Gov. Charlie Crist has done something very right (or maybe “left”?). He vetoed a bill that would have required an ultrasound– at their own expense– for women seeking an abortion during their first trimester.

Chipping away at abortion rights, which are legal, has been a favorite pastime of conservatives.  Here’s how they tried to do it this time:

The Republican-led Legislature tacked amendments onto a non-controversial health care bill (HB 1143) that also would have required women to view the live image or have it described by a doctor unless they could prove they were victims of rape, incest or domestic violence. Ultrasound exams can cost between a few hundred dollars and $1,500 and the women would have also been required to pay for the procedure.

Marco Rubio didn’t like Crist’s veto. Neither did John Stemberger, head of the Florida Family Policy Council:

[He] called the veto “profoundly disappointing” and said it’s now “crystal clear that he’s pro-abortion.”

Oh really, John? Well suck on this: It is profoundly disappointing and crystal clear that you’re pro-forced pregnancy.

However, Florida House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands supported the decision, and he didn’t mince words:

“The veto of House Bill 1143 is a victory for those who hold important the causes of personal freedom and less government intrusion in people’s lives. It’s a shame that Republican legislative leaders attempted to place an inappropriate burden on women seeking to terminate a pregnancy and attempted to so wrongly and unwisely expand the role of government.

“I hope that the voters understand that Republican legislative leaders can’t be trusted.”

Do the pro-forced preganciers realize how hypocritical they are, or are they so lacking in self-awareness that they can’t see how they contradict themselves when it comes to “big government” butting into the personal lives of voters? Seriously, how can they say they believe in both anti-choice and anti-intrusion?

Banging head on nearest wall…

H/t: CindyScott54

An oil-soaked bird struggles against the side of an Iron Horse supply vessel at the site of the oil spill off Louisiana on May 9.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Who better equipped to engage in uncontrolled, greasy, polluting slime than BushCo. Via Beach Peanuts?

Bud Chiles, son of former Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles, came out today with a harsh statement regarding the environmental consulting firm hired recently by the state of Florida to review and assist county responses to the BP oil spill.

Kathleen Shanahan, the CEO of the consulting firm WRS Compass, has ties to both Former Vice President Dick Cheney and Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. Shanahan was chief of staff for Cheney during the 2000 Presidential campaign and transition. She later became chief of staff for Jeb Bush. In March Shanahan was also re-appointed to Florida’s State Board Of Education by Gov. Charlie Crist.

According to the Palm Beach Post, Chiles, who is thinking about running for governor himself, harshly criticized the hiring of the firm.

“This is no time to tie the hands of local government by forcing them to work through a firm whose principal was Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff.”

Chiles’ full statement can be read here.

Drill, baby, drill!

BushCo is synonymous with Big Oil (not to mention cronyism), so of course, their minions should serve Florida as successfully as they served their country for eight miserable years.

Come to think of it, BushCo is not unlike the very ooze that’s infiltrating every nook and cranny of every nook and cranny, yet is impossible to remove. Maybe when someone comes up with the Oil Volcano solution, we can finally rid ourselves of BushCo, too.

H/t: mdrfl

Gee, I know I didn’t want Sotomayor confirmed, but I have no idea why that might have been. She must have said something that put me off, but for the life of me, I can’t remember what that was.

Oh, and did I mention I’m an Independent now?

Via Taegan, re: Crist’s interview with the Miami Herald:

Adam Smith: “It couldn’t possibly because he was in trouble in the Republican primary back then, could it?”

By GottaLaff

Those Tea Baggers just can’t seem to find a winning candidate.

First a peppering of McCain:

A new DailyKos/Research 2000 poll in Arizona finds Sen. John McCain (R) leading primary challenger J.D. Hayworth (R), 48% to 36%.

In general election match ups, McCain leads Rodney Glassman (D). 48% to 35%. If Hayworth is the GOP nominee, he just edges Glassman, 43% to 42%.

Add a dash of Crist:

A new Mason Dixon poll in Florida finds Gov. Charlie Crist (I) leading a three-way race for U.S. Senate with 38%, followed by Marco Rubio (R) at 32% and Rep. Kendrick Meek (D) at 19%.

Now a splash of sour:

Key finding: “More than half of Crist’s supporters are Democrats, who overwhelmingly approve of his defection from the GOP and recent veto of a controversial teacher tenure bill.”

Pollster Brad Coker thinks these numbers will change, unless the Dems somehow turn on Meek. It’s about name recognition.

And there we have it: A recipe for 2010 election fun. Stir it up, shake like crazy, bring to a boil, and bam!

By GottaLaff

So this is how they do it:

Help the Republican Party of FL Get Our Money Back!

Click on images to enlarge:

Here’s how they describe the painting. These are some hot selling points:

Privately Commissioned, High Quality, One of a Kind, Genuine Oil Painting on Fine Linen Canvas

★Canvas is naturally sensitive to changes of temperature and humidity, just as the Charlie Crist’s political convictions are subject to fluctuations in poll numbers.

