Charlie Crist

In case you haven't been paying attention, Charlie Crist is running to be the next governor of Florida. I first met him when he was a state Senator, and I was an intern for the senator in the office next door. More recently, I got a chance to speak with him at 2004 inaugural ball. (Before anyone gets riled up about this, I did not buy tickets, or in any way support the inauguration of the current leader. I was simply a girl with a ball gown filling in as a friend's date when his pregnant wife did not feel like attending.)

At the ball, Crist seemed like a nice enough guy. He made a joke about how a screwdriver is an appropriately Floridian drink, what with the orange juice. He even took my business card and sent me a lovely note after our meeting.



But, despite this, if I were still a Florida voter, I don't think I could manage to vote for him. And not just because he's a Republican:

Charlie strongly supports Second Amendment rights and advocates policies that strengthen Florida families, including fighting to uphold Florida's Defense of Marriage Act. He was victorious in defending parental notification rights before the Florida Supreme Court.

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Charlie Crist is the most pro-business Attorney General in Florida's history. He works with businesses to resolve potential disputes before taking legal action.
He believes that government should encourage entrepreneurial spirit, that small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and that government should "get out of the way" of the good corporate citizens who are making Florida a great place to work and live.
Charlie Crist believes that judges should strictly apply the law as it was written, not expand upon it or legislate from the bench. As Governor, he will appoint conservative, not activist, judges to apply the law as written.

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Charlie Crist is a Jeb Bush Republican. He has supported the Governor in each of his three campaigns.
Charlie held hearings in the Senate to investigate the last-minute smear campaigns against Governor Bush in the 1994 elections. His hearings were the sole reason the truth was eventually uncovered.
Charlie, like so many of his generation, was inspired to serve by Ronald Reagan and learned about leadership while working for Senator Connie Mack. He is proud to serve now with his friend, our outstanding Governor Jeb Bush.

Forget about guns, parental notification, "defense of marriage," and strict constructionist judges -- it's the last part that gets me riled up.

Oh, and check out Wonkette for links accusing him of being both a closeted liberal and gay. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)