Charlie Crist in The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist
On Abortion:
1995: Opposed mandatory 24-hour waiting period for abortion
A bill came before the legislature in the spring of 1995, seeking to impose a mandatory, 24-hour waiting period before a woman could have an abortion. There was no medical justification for this, no practical reason at all--other than the desire of some
abortion opponents to throw up every imaginable roadblock. When the proposal came before the Health Care Committee, I voted with the Democrats, creating a 3-3 tie and killing the legislation for that session. Abortion opponents were outraged.
Looking back, that vote took some nerve for a first term Republican, but it didn't feel huge to me at the time. While I didn't like abortion personally, I was equally opposed to government inserting itself into such a personal medical decision.
I thought this should be a woman's decision--period--with whatever input she sought from her doctor, her partner, or her clergy. I was only voting my judgment and my conscience. Isn't that what legislators were supposed to do?
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 45-46
Feb 4, 2014
On Abortion:
Favors embryonic stem cell research
overturn Roe vs. Wade. He does not support stem-cell research; you know, these are extreme views that I am not comfortable with."Meek said Crist's decision was more pragmatic. "We know why the governor is running as an independent--because he
couldn't beat Marco Rubio," Meek said.
As an independent candidate, Crist vetoed an education package championed by Republican legislators, along with a bill requiring women to get ultrasound exams before abortions.
[In my 2006 gubernatorial primary against a staunch social conservative, I was] encouraged to reach out to a younger generation of active Republicans.
Like me, they tended to be a little more socially moderate. I spoke in favor of embryonic stem cell research, disagreeing with President Bush's decision to veto a stem cell bill.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 69
Feb 4, 2014
On Abortion:
I'm pro-life, but stay out of other people's lives
Personally, I have always been pro-life. I believe life is precious and should be treasured. I like being alive. I don't think abortion is desirable. But that doesn't mean I always know what's right for everyone. Isn't that how mature people think?
I've always been cautious about imposing my point of view on others when it comes to a decision as personal as this.What's the point of that? It certainly isn't rooted in traditional conservative principles, one of which is "Stay out of other people's
lives." If the thought is less government and more freedom, where's the freedom part? Seriously! Instead of trying to tell other people how to live their lives, just go and live yours!
Isn't that obvious? To me it is.
And what could be more
important--or more personal--than a woman and her own body? Abortion has been legal since 1973 when the US Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade. I understand not everyone agrees with the court's decision. Still, it is the established law of the land.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.261
Feb 4, 2014
On Budget & Economy:
2006: canceled high-priced Governor's Inaugural Ball
I did something I don't think anyone really expected, something I instinctively knew was right: Three weeks before Inauguration Day, I canceled the Governor's Inaugural Ball. It wouldn't be right, I said, to put on this high-priced party, paid for by a
bunch of trade associations and lobbyists, while so many Floridians were suffering as badly as they were.And let's be honest: Those fancy dinner-dances are almost always a tedious bore.
My decision wasn't too popular inside the campaign office or
around Tallahassee. I started getting blowback from some of my biggest donors. "I'm sorry," [I said to those complaining]. "But I'm going with my heart on this one. I'm just not comfortable having some lavish party when Floridians are struggling so hard.
Canceling the governor's ball sent an early signal that this was not going to be your typical Republican administration [and lose touch with the people]. We threw open the gates of the mansion and invited everyone in. It was the People's House.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 80-83
Feb 4, 2014
On Budget & Economy:
2009 stimulus saved teacher & cop jobs; and revived economy
On Feb. 23, Jeb Bush called my support for the president's economic stimulus "unforgiveable." Jeb started sweetly. I was a "talented guy," he said, "about the nicest guy I've ever met in politics." Then he let loose. "There's one thing that he has
done that I just find unforgiveable. He is the only statewide political leader that I'm aware of, that embraced the stimulus package when Republicans were fighting to suggest an alternative."
Now, I do believe that some things in life are unforgiveable
But accepting money from Washington to save jobs of teachers, police officers, and firefighters and help revive our economy? No, that's not one of them. Besides, almost every governor ended up taking some or all of the money.
I was just the only Republican who was so up-front about it.
Jeb kept pounding on the stimulus, which he termed "a massive spending bill that is not related to stimulus. It is related to trying to carry out a liberal agenda."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.218-219
Feb 4, 2014
On Civil Rights:
Civil rights is an American value that all should embrace
We got the legislature to change the law in Florida to allow the attorney general to bring civil rights cases without going through the US Justice Department first."We've got this new law," I said. "Let's go use it."
