Free Republic

Duke Energy seeks nearly $2 million in Florida electricity rate hikes to pay for a new power plant made necessary by environmental restrictions. The electricity rate hikes became necessary as environmental restrictions force the closing of two coal power plants providing Floridians with inexpensive electricity. ... Aided by $10 million in campaign spending by billionaire liberal activist Tom Steyer, the Charlie Crist campaign is hammering Gov. Rick Scott for not imposing still more stringent power plant restrictions, above and beyond those imposed by the federal government. Steyer and Crist say Florida should impose state-specific power plant restrictions that would close...

Play With Closed Captions Gov. Rick Scott widened his lead in the gubernatorial race, taking a 5-point lead over Charlie Crist, according to the latest News Channel 8 poll. Scott pulled 44 percent compared with 39 percent for Crist in the poll. Scott actually dropped a point from the 45-44 tally last week, but fared better as Crist lost support and dropped below 40 percent for the first time since the poll started this spring. Libertarian candidate Adrian Wyllie more than doubled his share, taking 7 percent in the survey. Nine percent were undecided. Crist's lead has slipped in Southeast...

...Crist spoke to over 1,000 voters on Saturday night, in Downtown Orlando about his faith and vision for the future of Florida.... The group in attendance came in the bus loads, and the venue was at capacity. They leaned to the left as they cheered Crist’s pledge to raise the minimum wage, healthcare, and supporting policies popular with the dreamers. “I did all of this as a Republican” Crist said “Imagine what I’ll do as a Democrat!”. "....I was raised a Methodist. Raised with three sisters. It makes you appreciate women more and their rights. This I know about God....

...Obama will visit U.S. Central Command, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base, on Wednesday for a briefing from his commanders on battle plans against the Sunni insurgent group Islamic State. ....White House officials made it clear that there would also be no U.S. military forces on the ground in Syria to coordinate airstrikes, nor have any done so in Iraq. But as the President continues to coalesce U.S. and international efforts to “degrade and ultimately defeat” IS, and Pentagon officials say they are making headway against IS in Iraq, two former Centcom commanders offer mixed reviews of his plans. “I...

Charlie Crist is siding with the teachers union — not African-American ministers — over a new lawsuit that seeks to dismantle the state’s major school-choice program..... Crist made his choice clear Wednesday when he refused to heed the request of a major Panhandle civil-rights leader, the Rev. H.K. Matthews, who asked the Democrat to “publicly denounce” a new teacher union-led lawsuit that seeks to dismantle the major school-choice program. “You cannot stay silent on this lawsuit,” Matthews wrote. “These families deserve to know if you support or oppose the lawsuit to evict 70,000 poor — and mostly minority — children...

CHECK OUT DRUNKEN RANT BY DEMOCRATIC FUNDRAISER AND BOSS OF CHARLIE CRIST, WHO IS NOW THE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR FLORIDA GOVERNORDrunk, Drunk, Drunk—Top Florida Democrat and Charlie Crist fundraiser John Morgan blows up in a DRUNKEN TIRADE! And it was ALL CAPTURED ON VIDEO!Democrat Charlie Crist is runnning for Governor in Florida.John Morgan went off script Thursday at “Boots and Buckles” in Lakeland. Via United West:

.....How does the former Republican governor make history by getting elected governor again as a Democrat? The plan essentially boils down to matching Sink's performance — the former chief financial officer lost to Scott by 1.2 percentage points, less than 62,000 votes — and then, through sophisticated computer modelling, analytics and voter targeting, to modestly improve on her showing among various voter groups that make up Florida's complicated electoral mosaic. "We know the universe we have to turn out," said Omar Khan, Crist's campaign manager and one of many Obama campaign veterans helping Crist. "Every decision we make and everything...

JUST DAYS AFTER THE PRIMARY SOME BARE-KNUCKLE, HARD HITTING ADS ARE ALREADY HITTING THE AIRWAVES IN THE GOVERNOR'S RACE. ONE OF THOSE ADS FROM THE FLORIDA REPUBLICAN PARTY BLASTS DEMOCRATIC CHARLIE CRIST FOR HIS ONE CLOSE TIES TO CONVICTED PONZI SCHEMER SCOTT ROTH TEEN.

Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist continued his political comeback Tuesday as Democratic voters selected him as their nominee to challenge Republican Gov. Rick Scott in Florida, one of four states where voters were choosing candidates for statewide office.

In the Democratic primary, there was never any doubt Charlie Crist was going to beat former state senator Nan Rich. The next campaign against Gov. Rick Scott will be a tight race.

Voters across Florida heard a mysterious robo call over the weekend that seemed to aimed at attacking likely Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist. "It had someone who sounded like Charlie Crist, saying, '… I stand for traditional marriage, I'm prolife, I'm against amnesty for illegal immigrants,'" said one caller on our voice mail. "That seemed clearly like fraud." Listen to the call:

This was, of course, inevitable. Democrats across Florida heard a mysterious recorded call over the weekend that seemed aimed at attacking likely Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist. The voice in the recording? Charlie Crist. “Hi, this is Charlie Crist calling to set the record straight. I’m pro-life. I oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants, I support traditional marriage, and I have never supported a new tax or big spending program. It’s sad that in his fourth try for governor my opponent has resorted to distortions and untruths. … Floridians need a consistent, conservative governor that they can trust. I would appreciate...

PolitiFact Florida checked into Charlie Crist’s statement and found that tax revenue has increased because of rising property values.

Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Charlie Crist turned to voter-rich South Florida Thursday to tap a running mate. Crist's campaign announced he had picked Annette Taddeo-Goldstein, a Colombian-American and chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, to be his lieutenant governor nominee -- provided he wins the primary

MIAMI (CBSMiami) — Former Florida Governor Charlie Crist will announce his running mate Thursday, according to sources. A Democratic sources close to the campaign said Crist will select Annette Taddeo-Goldstein as his running mate in his bid for Governor. Taddeo-Goldstein is the head of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party and lost in a congressional bid in 2008 against Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. Crist’s campaign has said he would make a major announcement but did not specify what it would be. He is scheduled to make the announcement at The LAB Miami located at 400 NW 26th Street.

A mysterious Nigerian businessman whose empire is under scrutiny for its ties to a jailed, corrupt African politician has emerged as one of Democratic candidate for governor Charlie Crist‘s biggest campaign donors, Gossip Extra has learned exclusively. Onajite Okoloko, an oil executive turned fertilizer manufacturer with a sprawling property in Boca Raton, has donated $100,000 to Democrat Crist’s campaign so far this year, according to state campaign records.

TALLAHASSEE – RPOF Chairman Leslie Dougher today released the attached Deed document and asked the following questions of Charlie Crist: Chairman Dougher said, “We have found a document showing that Charlie Crist was part of the sale of a home with Carole Crist in Fisher Island. This document raises some serious questions for Charlie: ·      Why was this home never reported before on Charlie Crist’s financial disclosure paperwork? ·      Why was the sale of this home never reported on his income taxes? ·      Was Charlie part owner of this home to help establish a homestead exemption in Florida? “The people of Florida deserve answers...

On Thursday, Crist recalled the acquittal of George Zimmerman without using his name, saying "the instigator of an event has no punishment for taking a life. There's something wrong with that."

Crist's name was going to appear on Josh Wise's No. 98 car, but the decals were removed Friday because of a complaint by the Republican Party of Florida alleging that the sponsorship violated campaign finance laws.Decals bearing the name of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist have been removed from a car competing in the Coke Zero 400 after Florida Republican officials complained. Crist's name was going to appear on Josh Wise's No. 98 car, but the decals were removed Friday because of a complaint by the Republican Party of Florida alleging that the sponsorship violated campaign finance laws, according to...

Candidate for governor Charlie Crist was disinvited from a high-profile fundraiser starring former President Bill Clinton in Miami Beach Tuesday evening after Crist’s Democratic primary opponent Nan Rich ran into Hillary Clinton in Washington, Gossip Extra has learned. The $25,000-party at the Palm Island home of Lumber Liquidators founder Tom Sullivan was officially a fundraiser for the Democratic Governors Association, an organization that supports Crist.