Google Ads


Site Stats

FL-Sen: Free Fall for Charlie Crist

by: jeffmd

Tue Mar 09, 2010 at 12:01 PM EST


Public Policy Polling (3/5-8, registered voters, no trendlines)

Charlie Crist (R): 28
Marco Rubio (R): 60
Undecided: 12
(MoE: ±4.4%)

David teased this poll earlier in the digest, but as you can see, things are seriously getting bad for Charlie Crist.

This is PPP's first poll on Florida, but Rubio's more than doubling up on Crist now; Rasmussen had this race at 49-37 in Late January. Republican primary voters now disapprove of Crist by a margin of 29-56, which worsens to 20-64 among conservatives.

So what's the road ahead for Charlie Crist? Probably not in the Governor's race either:

Charlie Crist (R): 35
Bill McCollum (R): 49
Undecided: 16

Crist's now also losing to conservative AG Bill McCollum by a hefty margin as well.

With 41% of Republicans wanting Crist out of the party as either an Indy (15%) or Democrat (26%) - compared to 43% who want him to stay, good ol' Charlie should seriously consider a party switch.
jeffmd :: FL-Sen: Free Fall for Charlie Crist
Tags: , , , , , , , (All Tags)
Print Friendly View Send As Email

FL-Sen: Free Fall for Charlie Crist | 76 comments
Looks like it's time for Crist to run on the old CfL line
If Crist were to win as an Independent who do you think he would caucus with?

28, Unenrolled, MA-08
Either he switches parties or switches careers.
Switching back to Governor was never an option.  Once you're exposed people smell blood and they will pounce.

Maybe if George Bush or another Republican was still in the White House they could rescue you like what happened to Specter in 2004.  Or offer you job in Washington.  Or an ambassadorship.

He needs to come out of the closet and admit there is no room in the Republican Party for him.

NY-13, Democrat. Blog @ http://infinitefunction.wordpr...

Cat fud
Looking forward to seeing the general numbers, hope they have Crist (D) vs Meek (R).

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26
Meek (R)?
n/t

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
D'OH!
Crist (D) vs Rubio (R)

I was reading the politicalwire thread and talking about Meek.

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26

[ Parent ]
Primary is still far off
Aug 31, I believe. Lots can happen between now and then, though I argued Crist should have suffocated Rubio before he got out of the cradle.

But even if Crist switches, is he likely to beat him in the general and will Meek get out of the way?

Indepedent/Lean D. Dude.
All 5s (now TX-5; frmly VA-5 and CA-5)  

If these numbers are real
Crist would need to run uncontested to be the Republican nominee. Even if Rubio were to drop out, Some Dude (R) would beat him in the primary.  
[ Parent ]
There's no chance that Crist becomes a D
No matter how badly liberal blogs are pushing the rumors so they can take another Senate seat out of the R column (like Connecticut).
What makes you say that with such definiteness?
From everything I can gauge as to where Crist is ideologically, he's not that much further off the reservation than Specter was when he made the switch - and at this point, he would appear to be in just as perilous straits as Specter found himself against Toomey.  

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
Read the link
Cizzilla gives a pretty decent rundown why he won't. He has national ambitions. He is crazy if you ask me but then I could never understand why he didn't run for re-election anyway.
[ Parent ]
Cillizza even
And I meant the link in my post below.
[ Parent ]
$hit happens
If he thinks he's going to further his national ambitions by losing a FL primary on a strictly ideological basis. . .I want what he's smoking.  
[ Parent ]
Oh totally
The only explanation I see is that he has something on Rubio he is holding back. But the credit card stuff won't do it. Actually, I can forsee a scenario where he goes nuclear on him but conservatives rally anyway. In that instance Meek may still have a chance.
[ Parent ]
And Crist isnt even using the credit card appropriately
I just saw somewhere he's attacking Rubio for spending the credit card on a $120 back wax.  It was at a beauty salon, Rubio denies it was a hair cut so Crist spends time calling it a $120 what, back wax?

Now that just sounds silly, petty, and most people would rather not hear about Rubio's possible back hair problem.  I read that and just thought, Crist you are being petty, awkward, and really trying to dig.

Now Im not very familiar with the credit card thing so that be my thing, and Im sure there will be plenty of voters in my boat.

[ Parent ]
Back wax attack
I was embarrassed for him. Quite indicitive of his position.
[ Parent ]
Well...
It might be a turn-off to some Republican voters if Rubio is getting back waxes.