What could be more important to our democracy than basic civil rights? The right to vote. The right to equal protection under the law. The right to fair treatment in employment, housing, and public accommodation.
If these rights aren't in place, we don't have a democracy. That's not liberal or conservative opinion.
It's not Republican or Democratic. It's an American value that everyone should embrace.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 55-56
Feb 4, 2014
On Civil Rights:
2006: Came out for civil unions; denied rumors he was gay
[In my 2006 gubernatorial primary against a staunch social conservative], I came out for gay civil unions. I understood the word "marriage" was still awfully rattling to many people, Republicans and Democrats.
I can see now I was heading in that direction. Like a lot of politicians, I just wasn't there yet. But it seemed clear to me even then that gay men and women deserved their legal rights.
As the primary campaign heated up, people starting floating rumors that I was gay. I denied those outright, telling an interviewer, "The point is, I'm not.
There's the answer. Not that there's anything wrong with that, as they say on 'Seinfeld.' But I just happen not to be."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 69-71
Feb 4, 2014
On Civil Rights:
2006: Supported civil unions en route to gay marriage
I spoke in favor of embryonic stem cell research, disagreeing with President Bush's decision to veto a stem cell bill. I came out for gay civil unions. I understood that the word "marriage" was still awfully rattling to many people,
Republicans and Democrats. I can see now I was heading in that direction. Like a lot of politicians, I just wasn't there yet. But it seemed clear to me even then that gay men and women deserved their legal rights.
For a Republican primary candidate, I sounded awfully moderate on most issues.As the primary campaign heated up, people started throwing all kinds of stuff at me. They floated rumors I was gay. I denied those outright, telling interviewer
Jim DeFede on WINZ radio: "The point is, I'm not. There's the answer. How do you like it? Not that there's anything wrong with that, as they say on Seinfeld. But I just happen not to be."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 69-72
Feb 4, 2014
On Civil Rights:
Diversity is one of our strengths in America
I wanted to extend fresh opportunities & help people succeed. [Sarah Palin] wanted to blame the poor, the unemployed, and struggling.I wanted to let individuals & families make their own personal life decisions. She was deeply suspicious of abortion,
contraception, and alternative lifestyles.
I believed that diversity was one of our strengths in America. She seemed to consider it a threat.
She was a member of the same party John and I were, but our worldviews couldn't have been further apart.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.135
Feb 4, 2014
On Crime:
1978: Florida State murders taught empathy for victims
Just after we all returned to school from Christmas break, the whole Tallahassee campus was badly shaken by an absolutely harrowing event. Around 2:45am on Jan. 15, an unknown man walked into the Chi Omega sorority house and savagely beat 4 young women.
He then broke into a basement apartment 8 blocks away and attacked another Florida State student. It took 3 weeks for the assailant to be caught.
He was a former law student from Washington State named Ted Bundy, on a cross-country, multi-year murder spree. Before he was finally put to death in 1989, he confessed to 30 murders in 7 states between 1974 and 1978. The true total could be much higher.
The attacks left me with an intense empathy for crime victims that has followed me through my life. It also cemented my interest in attending law school.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 25-26
Feb 4, 2014
On Crime:
1993: Sponsored STOP law: Stop Turning Out Prisoners
One thing I noticed was that many people who went to prison in Florida didn't seem to stay very long. It wasn't unusual for prisoners--even murderers--to pack their stuff and go home after 20 or 25% of their terms.
The criminal justice system had plenty of justice for the criminals and almost none for the victims of their crimes. So I sponsored legislation requiring inmates to serve at least 85% of their sentences.
STOP, it was called, for Stop Turning Out Prisoners. It flew through the legislature.
