From the Crist files

A Palm Beach Post Editorial from February 2007:

Crist “Has Given Democrats More Than They Could Have Gotten” On Their Own In a February 2007 article analyzing Crist’s decision to use an Executive Order to restore all federal rights to felons after they have served their sentences, the Palm Beach Post described Crist’s early- term action as just one of the many ways the governor broke from the right-wing party line: “…after only six weeks in office, Gov. Crist has certified himself as a man of surprises who has given Democrats more than they could have gotten from one of their own. The governor has taken on the insurance industry his predecessor protected, called for an end to touch-screen voting, proposed changes for a public education system his predecessor said was perfect and asked the Legislature to approve $20 million for stem-cell research — limited research, but on stem cells just the same. Democrat Jim Davis campaigned on all of the above but couldn’t have delivered as much had he won in November.”  [Palm Beach Post, 2/25/2007]

Lakeland Ledger in March 2007: Crist Breaks with GOP on Environment In March 2007, two months into his first term as governor, Crist delivered a speech on the environment that immediately set him to the left of his party.  According to the Lakeland Ledger, the governor’s speech read in the press as a clear departure from the Republican platform: “Crist’s stance on issues such as global warming seem to be another area that puts him at odds with some of the elements of his own party, which ridiculed former Vice President Al Gore’s crusade on global warming,” the newspaper wrote.  A Republican state senator called his speech “gutsy if not visionary” despite its departure from the party line.  [Lakeland Ledger, 3/12/2007]

A Salon.com article from February 2009:

Charlie Crist, who publicly sided with Obama during the stimulus debate instead of with House and Senate Republicans, picked up that line as he arrived at the White House: “I think as my friend Gov. Schwarzenegger said, if there are others that don’t want it, we’d be happy to take it to rebuild Florida, in my case.”  [Salon.com, 2/23/2009]

An Orlando Sentinel article in May 2009:

In a May 2009 article in the Orlando Sentinel, Crist said he would have crossed party lines to make a “pragmatic” vote for the federal stimulus package. Crist’s opponent, Marco Rubio, reportedly has said he would not have voted for the stimulus.  [Orlando Sentinel, 5/20/2009]