26, white male, TX-24, liberal-leaning independent
[ Parent ]
Obviously if he has national ambitions he'd switch to Democrat
He can run as in Indpendent as Senator, but he's not a powerful enough personality to try and Independant Presidential one. (Crist/Lieberman 2012....)

Since he is done as a Republican, that leaves switching to Democrat if he wants to be President.

[ Parent ]
The
only chance Crist has at becoming President is if he is first selected as someone's running mate. Crist would never make it through a republican or democratic presidential primary. It is possible that he gets selected to be someone's VP, but unless that happens I don't see how he gets elected.  

Proud member of the Indiana Democratic Party from IN-9.  
[ Parent ]
Biggest difference between Specter and Crist
Is that Specter started off as a Dem. Switching parties was simply him returning to the fold.

Besides, if Crist soldiers on and doesn't go too negative on Rubio, he may be able to make amends with the base and become the nominee to take on Nelson in 2012.  

[ Parent ]
Maybe
But how does he do that out of office? I think he is doing himself serious short and medium term damage.
[ Parent ]
Specter may indeed have been a Democrat at some point
But so far as I'm aware, he's never in his political career been elected as one, which pretty much makes his past affiliation with the party ancient history and, practically speaking, irrelevant. For all we know Crist too may have identified as a Democrat in his earlier life

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
"Ancient history"?
He was an ADA as a Democrat and ran on the GOP ticket for DA as a registered Democrat. This was well into his legal career and only a few years before he ran, and won, for Senate. It's hardly irrelevent, as its one of the reasons why Specter was comfortable with switching parties last year, as he began his political career as a Dem. It's a hell of a lot different to switch without that kind of previous history.
[ Parent ]
Is ADA an elected position?
n/t

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
It's still ancient history
And his entire senatorial career has been based on voting for Republican leadership and Republican favor on procedural matters.

Plus it's not like there isn't a precedent for this type of behavior (Ben Nighthorse-Campbell, Ralph Hall, Rick Perry, etc.) Most of them were life long Democrats when they switched parties.

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
don't forget about shelby
douche switched the day after repubs won in 94.  at least specter waited.

Top ten signs you're an SSPer #1: your favorite song is "Panic At Tedisco" and no one understands what you mean.
[ Parent ]
The biggest difference, IMO
Is that they all switched while in office. I struggle to find an example of a prominent candidate switching parties in the middle of the primary. Lieberman doesn't count because he only became an Independent and caucused with the Dems.  
[ Parent ]
That depends on your defintion of "in the middle of the primary"
Because that's exactly what Specter did (there was polling showing Specter behind Toomey by 20(!) points in the Republican primary before he flipped).

Or do you want to tell me that the reason Specter flipped was because he suddenly decided that he was really a Democrat at heart after over 20 years?

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
Probably a combination of things
First off, if Specter did not vote for the Stimulus package, the party base would not have been nearly as infuriated with him.  He was one of three Republican Senators (along with Collins and Snowe) who joined the Democratic bill.  If I remember correctly, not one GOP House member voted for this legislation.  For all intents and purposes, Specter committed a capital offense in the eyes of the Republican Party.  As a result, the conservative base solidified in support for Tommey.

Another thing to consider is the evolution of the Republican base within PA.  During the 2008 primaries, there were many Republicans that changed their party affiliation with the Democrats so they could vote in the Democratic primary.  Very few switched back to the Republicans when Specter made his announcement.  It should also be pointed out that many of these former Republicans are more of the moderate nature.  As a result, the Republican Party became much more conservative within PA.  Back in 2004, Specter barely squeaked by Tommey, and that was with a less conservative Republican party.  After making his vote for the Stimulus Package, his chance of improving relationships with the conservative wing evaporated.

After Specter had a chance to review what happened, he realized (a) he still wanted to be a US Senator, and (b) there was no way in hell he would defeat Tommey.  He then made the switch to the Democrats.

Specter isn't my ideal Democrat, but he's better than many other Democrats within our caucus.  He's been fairly loyal to the Democrats since the switch (although he did buck us a couple times immediately following his conversion).  I don't believe he will be an obstacle for passing progressive legislation, so I'm supporting Specter's bid at the Democratic nomination.

