‘Lonely’ status for candidate Crist stems from governing politics, not people

Updated on Thursday, June 3, 2010 at 11:56AM by Kay B. Day, Editor

By Kay B. Day

Gov. Charlie Crist (I-Fla.) did an interview by phone with The Hill, saying, “When you’re not affiliated with a party, it can be very lonely, particularly initially.”

But if truth were to rear its lovely head, the loneliness might be better attributed to the governor’s various reversals on policy as well as his decision to hang onto campaign funds solicited as a Republican candidate.

Crist said the GOP has been “drifting so far to the right.”  He didn’t feel “comfortable” anymore.

The discomfort was predictable, though not for reasons Crist cited in the interview.

As recently as December, 2009, Gov. Charlie Crist defended former RPOF chairman Jim Greer during an interview with the editorial board of the S. Florida newspaper The Sun-Sentinel.

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Rubio’s position on immigration the same as in March, '09 interview

By Kay B. Day

GOP presumed nominee for the US Senate race in Florida Marco Rubio explained his platform on immigration to Javier Manjarres at The Shark Tank.Candidate for the US Senate in 2010 Marco Rubio responded at length on Tuesday to an impromptu interview with Javier Manjarres who writes the Shark Tank. GOP presumed nominee Rubio expanded earlier comments about what national media call the ‘immigration’ issue and what many on Main Street see as the border security issue. Rubio said his position hasn’t changed. He’s right and The US Report can prove it.

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Crist must summon his inner Democrat at events with Ferre, Meek

By Kay B. Day

Gov. Charlie Crist (I) will have to get in touch with his inner leftwinger when he participates in events that include Democrat candidates for US Senate Maurice Ferre and Rep. Kendrick Meek.

Crist keynotes an event in Kissimmee on Friday that includes Ferre—the Summit on Puerto Rican Affairs. Then on Saturday Crist will speak at the AFL-CIO endorsing convention in Jacksonville where Meek and numerous other Dems will court the union political machine. By necessity the governor must summon his inner Democrat because he will need those donkey votes to stay in the running.

But his candidacy raises a number of questions, among them his continuing as governor.

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Florida GOP women unleash ‘fury’ on Crist

By Kay B. Day

Cindy Graves, President of the Florida Federation of Republican Women, will now lead her organization to support former Speaker of the Florida House Marco Rubio's effort to unseat Gov. Charlie Crist's appointee in the US Senate George LeMieux.In Florida thousands of women belong to local Republican clubs that make up the state organization The Florida Federation of Republican Women. FFRW is led by President Cindy Graves. Meet her once and you will not forget her. For that matter visit any of these clubs and you’ll find a highly informed group of motivated Republicans willing to work hard for their candidates. Graves is informed, dedicated and an organizer extraordinaire. At the moment she is also highly steamed at Gov. Charlie Crist who until Thursday was a Republican.

After Crist jumped ship to run as an independent for the US Senate seat currently occupied by his ally and appointee Sen. George LeMieux (R-Fla.), Graves unloaded him on with an official statement that might turn Crist’s famous smile upside down.

The statement began with, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”

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Putting Florida GOP financial dustup in context

By Kay B. Day

At the moment there’s a big dustup in Florida over spending by the state GOP officials. Former state party chair Jim Greer has been accused of wrongdoing and Gov. Charlie Crist has asked for a federal investigation. At issue is GOP party money, not taxpayer money.

Allegations against Greer are complicated, ranging from the manner in which donor funds were spent to the setup of a shell company by Greer’s executive director. Greer was allegedly majority owner of the fundraising company. And Greer's problems go far beyond tax return issues common in campaigns.

Because there is so much at stake in the 2012 elections—not just for the GOP but for the country as well—the negative attention creates political opportunity. And because media swings left, it's useful to put the whole controversy in context.

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Crist, Rubio and Thorpe heat up GOP battle for US Senate seat

Former Speaker of the Florida House Marco Rubio (right) talks with Aaron Bean (left) in Jacksonville May 14. [photo by Kay B. Day]The race for retiring Republican Mel Martinez’s US Senate seat could not be more complicated. Start with Gov. Charlie Crist. He’s crafted a brand as politico of all persuasions. Shortly after his announcement, Crist picked up widely touted endorsements. At the moment, the Republican Party of Florida website looks like a Crist fan club.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.), chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, endorsed Crist right off the bat. State GOP Party chair Jim Greer basically endorsed him without officially endorsing him. Here’s a summary of the statement Greer gave to Congressional Quarterly: “State Republican Chairman Jim Greer said yesterday that if the state party deems it appropriate to make an endorsement in the Senate primary, it will be for Crist. Greer noted that Crist would be due that deference because he is the sitting governor.”

Before Crist declared his intentions, Dr. Marion Thorpe declared his candidacy for the Senate seat. Former Speaker of the House Marco Rubio also declared before Crist. And therein are the makings of a true political spectacle, because these candidates are charismatic and they are all Republicans.

Ironically, Crist entering the race creates more risk for the GOP. He’d probably win re-election as governor with little trouble.

Florida fireworks begin
Rubio spoke in Jacksonville on Thursday to the Republican Women’s Club of Duval Federated. That influential club is among the constituencies infuriated with the state party at the moment. What set the club off—snap endorsements for candidate Crist in a race where there is no incumbent.

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Rubio didn’t ask committeewoman to leave meeting; says record clear on immigration

(Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)—Former speaker of the Florida House of Representatives Marco Rubio responded to our request for information about GOP committeewoman Lisa Rader being asked to leave an event where he spoke. We wrote about that in our column Mar. 16.

Former speaker of the Florida House Marco Rubio's political plans are the subject of much speculation. [Photo from Marco Rubio website.]At our invitation, Rubio responded, “I do not know Ms. Rader, and was not responsible for asking her to leave. I believe the management of the establishment did, but not because I asked them to.” His assertion corresponds to Rader’s claims on that point. Rubio continued, “My position on immigration is clear and well defined.” Rubio also defined his approach.

The former speaker specifically noted two tenets of his platform: “1. I believe we must improve border security dramatically; 2. I do not support Amnesty or any other effort to legalize the status of people who entered the U.S. illegally or who entered legally and have since overstayed their visa.”

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