Governor Chiles allowed the change to become law without his signature, going along with it while hinting he wasn't exactly thrilled.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 43
Feb 4, 2014
On Crime:
"Chain Gang Charlie": reinstitute prisoner labor on highways
It was the chain gangs that really got me noticed in Tallahassee. In 1995, Alabama had revived the practice of shackling prisoners together and sending them out to work with armed guards, often collecting litter along the highway. The practice had been
abandoned in most places in the 1940s. Still, I thought reinstituting appropriate punishment was an important concept, and I decided on a dramatic way of making the point. So one day in the Senate chamber,
I hoisted a set of chains above my head--and boy, were they heavier than I thought!I co-sponsored a chain gang amendment. An editorial writer at the St. Petersburg Times coined the nickname "Chain Gang Charlie." I can assure you it was not meant as a
term of endearment. But soon enough, people across the state were calling me "Chain Gang," and I didn't mind it one bit. Being tough on criminals was fine with Republicans.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 43-44
Feb 4, 2014
On Education:
Supports charter schools and standardized testing
[As State Education Commissioner,] I got some solid support in the governor's office. Jeb Bush had made education reform a top priority of his administration.
We both wanted results. Jeb was pushing charter schools and standardized testing, concepts I generally supported. I was working on making teachers more accountable and getting the good ones paid well.
Working together, we made some genuine progress. Reading scores improved. Parents got more choices about the schools their children attended.
The legislature got a little less stingy about paying the bills.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 53
Feb 4, 2014
On Education:
Some public school teachers should earn $100,000
[As Education Commissioner of Florida], some of my fellow Republicans thought I pushed the cause of public education too hard. "Some teachers in our school systems should earn $100,000 a year,"
I said one day, unapologetically. "The teachers' unions aren't exactly friends of ours," I was reminded more than once. "Republicans are more interested in private and religious schools."
None of this seemed complicated to me. If we wanted good teachers, we should pay them decently. When it came to public education, I had the benefit of personal experience. My 3 sisters and I all went to public schools.
Two of my sisters became educators. My mom and dad both went to Penn State. I'd finished college at Florida State. I always have--and always will--fight for public education.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 53
Feb 4, 2014
On Education:
National testing mostly favors for-profit testing firms
Senate Bill 6 was loaded down with amendments from extreme-conservative legislators who didn't seem to like the whole idea of public schools. The tone of the bill began to shift from rewarding teachers to punishing them.The Republican legislators
probably should have renamed it the Teacher Punishment Act. That would have been a whole lot closer to what the bill's conservative backers really had in mind.
Newer teachers could be fired for any cause or no cause at all. Local school systems were
forbidden from paying teachers based on their experience or advanced degrees. The bill took away a teacher's incentive to earn National Board Certification. And it raised a rash of extra complications for Special-Ed teachers.
There was one other
wrinkle that seemed relevant to me. The people who really stood to make out here were the for-profit, national testing firms. If Senate Bill 6 became law, they could expect some fat new Florida contracts.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.223-225
Feb 4, 2014
On Energy & Oil:
Reduce climate change by doing things we should do anyway
It was virtually important, I was convinced, to do what we could to reduce climate change as much as possible. Cleaning our rivers. Cutting carbon dioxide. Finding new ways to protect the wetlands.
Those were all beneficial on their own terms, whether or not someone accepted the science of climate change or cared to heed its warnings. It seemed to me we should be doing all those things anyway.
I didn't only read about climate change and discuss it with my friends. I led by example. In April I ordered an energy audit at the Governor's Mansion and outfitted the place with high-efficiency lightbulbs and a
Heliocol solar heater for the outdoor swimming pool. I also got a new car: an ethanol-fueled Chevy Tahoe. There was only one ethanol station in Tallahassee, but the effort was worth it, I thought.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.104
Feb 4, 2014
On Energy & Oil:
BP oil spill made me oppose offshore oil drilling
The 2010 BP oil spill was looking more severe by the day. I flew over the Gulf in a huge Florida National Guard C-144 aircraft so I could get a wide-angle view of what was already an 80-by-42-mile dark blob on the Gulf. The spill had already made me
rethink my openness to offshore oil drilling for Florida, I said. How could it not? As soon as I returned to the Capitol, I called the Florida National Guard. "Do whatever you can to keep that oil spill from coming up on the beaches of the Panhandle."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.237-238
Feb 4, 2014
On Environment:
1992: Elected to State Senate on pro-environment message
On November 3, 1992, I was elected to the Florida Senate. I defeated a longtime Democratic senator named Helen Gordon Davis, though that didn't exactly make me a giant killer.
The district lines had been redrawn after the 1990 census, and Helen's strength was Tampa. The new district included more of Republican-leaning St. Petersburg.
