes to have their backing in the future.

So, in other words, throw your friend, who gave you the opportunity for what you are, under the bus! To hell with friendship, principle and decency! 🙁

Senator LeMieux has been a total disgrace to the state, and he should be condemned for his reprehensible behavior!

All that this does, as well as all the other Republicans statewide and nationally who have repudiated Crist, is to make Crist look ever better to many independents, moderates, and even Democrats, who admire Crist as a man who speaks his mind and is not tied to a party line!

With his announcement of independent candidacy for the Senate seat in Florida, Crist allows himself, if he is elected, the opportunity to be a moderate to progressive voice, who might very well join the Democratic caucus if he wins the seat!

Do not count Charlie Crist out, as many are, as he has an excellent opportunity to win the seat with as little as 34-37 percent of the vote!

The Florida race becomes the most interesting of numerous Senate races in the upcoming midterm elections of 2010!