40, male, Democrat, NC-04

[ Parent ]
Oh sure, and I'm not complaining about Specter either
Whoever said "he might be a son of a bitch, but he's our son of a bitch now" had it exactly right IMHO ;)

I'm merely pointing out that Crist is in more or less the same position as Specter was, and it makes it all the more likely that he'll jump ship to save any possible chance at becoming a Senator.

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
True...to a point
The only difference between Crist and Specter is that Specter was actually a US Senator when he made the switch, while Crist was at one time the presumptive Senator-elect of Florida.  If Crist was sitting as the current Florida Senator, his re-election prospects wouldn't be nearly as bad.  But he isn't.  Instead, he's the commander-in-chief in a state that is decimated by a bad economy.  

I totally agree that Specter is "our son of a bitch".  I've asked myself if I was in Specter's shoes, where being a US Senator was my life, where I've been a member since 1980, and where I've been basically ostracized from my party, would I make the switch?  My answer has been yes.  I think it's true that the Republican party had abandoned Specter about as much as Specter had abandoned the Republican party.  

40, male, Democrat, NC-04

[ Parent ]
What makes you say that with such definiteness?
From everything I can gauge as to where Crist is ideologically, he's not that much further off the reservation than Specter was when he made the switch - and at this point, he would appear to be in just as perilous straits as Specter found himself against Toomey.  

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
I agree
He looks like he plans to soldier on in the primary. Unless he has a silver bullet he will lose badly.

http://voices.washingtonpost.c...

Still, even a non-partisan would give him the same advice as liberal blogs. Just common sense.

[ Parent ]
First Hutchison, now Crist
What's with all the supposedly popular GOP moderates getting waxed in primaries this year?

26, white male, TX-24, liberal-leaning independent
As opposed to Ned Lamont
Beating Lieberman in 2006? Nothing.
[ Parent ]
Or don't forget Blanche Lincoln

[ Parent ]
Indeed
Dems are not holier than thou in this regard.
[ Parent ]
Difference
Do you think Halter or any other high-profile Dem would be jumping in if Lincoln were posting better general election numbers? Along the same lines, Lamont wasn't really putting the Connecticut Senate seat in danger by challenging Lieberman, whose conservatism even then was getting pretty out-of-step with most of his constituents.

By contrast, I think the Republicans have shown in recent years that they just don't care too much about GE electability - they're all about ideological purity now. Witness the primary success not just of Rubio and Toomey, but Tim Walberg, Doug Hoffman, Andy Harris, and (probably) Rand Paul.

Male, 23, DC-At Large

[ Parent ]
True but
This sometimes works in their favour. Sure, they lose an awful lot of winnable seats but their party loyalty is massive as a result. Look at the way they can successfully filibuster in the senate and muster every single rep against dem legislation.

Their strategy means it's very hard to get a majority and start getting their legislation passed but it's alot easier to block dem legislation. On balance, as conservatives, it's good strategy.

[ Parent ]
They manage loyalty fine
With people who aren't very conservative at all.
[ Parent ]
If there were only 41 Democrats
Then I think the same thing would probably be true for us. And I don't think if the GOP had 59 seats it would be smooth sailing for them either. It's much easier to unite people in opposition than it is to unite in leadership.
[ Parent ]
I agree, we seemed a pretty cohesive caucus
until people realized they were the deciders and made us work for their vote.  ('Work' can be interchanged with 'buy' in some cases.)
[ Parent ]
It wasn't true
from 2000-2006. Bush got most of what he wanted through the Senate.

"I'm not a member of any organized political party, I'm a Democrat!"
--  Will Rogers  
[ Parent ]
Meek is behind Rubio by double-digits
And throwing Toomey around is sort of ridiculous when you consider Joe Sestak has mounted a primary challenge to Arlen Specter (I'm not saying that I necessarily disagree with Sestak's challenge, I'm just pointing out that it's inherently problematic to complain about him).

Not to mention that one could easily make the case that Lieberman's more recent douchbaggery was the direct result of the challenge to him by Lamont (Lieberman's performance on the public option was completely at odds with his views about it in the past) (once again, not saying it was wrong, or that Joe Lieberman isn't an asshole, just pointing out that it's possible we lost something ideologically from the challenge).

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
Meek is behind Rubio by double digits TODAY
But the Rubio candidacy was not born today - he's been in the race for over ten months. Ten months ago, the race was still very winnable for Democrats. The national environment was considerably better, and (perhaps resultantly) the candidate field on our side was much more malleable and promising. (Alex Sink, for example, hadn't officially thrown her hat into the gubernatorial race yet). Rubio was a much riskier proposition then than he is now, yet even then he still was able to garner the grassroots support among conservative activists needed to wage a competitive primary against the sitting, wildly popular Republican governor.