My three-pronged message--pro-education, pro-environment, anti-crime--seemed to connect with the voters. And spending time on
Connie Mack's staff had given me the valuable opportunity to interact with thousands of civic leaders, business people, and regular folks--not just around St. Petersburg but across the state.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 41
Feb 4, 2014
On Environment:
Asked BP to pay $65M for tourism promotion, after oil spill
By the time the Deepwater Horizon well was capped, nearly 5 million barrels of oil had spilled. By comparison, the 1989 wreck of the Exxon Valdez released about 262,000 barrels. Some of that gloppy black oil washed onto Pensacola Beach--not as much as
some experts had worried about but enough to wreck the Panhandle's heavy summer tourist season.
Three separate times, I declared a state of emergency for large sections of Florida's Gulf Coast. Families were canceling their reservations and going to
East Coast beaches or the mountains instead. It was a real punch in the gut to Florida's tourism economy. I asked the BP chairman to help pay for an advertising campaign telling potential visitors that the Gulf Coast was inviting and safe. The oil giant
coughed up $25 million in tourism-promotion grants, plus an additional $15 million each for AL, MS, and LA. I wasn't shy about asking, and BP seemed willing to pay. The scope of the long-term environmental damage remained a matter of intense debate.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.263
Feb 4, 2014
On Foreign Policy:
Find a way to work with our international allies
In [Sarah Palin's] speeches and in the few interviews that I heard her give, she emphasized a worldview that to me sounded almost paranoid. It wasn't just different from what the Democrats and Barack Obama were saying. It was nowhere close to the way
that John McCain--or I--saw the world.Let me speak for myself here: I wanted to protect the environment. She wanted to "drill, baby, drill."
I wanted to find a way to work with our international allies. She was more go-it-alone in the world.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.135
Feb 4, 2014
On Government Reform:
Require paper backup for all electronic voting machines
As a first step, it seemed to me, we should dump the leap-of-faith touch-screen machines for some technology that kept a careful paper record.
At my urging and without much fuss, the legislature passed a bill requiring paper backup for all voting machines. The fact that the federal government would cover the $28 million price tag didn't hurt.
"It just makes common sense," I said that day. "You go to an ATM machine, you get a receipt. You go to a gas station, you probably don't like the receipt you get, but you get a receipt.
And with the most precious, cherished right we have in a democracy, we deserve to have a record so we can verify."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 93
Feb 4, 2014
On Government Reform:
Give former felons a second chance at voting rights
"It all comes down to one fundamental question," I said. "Do you believe that an individual has paid their debt to society? If they've really paid their debt, then why not restore their right to vote?"Nobody's perfect. Everyone makes mistakes.
People deserve a second chance. Isn't that the very basis of our democracy and religious faith?
I quickly came to see that restoring the rights of ex-felons would be controversial. All my Republican friends seemed to be certain about what was waiting
for us down this path: If we invited thousands of ex-felons back onto Florida's voting rolls, the vast majority wouldn't be voting for us.
"Just look at 'em," I heard more than one Republican say. "Those are Democrats." The laws that kept most ex-
felons from voting in Florida went back 136 years. That was the Jim Crow era after the Civil War. Slavery was over. But white judges and politicians in the South were doing everything they could to make sure the newly freed slaves were still kept down.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 95
Feb 4, 2014
On Health Care:
Likes parts of ObamaCare but it's too big & too bureaucratic
Once the president began pushing his Affordable Care Act, conservative audiences from Tamarac to Tacoma would boo reflexively at the very mention of the word "Obamacare."I didn't agree with everything Barack Obama did. I didn't love the president's
health-care plan. I thought it was too big, too complicated, and too bureaucratic. I didn't like the way it had inched through Congress, twisted and turned by so many special-interest groups. But I wasn't a crazy zealot on the topic.
I wasn't shouting that Obamacare was about to wreck America. I actually liked many of its planks--covering people with previous medical conditions, eliminating lifetime benefit caps, and helping millions of people afford health insurance.
Once the act became law, I was far more interested in making the new system work for people than endlessly trashing it and stirring up the base. There I was, being moderate again!
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.201
Feb 4, 2014
On Homeland Security:
Supports strong national defense
As I began to build my political career, you wouldn't call me a rebel. I wasn't picking constant fights. I always preferred bringing people together instead of squabbling with them.
I was a Republican. No one missed that. I checked all the boxes Republicans do: low taxes, tough on crime, support for a strong national defense--not that I had too much need for that that one as I climbed the ladder of Florida state politics.