★Depending upon variety of conditions, the stretch canvas may periodically lose and regain tautness, much like Charlie Crist periodically loosens or regains positions on a variety of issues.

★Ornate gold frame made of manufactured wood, similar to the fabricated conservative values of the politician depicted within.

Estimated Value – PRICELESS!

(originally commissioned and purchased by the Crist/Greer RPOF administration)

H/t: Taegan

By GottaLaff

The Tea Tantrumers will start their whining in 5…4..3…2…:

A new McLaughlin & Associates poll in Florida shows Gov. Charlie Crist (I) leading the U.S. Senate race with 33%, followed by Marco Rubio (R) at 29% and Rep. Kendrick Meek (D) at 15%.

Interestingly, the poll shows Crist taking more votes from Meek than Rubio. Crist actually does better with Democrats than Meek, with 41% of them saying they would vote for him compared to 31% for Meek.

By GottaLaff

Going independent… Charlie Crist makes his announcement. Photo: AP

Charlie Crist sure rammed his holiness down our throats during his “I am now running for Senate as a Not Really Independent, but okay, yeah, I’m an Independent” announcement. He used the God name in vain nine times.

A friend of mine generously edited this audio for me to share with you. Exhibit A:

Thank God that speech is over.

By GottaLaff

Via The Daily Beast:

It’s official: Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida will be running for the U.S. Senate as an independent. “[The people have] had enough of political fighting,” he said. “They’re tired of the games and the name-calling and the politics of destruction.” CNN

By GottaLaff

Via an e-mail alert from Fox. So far, this is all they are reporting:

Charlie Crist to Run as Independent in Florida Senate Race, Sources Tell Fox News

But will it do any good….

By GottaLaff

Mmm, I love the smell of corruption in the morning.

Back in March, I posted about Marco Rubio’s Code Red status. Let’s reminisce:

Code Red:

Marco Rubio was barely solvent as a young lawmaker climbing his way to the top post in the Florida House, but special interest donations and political perks allowed him to spend big money with little scrutiny.

About $600,000 in contributions was stowed in two inconspicuous political committees controlled by Rubio, now the Republican front-runner for the U.S. Senate, and his wife.

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald did a blow-by-blow analysis of Rubio’s expenses and wow. A must-read. Here’s a teaser:

• Rubio failed to disclose $34,000 in expenses — including $7,000 he paid himself — for one of the committees in 2003 and 2004, as required by state law.

• One committee paid relatives nearly $14,000 for what was incorrectly described to the IRS as “courier fees” and listed a nonexistent address for one of them. Another committee paid $5,700 to his wife, who was listed as the treasurer, much of it for “gas and meals.”

• He billed more than $51,000 in unidentified “travel expenses” to three different credit cards — nearly one-quarter of the committee’s entire haul.

Now it seems it’s Code Scarlet. The U.S. Attorney’s office, the FBI, and the IRS are involved:

Federal law enforcement agencies have launched a criminal investigation into the use of American Express cards issued by the Republican Party of Florida to elected officials and staff, according to sources familiar with the inquiry.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tallahassee, the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service are all involved in the inquiry, which grew out of the state investigation into former House Speaker Ray Sansom.

Oh, but it gets more interesting. Let’s play a game. I shout, “Marco!”, you answer, “Rubio!” every time you smell a scandal. Ready? Marco!

The IRS opened the so-called “primary” investigation into Rubio, the leading Republican candidate for Florida’s open U.S. Senate seat, and the two former state GOP officials to see if there’s enough evidence to support a full-fledged criminal inquiry, according to a source familiar with the IRS examination.

Rubio!

One more time… Marco!

At this stage of the IRS investigation, agents are looking at federal tax records, state financial disclosure forms and other documents to see whether Rubio, Greer and Johnson may have personally benefited from using their GOP American Express cards without reporting or paying taxes on additional income.

Rubio!

Between Crist and Rubio, Florida’s getting all kinds of free publicity.

H/t: Markos

By GottaLaff

The “big tent” Rushpublic party is very skilled one thing: pushing members right out of that big tent. You’re either far right or you’re wrong… except in the states in which being a not-extremist pays off.

Apparently Florida isn’t one of those:

“Reliable sources” tell the Southern Political Report that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) “is preparing to announce sooner rather than later that he will leave the GOP and continue his run for Senate as an independent. Sources add that the speech Crist will use in his announcement is now being drafted.”

“The only thing that likely would stop a Crist independent run now is for the pressure from disillusioned Republicans and longtime Crist supporters to put so much pressure on him not to run at all that he relents. That pressure is mounting almost by the hour. Or that pressure could only speed up his party switch.”

Maybe he can initiate a Florida for Crist Party. I’m sure Joe Lieberman would be more than happy to give him a few pointers.