The right on Crist

It looks like Obama is not the only one catching flak from both sides. Ambinder reposts Townhall about this Sun Sentinel story on Gov. Crist:

One hundred plane trips and nary a single disclosure as to what they're all about? I realize you don't have to, Charlie, but c'mon -- let us know about the special interests, or don't take the trips. I know you can do it. You're so cool.

The last line sounds a bit bitter to me. Could it be that there is weak support out side of Florida for a Crist Senate run?

Hubris and Addie Greene

The Post is reporting on Addie Green's resignation, quoting her saying, ""I have always said that if I cannot do the job at the right level of service I would step aside." This is a noble statement, but it doesn't line up with what Ms. Greene is said to have known about her ability to operate at that level:

Greene, a breast cancer survivor, said she's now seeing seven doctors for ailments that include bad knees and her history of cancer.
One doctor warned her not to run for reelection last year, she said.

Are we supposed to believe that she didn't know that she wouldn't meet her own standards? Regardless of the expectations she has for herself, Greene actually says of the idea of having a political opponent during an election, "It annoyed me...I'll leave when I want to."


Look, my intention is not to mindlessly bash Ms. Greene. Furthermore, I believe that she is right to demand African-American representation on the County Commission. But, she ran against and defeated an African-American politician on her way to this resignation. And now, she needs to implore a white politician to redress that. Because she felt annoyed.

Klein: We need to determine the TARP's effectiveness

Rep. Ron Klein (D-22) put out a press release about the Toxic Assets Recovery Program:

Large banks such as Citigroup and Bank of America are important to the health of the American economy, and the uncontrolled failure of these institutions would have a significant negative impact on credit availability and the successful operation of the financial system. But, it is essential that taxpayers dollars are not spent propping up insolvent institutions. In his written testimony, Dr. Baker asserted that some of the large financial institutions are likely insolvent, and we need to closely examine the benefits of continued capital injections into these firms.

By the way, I'm assuming he's talking about Dean Baker but I'm not sure. Anyhow, the above statement shows that Rep. Klein is, at least, talking about alternatives to resolving the financial crisis. I'm not sure how that squares up with the return to the "bad bank" approach which assumes that the banks are solvent.

Precourt Conflict of Interest

Naked Politics opens up on state Rep. Steve Precourt (R-Orlando)

Precourt used the piece to make an ardent pitch for the CSX commuter rail project in Florida. "Providing transportation alternatives to the entire state is vital to our economy and the health of our communities," he wrote.

But what the Orlando Republican did not reveal is that the engineering firm that bears his family name has received $1.7-million from the state to do survey and mapping work for the controversial CSX project in Central Florida. Nor did Precourt disclose his ties when he voted for the deal last session, as some other lawmakers have when their public and private interests appeared to overlap.

NP notes that Precourt says he sold his stake, although "he occasionally assists Dyer, Riddle, Mills and Precourt on "miscellaneous stuff for continuity sake, given my 20 years with the firm" and that he has a small contract that pays him for his time. " Where, exactly, is the line between crony capitalism and public corruption?

Tom Rooney hypocrisy

(via PBP)
This is old news, but galling nonetheless:

Freshman U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, and every other Republican in the
House voted against a Democrat-drafted $787 billion economic stimulus package.
But now that President Obama has signed the measure into law, Rooney has added
his signature to a Florida plea for $2.7 billion in stimulus money for public
schools.

I'd like to know how Congressman Rooney can sign on to this while stating that he "cannot support the Democrats’ expensive stimulus bill that levees our economic future on the backs of our children while spending billions on projects that will do little to stimulate the economy". There is no statement about this on his Congressional website.

Putney: Do we know Charlie?

(ht Daily Pulp)
Michael Putney asks the question:

Is Charlie the genuinely concerned Republican moderate/populist he professes to be (``I work for the people, they're my boss'')? Or is he a slightly ditzy, disconnected lightweight who has succeeded on the strength of great political instincts, an appealing personality and a Clintonesque (Bill, not Hillary) talent for making you feel like you're the most important person in the room for however long you're with him?

I want to ask Putney, who cares? What exactly does psychologizing about the "real" Charlie Crist accomplish? Thinking along these lines, it seems to me, culminates in a kind of lazy analysis. It's thinking that get you "Bush wins an election because he's the candidate we'd like to have a beer with"-type sound bytes.

By turning policymaking into character-driven narratives, you end up creating a knowledge gap for the elctorate. We know what we need to know about Crist by looking at his accomplishments. Anything else (including whether or not he's popular, a frat boy, or gay) is, or should be, meaningless.

Adam Putnam hypocrisy

via Miami-Dade Dems
Friedgator has an interesting post on Congressman Adam Putnam (R-FL) regarding his voting record on the TARP (for) vs ARRA (against). The argument being made is that the TARP legislation, geared toward helping banking interests, received a yes vote from the legislator. ARRA, geared toward helping citizens, was rejected. Furthermore, Putnam's agricultural interests received federal support after the 2004 huricane season.

So to recap, an self-serving record from a legislator poised to run for a secretary seat.