But in all the jobs I've had--and I've had a few--I tried to remain true to the things I cared about and always tried to be my own man. That could point me conservative. It could point me liberal. I wasn't big on labels.
If I stuck with causes I believed in, I told myself, the politics would take care of themselves. And I could admire leadership talent wherever it turned up.Even at a Democratic Party convention.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 58-59
Feb 4, 2014
On Homeland Security:
2008: I don't believe in torture
"I know you've been reading in the papers some speculation about whether or not you'd be considered for the ticket," Rick said. "Let me tell you: You are being considered for the ticket."
They went over some of the same ground as the written questionnaire, then got into detailed discussions of important policy questions.
"How far would you go to capture Osama bin Laden?"
Anything legal.
"Do you believe in torture?" No.
"Should Americans have a right to health care?" Absolutely.
I answered every question, and the lawyers kept coming up with more.
Then, for weeks, the McCain team slid back into silence. I didn't know what to expect next. I did notice that the phone didn't ring.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.129-130
Feb 4, 2014
On Local Issues:
Sued Florida Power when they raised rates abruptly
Florida Power had raised its rates abruptly. People were livid when they opened their bills. We had a hearing in the Senate on the rate hike. But I felt like I should do something more personal and direct. I sued Florida Power, though not as a
state senator. I filed as myself, a consumer. I didn't have the state pay the legal bills. I paid for the suit myself. Some of my fellow Republicans were definitely shaking their heads at that.
In a few special cases--this was one of them--the look was put into words.
"What are you doing?" Senator Grant wanted to know. "These are our friends. These are the guys who support us and help get us elected and raise money for us. You'll regret this.
They're too powerful to mess around with."
"I respect how you feel," I told him. "But it's not how I feel. They're being unfair to the people who elected me, and I can't let that stand. What they're doing is wrong."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 47-48
Feb 4, 2014
On Local Issues:
Supported $2.4B federal funding of I-4 corridor
For almost 3 decades, Florida had been discussing high-speed rail. Once I was governor, it took 3 special sessions of the legislature and some extraordinary work by the state Transportation Dept. As my term was ending, everything was all but wrapped in a
bow--the politics, the funding, the local approvals, the right-of-ways, literally everything except depositing Washington's check in the bank. People were genuinely excited about what was coming our way: state-of-the-art trains racing along the median
strip of Interstate 4 at 170 mph between Tampa, Lakeland, and Orlando, a rail link that could stretch eventually to Miami.Development would be spurred along the I-4 corridor, creating more investment and more jobs. And if the modern train service
happened to take a few cars off the congested interstate, call that a welcome bonus. Did I mention the feds were paying for everything? Yes, everything.
Six weeks after taking office, the new governor announced he was rejecting the entire $2.4 billion.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.303-5
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
Original family name "Christodoulos", from Greek Cyprus
The original family name was Christodoulos. They came from Cyprus, a small island nation in the eastern Mediterranean just south of Turkey and 500 miles south of mainland Greece.
Cyprus is divided between Greeks and Turks, who got along about as well as Washington Republicans and Democrats. My father's father, Adam Christodoulos, traveled to America in 1912 at the age of 14 for the same reasons
immigrants have always come: for freedom and opportunity and the chance to build a better life. Adam didn't have the proper papers. Some people today might call him an illegal immigrant.
When WWI broke out, earning an honorable discharge, he was eligible to become a citizen of the US--not so different from today's immigrant "Dreamers".
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 10-11
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
1966: Father won Pinellas County School Board seat
In 1966, when I was almost 10, my dad decided to run for the Pinellas County School Board--as a Republican, of course.I guess you'd call my dad fiscally conservative and socially moderate. He liked low taxes. He wanted local businesses to thrive.
But he was troubled by the racial segregation that lingered in Florida and elsewhere. He very much believed in equal opportunity and social programs that worked.
My dad had never shown the slightest interest in running for office. But as a family physician, he'd gotten involved with a new federal program called Head Start. He loved the idea of Head Start.
But he didn't like the way the local Head Start office was being operated. He knew the school board was supposed to have oversight. So he decided to run.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 16
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
Married at age 21; divorced soon after
I really liked Mandy Morrow. One Sunday afternoon during my first year at Cumberland Law, she was visiting me in Birmingham. I hated that she had to head back to Tallahassee."Let's get married," I said.
"Really?" she asked.