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
That speaks highly of Rubio's political prowess
And Rubio hasn't been a right-wing nut-job either (very conservative, yes, but not a teabagger either). And at the very start of it, Rubio was behind Crist by over 40 points. In fact, Rubio overtaking Crist in the polls happened around the same time that his polling against Meek was pretty good, this wasn't actually a bad play by conservative Republicans (especially given who the Democrats are running with).

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
Not according to PPP
The general election scenario that would give Democrats the best chance at winning the seat is a straight on contest between Rubio and Meek. The Republican leads 44-39 in that match up, and because there are a lot more undecided Democrats (20%) than Republicans (12%) the race is realistically probably even closer than 5 points.

By comparison, Crist as a Democrat loses to Rubio 43-34.

http://publicpolicypolling.blo...

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

[ Parent ]
The GOP has righted itself into a corner
and now only the crazy types make it out of a primary.  Brown scrapped by his primary with no real right wing opponent, and even said he wouldn't run for the senate seat if Andrew Card entered.

While everyone sees 2010 as a doom and gloom year, I think that if the repubs gain in strength, it will be due to dems failing to pass major legislation (at least it will be perceived that way), not because the GOP has any good ideas.

I think it may win them some races in the short term, but in the long term, I think the GOP is dead.

But who knows, it will definitely be interesting to watch.

20, Male, Democrat, CA-44 (home) CA-12 (college)

[ Parent ]
Oh if Andy Card had run
Coakley would have really walked it. Dammit.
[ Parent ]
In other states, maybe
But Rubio was in the race before Crist, and he's the former state speaker. Yeah, he's more conservative than Crist, but he's not a tea-bagger and he's not a nutjob. When people discuss the GOP being corrupted by their fringes, FL-SEN shouldn't be a part of the conversation.
[ Parent ]
Course it should
Rubio may not be fringe but his momentum began with their support.
[ Parent ]
Maybe he'll scorn them
when he has to pivot for the GE?
[ Parent ]
I notice that's happening with Toomey
Backing Sontamayor, for one. But I still don't know how Toomey's going to effectively respond when he gets attacked for CFG's staunch backing of the attempt to privatize Social Security
[ Parent ]
Repolarization
based in generational-political factors.

Until roughly 2006 the Republican Party was united, if only by coercion and shared lust for power, around the core created by Nixon and the Religious Right.  This core was elevated to dogma.  In all matters (social laws, cultural/religious dominance, economic arrangements, political rights, foreign enemies, foreign alliances, suppressing of troublemakers by violence and shoutdowns) a true Republican had to assume and enforce pre-1968 conventions and status quo.  Divorce was tacitly in, abortion (legalized 1974) is out, corporate CEOs good, social democracy evil, etc.

Every elected Republican who dissented got pilloried and ostracized, then purged as "liberal" and that was that.  You couldn't be too regressive or retrograde in private to be a Republican, though.

That was sold to the electorate on mostly instrumental grounds until about 2002.  The 2004 election put the whole thing on the table on its merits- and it survived one last time with a 50.7% majority at maximized favorable turnout.

The 2006 election (to a lesser degree) and 2008 election (convincingly) proved that this stance no longer persuades a majority.  And with no need to maintain faux unity anymore,  that has meant breakup of Republicans into a very reactionary pre-1968 wing (the teabaggers and Inhofe/Coburn sorts, the California GOP) and a much more 1980ish, somewhat more pleasant and libertarian resemblance of conservative á la Reagan (e.g. Mitt Romney, Scott Brown, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kay Hutchison).  

Of course, for Republicans it's still utterly verboten to get on the other side of the next cultural and generational-political line, in which lies roughly 1992-94.  Megan McCain is probably an example.

Democrats, it seems to me, have a similar but opposite thing going on in that their activists and increasing numbers of voters are willing to draw a similar line, one which eliminates most attitudinally pre-1980 elected Democrats.  (That's the death of the conservative wing Democrats these next couple of election cycles.)  This kind of breaking between politicians and the voters is not new- the last of the attitudinally pre-1968 Democrats on the national stage was, of course, Zell Miller.  He ended up claiming the national Democratic Party had lost its way, not he, of course.  The pre-1968 sorts of Democrats have just about vanished on the federal level and are fading fast on the state level even in their last stronghold, the Deep South.  

