Good Wednesday morning.
U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist’s latest ad injects presidential politics into the Democratic Primary for Governor. But it’s not about the current guy, or the former one. Instead, it focuses on “the Hug.”
The 15-second ad highlights his 2009 embrace of former President Barack Obama, which many cite as the moment Crist was exiled from the Republican Party.
At the time, the then-Republican Governor was willing to work with Obama to pull Florida out of the Great Recession.
The ad features footage of Obama saying: “Gov. Crist shares my conviction that creating jobs and turning this economy around is a mission that transcends party, and that’s exactly what he’s doing.”
A decade-plus later, Crist summed up the symbolic value of that hug in a tweet unveiling the ad: “I will always put Floridians over politics — always have and always will.”
The video was met with scoffs from Nikki Fried’s gubernatorial campaign, which attempted to put the moment in context by noting Crist was an adamant supporter of former U.S. Sen. John McCain in the 2008 presidential election and even called Sarah Palin “very impressive” and a “great candidate.”
Fried’s campaign also highlighted Crist’s Obama-era statement negatively comparing Obama to former President Jimmy Carter, calling him a “different thing” — “too much, too fast, too soon.”
“Charlie Crist only believes in one thing: himself,” said Keith Edwards, Fried’s Communications Director. “Floridians don’t need any more fair-weather politicians, and that’s why they’re going to elect Nikki Fried to be their next Governor.”
To watch the ad, please click the image below:
Here are some other thoughts:
— Looking for more info on the FBI raid? Don’t hold your breath. While Florida Politics was the first news outlet to break the news, we don’t know much more about it … and it seems most other media is just as in the dark as we are. We could speculate, of course, but there are many better sources for that — David French’s take is a good starting point.
— There’s still time to right the ship, but Republicans are doing a bang-up job impersonating the 2016 Atlanta Falcons. The latest evidence of a momentum shift toward Democrats comes from FiveThirtyEight, which says Democrats are leading Republicans on a generic ballot test for the first time since November. Sure, it’s only a 0.1% lead, but they were down 2% a month ago.
— There are dozens of state House elections on the Primary ballot this year, but far fewer are worth your time and attention. Need some direction on which ones to watch? The City & State’s Tristan Wood has you covered with a list of 10 Primary races to keep your eyes on over the next two weeks.
— Students in some Florida school districts are heading back to class today, so there’s no better time to highlight the Florida lobbyists and political associations that shape the state’s education policies and budget.
— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —
—@JDVance1: “They had a warrant.” They had a warrant in 2016, too, based entirely on a fake political opposition memo.
—@DavidAFrench: A lot of people are losing their minds … without seeing the warrant, the warrant application, or the supporting materials. Neither the former President nor the FBI are above the law. Take a breath and wait until we see the basis for the warrant before judging its merits.
—@KevinSixx13: Republicans are responding stronger to Mar-a-Lago being searched than they did for the Uvalde school shooting.
—@CPoliticDitto: I haven’t seen Republicans THIS angry since Sesame Street told them to get vaccinated, or the green M&M got less sexy, or Michelle Obama told their kids to do jumping jacks, or Barack wore a tan suit or
—@MichaelKeaton: Lots of “if they can do this to a former President, they can do it to you” talk out there PRECISELY. No one is above the law.
—@VoteRandyFine: Never been more grateful the founders put the #2A in the Bill of Rights.
—@ElectProject: Did the macho macho men who gave us the insurrection start their civil war yet? Maybe I’m just getting too old and can’t hear the bombs dropping anymore
—@JayAtarah: “The red wave just got bigger” Y’all are literally calling for the FBI & DOJ to be abolished and for a civil war to begin; how do you think that’ll go down with swing voters?
—@BillKristol: Man, August has been a newsy month. Lucky it’s almost over.
—@NickMcCarvel: Doing some interviews around Serena’s pending retirement today: “Does it matter that she didn’t get to that 24th Slam?” The answer is no. “Who does she stand alongside in terms of female athletes and accomplishments?” No one — she stands alone.
Sunburn is authored and assembled by Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Daniel Dean, Renzo Downey, Jacob Ogles, and Drew Wilson.
The post Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 8.10.22 appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..
Republished with permission [/vc_message]
Disclaimer
The information contained in South Florida Reporter is for general information purposes only.
The South Florida Reporter assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the contents of the Service.
In no event shall the South Florida Reporter be liable for any special, direct, indirect, consequential, or incidental damages or any damages whatsoever, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tort, arising out of or in connection with the use of the Service or the contents of the Service. The Company reserves the right to make additions, deletions, or modifications to the contents of the Service at any time without prior notice.
The Company does not warrant that the Service is free of viruses or other harmful components
This article originally appeared here and was republished with permission.