"Yeah,"
I said. "Why not?"
"Okay," she said.
Mandy called that night and asked, "Are you sure about what you said this afternoon? We're kind of young." We were both 21. "Yeah," I told her. "It's exactly what I want to do."
We had a big wedding that summer.
She moved to Birmingham, got a job as an urban planner, and we started arguing about silly stuff.
Nobody in my family had ever been divorced before.
We cared for each other. She was a lovely person. She still is. It just didn't work out for us.
I do think the experience made me think long and hard before marrying again, and it made me a believer in living together before marriage.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 29-30
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
1986: First campaign: lost State Senate primary runoff
In 1986 I made my 1st run for office. I was 29 years old. Some friends reached out to me and suggested I might try for a state senate seat in St. Petersburg. They knew I was active in the community groups and I'd grown up in St. Pete. That's a very
typical path in politics.I campaigned door-to-door. I had a slogan--"Crist: A Name You Can Trust"--which I printed on yard signs and leaflets.
In a tight 4-candidate field, I made it to the Republican primary runoff, then lost by about 200 votes.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 33-34
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
While Governor, married Carole Rome; called "First Fiancee"
Harry Sargeant, a fraternity buddy of mine, had set up a late fund-raising dinner for me. Harry had told me about Carole Rome. Half the plan for the dinner was to meet her. Next to her was a conspicuously open seat. We hit it off instantly. It was like
I had known this woman my entire life. She was smart. She was funny. She seemed great.She told me about growing up on Long Island. Her family was in the Halloween business, she said. I don't think I'd ever met anyone in that field before.
She had a business degree from Georgetown University.
Then, we started dating. Dating a governor is not without complication. It's a little different from dating a regular guy. There are a few extra stares in restaurants. And you have these people with
guns around you all the time, everywhere you go.
I was head-over-heels smitten. I thought to myself, "I'd like to marry that girl." I don't believe "First Fiancee" is an official title, but some people started using the phrase around Tallahassee.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.108-111&128
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
Opposing anything the Democrats proposed--that wasn't my way
We were in the most difficult economic recession since the Great Depression. Yet today's Republicans seemed opposed to the very idea of helping people in a time of need. That didn't sit right with my values and what I'd been brought up to believe.In
this new Republican view, you needed to bash Obama. You needed to attack his health care plan. You needed to oppose anything he stood for--really, anything the Democrats proposed. It didn't matter whether the idea was a good one or a bad one.
The base was hungry for juicy red meat. The long-term strategy, as well I could discern one, went something like this: Republicans had to hurt the president. We had to cripple government. We had to make sure that nothing the
Democrats tried would succeed. That way, people would get frustrated with the current administration, and our party would ultimately benefit.
It was as cynical a strategy as I had ever heard. It was the new Republican way. But it wasn't my way.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.240
Feb 4, 2014
On Principles & Values:
AdWatch: not REPUBLICAN; not DEMOCRAT; but AMERICAN
We banged our independent message as hard as we could. In the 1st week of September, the 1st full week after the parties' primaries, Josh Isay produced a powerfully clear TV commercial for me. In the ad, I am walking between 2 sets of giant block
letters- red "REPUBLICAN" on my right, blue "DEMOCRAT" on my left."The way to get results for Florida and improve the economy," I say, "is by putting aside our differences and putting people ahead of politics."
All the while, I am rearranging the letters as I walk, "As an Independent, I will take the best ideas of Democrats and Republicans to get things done," I say. "Because at the end of the day, there's only one party
I work for."
The camera pulls out to reveal the letters now spell out "AMERICANS."
And then: "I'm Charlie Crist, an Independent, and I approve this message."
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.270-271
Feb 4, 2014
On Tax Reform:
2007: lowered property taxes by $33B over 5 years
I introduced a plan to lower the soaring property taxes that Florida homeowners had to pay. This was a heavy lift. It required an amendment to the Florida state constitution. As home values had risen over the years, taxes had shot way up.
Now that prices were slipping, the taxes never seemed to fall.
I wanted to double the state's $25,000 homestead exemption, roll back city and county tax collections to 2003-04 levels, and make the state's Save Our Homes tax cap more flexible.
My approach would save taxpayers $33.5 billion over 5 years, the analysts said. "We won't let you down," I told a group of public school teachers.
Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p. 87
Feb 4, 2014
Page last updated: Feb 20, 2019