The attitudinally 1980-1994ish set of Democratic politicians are tolerated for now.  The ones that are championed and have bright futures seem to me essentially those who are attitudinally post-1994, who "get" GenXers and GenYers.  Obama isn't a perfect example but about right.

Anyway, long story short- moderate Republicans and conservative Democrats are going to be the losers of this election cycle.  The paleocons won the internal battle of 2007-2009 and the Republican Party is going to hold its ideological lines for the next election or two or three, sacrificing its small moderate wing and prospects in Blue States.  The Democratic Party in turn is tired of and exasperated with its conservatives.  Conservative Democrats are a fading demographic, down to an 8-10% portion of a Party with 35%ish share of the electorate.  Losing what power and offices they hold is a price that doesn't seem that high anymore.

[ Parent ]
I think FL-Sen is Likely GOP no matter what
Crist is a non-starter with any letter beside his name and Meek will be lucky to cross the 45% mark.  

For daily political commentary, visit me at http://polibeast.blogspot.com/ and http://twitter.com/polibeast
Any primary polling
Done of Crist vs. Meek in a Democratic primary yet? If he switched parties and still lost to Meek in the primary, his career would be officially over.
The nearest would be Research 2000 internals
Meek wins Dems 57-19. Maybe flipping would make that closer but I'd imagine the only way he would even consider it would be if the field was cleared.  
[ Parent ]
Clearing the primary
You wanna bet that Obama could get Meek to drop out?

He can either go back to his safe congressional seat or become ambassador to the Bahamas or somewhere similarly posh. Or face a devastating primary that he could easily lose, and then a general election that he'd almost certainly lose.  

Kansan by birth, Californian by choice, and Gay by the grace of God.

[ Parent ]
Not so sure
If anybody could probably Obama could but he couldn't stop Sestak.
[ Parent ]
Shame for Sestak
Because based on the polls he's on his way to a royal butt-kicking at the hands of Specter.

Everybody whines about Jennifer Brunner and her "ill-timed" primary challenge, so I don't really understand why Joe Sestak gets a pass.  PA-7 really shouldn't be one of our most worrisome house seats, and it wouldn't be if he stayed in.

23, Male, Democrat, OH-13

[ Parent ]
I've been on that particular bandwagon
From the start.
[ Parent ]
Specter's age and health are the only reasons I don't say a pox on Sestak
Other than that, I think Sestak should have stayed in the House and protected that seat instead of needlessly putting it into play.

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
Agreed
n/t

Male, 23, DC-At Large
[ Parent ]
People say that now...
But back when Specter first switched, outrage swept across the blogosphere. How dare a Republican claim our Democratic nomination and deprive us of the chance to win the seat with a real Democrat. Lots of people were all about Sestak taking out Specter, including myself, but many of them (like the MIA Senate Guru) appear to have been wrong about his chances. True, a swingy house seat is now in danger and may flip, but look at what Sestak has done to Specter's voting record, at least for the time being. The Senate probably would have accomplished even less (if that's possible) if Specter continued acting like a Joe Lieberman (as he did after he first switched) instead of the solid progressive he quickly became when Sestak announced his challenge. That has to be worth something.
[ Parent ]
It is worth something
But somebody else could have done that particular job without risking a House seat.
[ Parent ]
Specter
Let's review: in the first week-ish of his switch, almost none of Specter's policy positions changed and he was sounding very Lieberman-esque about being an independent sort of Democrat. Then Sestak appeared and suddenly Specter was on board with a whole range of left-ish measures.

To push Specter left, you need a strong candidate. A strong candidate would have to be an elected official of some kind. A liberal from a safe seat wouldn't get traction and moderates usually hold swingy seats.

Specter has, overall, voted fairly Democratic thus far, but after the primary, with the pressure off from the base, there's no guarantee he'll continue to do so. Plus, he's survived cancer twice and will turn 81 as he starts his new term. I know the Senate is a bastion of the olds, but there's something to be said for retiring with dignity.

So I guess this is a minority view here on SSP, but hey, I am a minority. Team Sestak.  

Kansan by birth, Californian by choice, and Gay by the grace of God.

[ Parent ]
Ditto.
Specter can't be trusted politically and, quite frankly, will he make it through the term?

