Florida’s top Democrats gave Charlie Crist, once the lead partisan attack dog against the late Governor Lawton Chiles a welcome Saturday night befitting of a conquering hero. Crist was the celebrity who stole the show at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner by most accounts. But for a party who seeks to be values based, this is a very disturbing development, one which must be met head on by activists and those concerned about the soul of the party being ripped away.
The former Governor was walked around the dinner by Steve Schale the Democratic consultant extraordinaire who brilliantly led President Obama to Florida victory in 2008. Ironically enough during that campaign Charlie Crist, then Florida’s Republican Governor strongly implied Governor Sarah Palin was more ready to be President than Senator Obama was.
Democratic donors and insiders from across the state cued up to shake hands with Crist and snap photographs. No question that inside the Westin Diplomat, the former Governor was the star of the show. While the institutional memory of some in the room may not be that long , for others they simply have chosen to forget the past and many years of history where Crist served a first a partisan pit-bull in the State Senate and then as a pandering ambitious Republican officeholder whose policy positions regularly changed based on public opinion and the mood of those around him.
Before the J-J Dinner however, Crist was met with protesters who find issue with the former Governor’s long record of support for the positions of the National Rifle Association. While many activists on the grassroots level remain skeptical of a potential Crist candidacy, it seems the vast majority of party insiders have not only accepted the inevitability but seem to be encouraging it.
But given that the Democrats have lost 13 of the last 14 races for Governor and statewide cabinet, many activists have lost faith in the plotting of party insiders. Crist has work to do to mend fences with activists, but the reality may be that he is not interested in doing so. He will assume, perhaps wrongly that disdain for Governor Rick Scott will fuel turnout among the base in November 2014.
From speaking with Republican friends of mine the past few days, many in the party fear facing Alex Sink in the 2014 election. The comparison between Sink’s 2010 near-miss and Jeb Bush’s 1994 near-miss has been made as has Sink’s strong economic and business credentials at a time when Rick Scott’s economic record is mixed. Most Republicans I speak to hope Charlie Crist is the nominee because they feel he will excite the GOP base more than he does the Democratic base, erasing any lingering issues Republican activists have with Governor Rick Scott. They also feel Crist’s record as Governor including double-digit unemployment is an easy campaign issue to sell voters on.
Regarding Senator Nan Rich, the Republicans I speak to do not expect her to be the nominee but it has been mentioned to me that if she were nominated she could excite the southeast Florida base of the party enough to where a few Republican held legislative seats south of Lake Okeechobee could be in play.
Senator Rich continues to build a strong activist core to her campaign and as that infrastructure continues to build she becomes more and more formidable in a potential primary. While an entry by Alex Sink to the race would probably diminish any opportunity Rich has of being nominated, if Sink does not run and lingering doubts about Crist persist on the grassroots level, the primary could be quite competitive.
Governor Crist is off to a great start with Democratic insiders. Now the key will be what role if any will activists play in the nominating process. Do party insiders, whose track record of failure has been demonstrated clearly time and again get to anoint a nominee or will the grassroots have a say in the process? That is the big question going forward.
The Florida Squeeze 
Not sure about this. Crist was welcomed and supported, but he was not the superstar that Mayor Julian Castro was. Crist does seem to have the top Party support, but many activists do remember who and what Crist was. Unfortunately, it’s a mixed bag. Some activists are acquiescing to Party officials selection of Crist and not really paying attention to Nan Rich.
Personally, I think we have to focus a lot more on the State House and take back a few more seats. Screw the Governor’s race. With Crist, we have a nutsoid Republican Vs. a moderate Republican.
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As an elected official in the 2000s I always felt Charlie was uncomfortable as a Republican. He toed the party line but he was never really one of “them”. I think the Republicans were uncomfortable with him as well. Perhaps we have the same dynamics going on with him as a Democrat.
Whatever the case, a Dem victory over Scott in 2014 will help make this a Democratic decade. Money will come and money will help build the party. To build the party we do need a bench. The lack of a bench (and gerrymandering) has hurt them Dems terribly. I sense that might be changing.
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Are these the same democratic party insiders who lost an easy state house race to a tea party candidate last week in Escambia county? How about going outside and finding new friends to win with.
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Party “insiders” still clearly control the FDP…….witness the recent election of the new party chair in January over a highly qualified candidate with a PLAN! The possible entry of Alex Sink (who should have won in 2010 except for a disastrously inept campaign) could split the establishment giving Senator Rich a possible change in a three way primary. But my betting dollars are on the “power players/establishment” striking a “deal” between Sink and Crist, thus allowing only one to run, win the primary and contest Scott in the fall. Any takers?
