Charlie and the Tea Factory

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A little more than half a year has passed since Gov. Charlie Crist (R-FL) enjoyed a favorable lead in the senate race amongst his party base. Since the “embrace” his approval rating has steadily declined, cramping his chance of winning his party’s nomination for the U.S. Senate. The “embrace,” which was more of a dejected thank you, was not unique to the Florida governor, in fact all republican governors saddled with state deficits or debt — even former Gov. Palin (R-AK) — shared some sort of an embrace with the stimulus package (they all accepted the funds), except for Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC) and maybe Gov. Perry (R-TX). Yet unique to the Florida governor is the unbalanced criticism that pits Crist as the 60th vote that broke the filibuster on the economic stimulus debate. So what has Crist done to make his party stop producing sweet chocolate and instead bitter tea?

The first crack in the polls came when Crist extended the early voting hours for the 2008 general election, a move notable Republicans saw as a political gift to the democrats, specifically the democratic presidential candidate Barack Hussein Obama. Nevertheless his decision to extend voting hours did not have as much of a negative effect on his approval rating, as his decision to extend the hours did to set an undertone.

A month later, Crist was at odds with the Florida judicial nomination commission concerning the finalists they nominated to replace the retired Fifth District Court of Appeal Judge Robert J. Pleus, saying state judges should reflect the racial, gender and geographic diversity of the people they serve, according to several newspapers. Nevertheless, the concern Crist raised over the racial consistency of the nominees was disregarded by the judicial nomination commission and the same nominees were presented for nomination.

As the judicial diversity debacle was just about subsiding, Crist was criticized by conservatives when he finally selected Judge Perry, a Jeb Bush appointee, in a compromise between black leaders, liberal groups and conservatives. However, the NRA and Florida Family Policy Council, a conservative religious organization, both vehemently backed Judge Lawson and believed Crist should have appointed him because he was the most qualified judge from a conservative standpoint; they viewed Crist’s failure to appoint Judge Lawson as caving to liberal demands.

These occasions brewed distrust amongst the Republican Party dignitaries and high ranking conservatives, yet Crist emerged from the turmoil unscathed in the eyes of the greater public as reflected in an April 2009 Quinnipiac poll, job approval rating of 66 percent. But rising unemployment combined with a long hot summer of town halls and upset Republican Party moguls were about to bring the chocolate factory to a grinding halt – Charlie doesn’t sound so sweet.

The governor’s allegiance was quietly being challenged.

The town halls and the rise of Tea Party occurred simultaneously creating an acrimoniously visceral political environment which managed to demonize the Recovery Act, bank bailouts, government, and President Obama and his “Marxist-Socialist” policies. The tea parties in Florida, already frustrated with those in power, began to coalesce around U.S. senate republican candidate Marco Rubio. Soon concerns surrounding Crist’s judicial appointment, minority sentiments and, in retrospect, the decision to extend voting hours began to circulate and take root – support for Rubio grew.

This was topped-off with the news that soon after the judicial-minority debacle, Crist in February 2009 (black history month), took part in an unholy communion called the “Obama embrace.”

News of the “Obama Embrace” caught fire in the hearts of the grassroots rank and file that summer, placing all of Obama’s negatives right, square on Charlie. The woes of the economy, unemployment, and bailouts were projected onto Charlie with the strength of the embrace itself. The answer to the question, to whom is Crist loyal, was answered with a picture and a caveat conveniently provided by the Rubio campaign titled, “The Embrace.” Yet Crist, still sweet on the tongues of the public, still managed to stay above the brew.

Facilitated by rumor in Tea Party chatter and confirmed by Republican Party dignitaries, Crist’s loyalty would be challenged in the form of a losing question on CNN, “Did you support the stimulus package?”  Damned if he said he did, damned if he said he did not [Pan to picture, “Obama Embrace”]. Answer the question…

We all know what happened from there…And thus the rise of Rubio.

It should be noted that Crist demonstrated his independence from party bigwigs and his ability to compromise and govern in spite of politics. His long record speaks to his republican pragmatism and his ability to make hard choices. It was the establishment that wanted Crist ousted, justly confirmed by the outing of the former Republican Party of Florida Chairman Jim Greer, an avid supporter of Crist and seen as an obstruction to railroading Crist. Therefore, the Tea Party movement is supporting the candidate backed by the establishment essentially negating the fundamental purpose of the grassroots.

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