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.
[ Parent ]
Meek won't drop out
His mommy (and predecessor) will be holding his House seat for him, so he already has a back-up plan (doesn't exactly convey much self-confidence). He doesn't need a job to entice him away...he'll have his old one back in 2 years.

Plus, it's hard to see Meek stepping aside, since he would stand a greater chance of winning if Crist was forced to run as an Indie and split the vote, allowing Meek a possible plurality victory. In fact, that's probably the only scenario in which Meek could win, and his chances still seem slim.

I think the best hope for liberals is to root for Crist, no matter which party or label he runs under. Marco Rubio will be a Senator next year unless Crist runs as an Indie and either wins or helps Meek win. I have a feeling the only thing Meek will win is a 2-year vacation and some state-wide notoriety.

[ Parent ]
What horrible numbers
Rubio at 60% and Crist below 30%!  Ouch!  That is terrible; that is worse than the fall of Kay Bailey Hutchinsons numbers in the Texas primary and she even had a 3rd candidate to compete against.
At least Kay Bailey Hutchison was running against an incumbent
Crist's fall is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Politics and Other Random Topics

24, Male, Democrat, NM-01, Chairman of the Atheist Caucus, and Majority Leader of the "Going to Hell" caucus!

[ Parent ]
Crist should consider abandoning the GOP ship
Crist has been treated like trash from the Republican establishment.  It's amazing that he's getting dumped on for his support for the stimulus package.  The Republicans are nothing more than a dog and pony show.  Publically, any Republican is supposed to trash the package, but privately they can appreciate what the package does for their constituents back home.  The Republicans are so happy to trash "big government", but when they were the powers to be, spending increased while, at the same time, they kept on cutting taxes.  

Crist's Waterloo was when he didn't spout out the Republican rhetoric that the stimulus package was nothing more than Democratic big government.  Instead, he realized that the Florida economy was (and is) in shambles.  My sister and my parents live in the Tampa area, and their home values have dropped over 40% in the last 3 years.  Unemployment is high, their infrastructure is falling apart, and there's plenty of signs that the crime rate has increased in certain urban areas.  Crist showed a lot of courage for supporting the stimulus package, but it will probably cost him any chance of a future as a Republican politician.

40, male, Democrat, NC-04

Always suspected things would turn out like this
but just the same, these are shockingly awful numbers for Crist.  He is the governor, considered so popular that the top-tier candidates switched races to make sure they wouldn't end up facing him, and he is getting waxed by a state representative.
That would be an EX state representative...
... of course, when Rubio is President, it won't seem so unplausible in retrospect.

[ Parent ]
Crist's only real decision now is whether to switch to D or to I.
Amazing to recall how right after the '08 election, Crist was so popular that he was on most pundits' short lists of the top GOP potential candidates for the 2012 presidential race.

What a downfall.

He
could drop out and take on Nelson in 2012. Or he could just retire with dignity. Then he could wait for an open race or possible cabinet position in a republican cabinet or possibly even in Obama's cabinet. It would be a HUGE risk for him if he runs as a democrat. He would increases team blue's chances, but still I would rank it at leans R.  

Proud member of the Indiana Democratic Party from IN-9.  
[ Parent ]
Charlie, Charlie, Charlie
If only you hadn't listened to John Cornyn...  

Independent Socialist & Chair of SSP Cranky Indianian Hoosier Caucus, IN-09
PPP shows Meek within five of Rubio with lots of undecideds to pick up among Democrats.
By comparison, Crist as a Democrat trails Rubio by nine.

http://publicpolicypolling.blo...

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

FL-Sen: Free Fall for Charlie Crist | 76 comments

Copyright 2003-2010 Swing State Project LLC

Primary Sponsor

You're not running for second place. Is your website? See why Campaign Engine is ranked #1 in software and support among Progressive-only Internet firms. http://www.mediamezcla.com/

Menu

Make a New Account

Username:

Password:



Forget your username or password?

About the Site

Publisher: DavidNYC

Senior Editor: James L.

Senior Editor: Crisitunity

Contributing Editor: Jeffmd

Search the SSP archives:

SSP Resources

Presidential Vote by CD

SSP Document Collection

Race Tracker Wiki

Dave's Redistricting App

Blogroll

Daily Kos Elections
DemConWatch
Five Thirty Eight
Governing
Hotline On Call
Political Wire
Pollster.com
Prop*50
Public Policy Polling
The Thicket
Powered by: SoapBlox