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Dem daysi – the House seat in Escambia was one of the safest Republican seats in Florida. Dems were never going to win there. They probably should have not put a candidate up and saved their money.
Dog – the FDP will never adequately rebuild without the control of a branch of government. While Dems may pick up a few seats in the House, they can’t win back the majority. And Sen Dems will likely break even in 2014 if they’re lucky. The only shot Florida Dems have is to win the Governor’s Mansion. That will bring the money to the FDP that we need to win other races in future elections.
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The teaparty candidate only won with 1500 votes. From my friends in Escambia, if the campaign was run correctly, the democrat would have won.
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Do you want to win?
Crist is the best we have. He’s win statewide three times and has proven to be the most popular official in Florida.
Who cares what he did to Lawton Chiles? Chiles was a southern Democrat not a progressive and Crist has always been an uncomfortable Republican. Besides didn’t the Chiles thing have to do with illegal phone calls?
Scott and GOP say publicly they want Crist because they ate trying to get us to nominate Sink or Rich. Rick Scott might as well quit now if Crist is the nominee. He has gotten on average 54% of the statewide vote in his three runs for Governor and Cabinet while the Ds as you say have gone one for the last 14 in the sane races.
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has proven to be the most popular official in Florida.
Yet he lost to Marco Rubio by 22 points
Who cares what he did to Lawton Chiles?
Seriously? Who cares what he did to one of the greatest Floridians of the 20th Century?
Chiles was a southern Democrat not a progressive and Crist has always been an uncomfortable Republican.
I admire your re-write of history. Chiles in fact while moderate bucked the southern bloc often in the Senate during the 1970s. By the time he was Governor he was pretty progressive when it came to things that mattered. Sure he cut Government programs but most of them were wasteful turkey’s and an expert turkey hunter himself he then applied that to legislative excess. The fact that so many Democrats cut deals to back Bush in 1998 and sell out Buddy MacKay was proof they were the ones who were not true progressives.
. Besides didn’t the Chiles thing have to do with illegal phone calls?
A- The phone calls were not illegal
B- Crist held up every Chiles nominee in Senate committee during the 1995 session stopping important decisions from being made.
C- The Tobacco lawsuit was strongly opposed by Crist and he even investigated the lawsuit. Only after he and his GOP buddies saw the windfall in funds it brought Florida did they change their tune. At the time he and others were listening to AIF, the tobacco lobby, cigar manufacturers, etc about it.
Do not insult Lawton Chiles on this site please. If you want to re-write history, go somewhere else.
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Absolutely right on target!!!!
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Just because Crist is popular in some corners of South Florida, those in the northern and central parts of the state remember that Crist abandoned them. He couldn’t beat Marco Rubio!!! The backlash against Crist would, if he was the Democratic candidate, assure that we lost AGAIN!!! The FDP needs to get behind Senator Nan Rich. There is no past record of wavering on principles, changing her stand to meet the “popular position” of the week, or ever professing a principle that was not a core position of the Democratic Party. For heaven’s sake…WAKE UP Florida Democrats!!
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Crist met with condo leaders in Broward last week and they all fell in love with him. D’s aren’t taking back the state house or senate. The only way to be relevant again is the Governor’s race. A few house seats won’t do squat but the power of the veto pen is huge. Too bad Tant and Schultz are playing coy over their support. Everyone knows they are with Crist and their lack of candor shows they can’t be trusted with the keys to the kingdom. But if Crist wins both will take all the credit. If he loses, they will find someone else to blame.
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Crist will take the Ds down.
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You’re right on, Blue Dog. Tomorrow night is the DEC meeting….do you think that they might actually discuss THIS ISSUE???? It is the most important thing that they’re facing right now.
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Why not to have a candidate who could make the people win instead of focusing on the party. When people win, the party wins too.
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Has everyone forgotten about the numerous Crist scandals and all the baggage that comes with those scandals?
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You’re right on once again!!!
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great post Kartik.
Stopping Crist is a must and if the party insiders will not do it we the people must!
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This whole Charlie Crist thing is a good test of exactly who has power in the Florida Democratic Party. The Republican establishment tried to turn the 2010 Senate primary into a coronation. Grassroots Republican activists successfully rebelled. Do Democratic activists have as much clout as their Republican counterparts? Time will tell.
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