Free Republic

In August 2011 Gov. Rick Scott first made it plain he likes toll lanes on major highways and wants more of them. They speed up traffic, he said. In October 2011, PolitiFact Florida checked out his assessment, rated it "mostly true." So it was a little surprising to see the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting (FCIR), whose stated purpose is "to expose corruption, waste and miscarriages of justice," expose Scott's commitment to toll lanes. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great this news is well and truly in front of the public again. And shame on all of us...

In the next decade, Florida’s biggest cities will add toll lanes to the state’s busiest highways. Nobody knows exactly how much it will cost. Maybe as little as $3 billion. Maybe double that. What’s clear is that when the toll lanes across the state are complete, they will become one of the largest infrastructure projects in state history. There’s little debate that the toll lanes, also called express lanes or managed lanes, make commutes quicker for those willing to pay as much as $10 to use them. But there has been little debate about the need for the projects —...

A letter released by the Charlie Crist campaign: Dear Governor Scott: Four years ago, a district court of appeals ruled Florida’s ban on gay and lesbian adoption unconstitutional. When the ruling came down, I believed it was my job as Governor to exercise the authority vested in me by the people and our Constitution. The day the judge ruled, I declared Florida’s adoption ban over. Gay and lesbian parents began adopting the children they loved immediately. It is one of my proudest moments as an elected official. Last Thursday Federal District Judge Robert Hinkle gave you the same chance to...

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. Crist easily defeated former state Sen. Nan Rich, while Scott coasted in his own primary toward a general election matching the state’s last two Republican governors. Both have struggled with sagging approval ratings and run-ins with conservatives. “It’s a wonderful night,” Crist declared after accepting a concession call from Rich. Crist said the strong showing is a sign that Democrats believe in...

MIAMI — Gov. Rick Scott and his chief opponent, former Gov. Charlie Crist, both handily defeated opponents in their parties’ primaries on Tuesday. Mr. Crist, a Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat, faced the tougher challenge, against Nan Rich, a former state senator who calls herself the “real Democrat” in the race. But he easily defeated her, The Associated Press reported. With little statewide name recognition, Ms. Rich did not gain much traction in her efforts to sideline Mr. Crist. But political analysts were keeping an eye on Democratic turnout to see how much enthusiasm Mr. Crist, a moderate, has engendered among Democrats, who once...

The billionaire is ready to take out Florida’s multi-millionaire governor. In a nationwide push to fight Republicans who deny the existence of man-made climate change, investor-turned-activist Tom Steyer has founded a Florida political committee, seeded it with $750,000 of his own money and says he’ll spend far more to help Democrat Charlie Crist defeat Gov. Rick Scott. Florida Democrats are buzzing about Steyer spending $10 million, which he won’t discuss. Republicans say the California Democrat is a phony environmentalist, but they nevertheless worry his financial commitment could be real in Florida. “It’s hard to look at the map of the...

WASHINGTON — U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder sent a scathing letter to Gov. Rick Scott over voting changes in Florida and issued a warning that the Justice Department is "carefully monitoring" the state. "Whenever warranted by the facts and the law, we will not hesitate to use all tools and legal authorities at our disposal to fight against racial discrimination, to stand against disenfranchisement and to safeguard the right of every eligible American to cast a ballot," Holder wrote. Scott's office dismissed it as a "bizarre attempt to help Charlie Crist." The letter, dotted with pointed language and examples of...

On July 25 the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit "eliminated the injunction" against the enforcement of Florida's "gun gag" law, which restricts doctors from asking patients if they own a firearm unless asking is necessary to a patient's treatment. According to Law360.com, the 11th Circuit ruled that barring doctors from asking about firearms "doesn't violate the First Amendment." Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) signed the NRA-backed "gun gag" legislation in 2011. Suit was brought against the State of Florida over the law by "the Florida chapters of the American Academies of Pediatrics and American College of...

Despite claims that he switched to the Democratic Party as a result of "GOP racism," Charlie Crist has been unable to secure strong minority support and as a result has lost the lead in his bid to reclaim the Florida Governors mansion against incumbent Governor Republican Rick Scott. In the latest CBS/New York Time/YouGov poll, Scott now leads Crist by five points in a race analysts suggest may be getting away from Crist. Charlie Crist led the race by as many as 15 points in polls taken early this year, but has been unable to muster strong support from minority...

Florida is leading the nation in job growth, adding more than 37,000 jobs this month. The Tampa Bay area has added over 25,000 jobs in the last 12 months, third among metro areas in Florida, according to state officials..

Noted party-jumper Charlie Crist has blown a 12-point lead over Florida's incumbent Republican Gov. Rick Scott, narrowing the state's gubernatorial race to a dead heat, according to the Democratic-leaning survey firm Public Policy Polling.

Fox News’ Sean Hannity sat down with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal on Thursday at the Republican Leadership Conference to talk about the accomplishments conservative governors have made across the U.S. “All of you inherited deficits you turned into surpluses, high unemployment now low unemployment,” Hannity said of Jindal and Govs. Rick Scott (FL), Rick Perry (TX), John Kasich (OH), Scott Walker (WI), and Nikki Haley (SC). “What can the Republicans in Washington learn?” Washington can actually learn a lot from states if they want to—it’s just common sense, Jindal replied. Lawmakers inside the beltway always talk about the things...

Today, Governor Rick Scott announced plans to file a lawsuit establishing the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration’s (AHCA) authority to inspect federal VA hospitals in Florida, and to stop the federal veterans affairs agency from obstructing state actions. Governor Scott said, “As the chief health policy and planning entity for the state that licenses, inspects, and investigates consumer complaints, AHCA should be allowed access to federal VA hospitals to inspect their processes and their facilities. On seven separate occasions at six federal VA hospitals, however, state inspectors have been blocked by federal officials from carrying out their mission of...

BREVARD -- Brevard County will soon be the home of the largest economic development project in the country, officials said. The Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast announced on May 8 that Northrop Grumman Corporation has selected Brevard County for an expansion project that could create 1,800 jobs, with an average annual salary of $100,000. The project was secretly known as "Project Magellan" throughout the due diligence phase, as part of a confidentiality agreement between the company and the Space Coast, officials said. Northrop Grumman plans to invest approximately $500 million in new capital investments at Melbourne International Airport,...

Former Florida Governor Charlie Crist has made no secret of his desire to end the U.S. embargo on Cuba, but he may go even further and take a visit to the communist nation over the summer, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The Times reported that Crist is “eager to learn more about the country as he call for normalizing relations with Florida’s neighbor." Crist’s calls to lift the embargo lines up with polling across the state and the nation that show majorities favor ending the U.S. policy.

Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (D) said Tuesday that a “big reason” why he left the Republican Party was because many in the GOP were hostile to President Obama due to his race. Crist, who is running for his old office against Gov. Rick Scott (R), said in an interview with Fusion’s Jorge Ramos that he felt uncomfortable with his previous party affiliation. Republicans are perceived as “anti-women, anti-immigrant, anti-minority, [and] anti-gay,” he said, and they refuse to compromise with Obama. The ex-governor said he feels, “liberated as a Democrat.” “I couldn’t be consistent with myself and my core beliefs,...

With President Barack Obama heading to the Sunshine State on Thursday, he is drawing fire from an old foe in Gov. Rick Scott. Rising to political prominence by opposing Obama’s federal health-care law, Scott went after Obama for taking funds from Medicaid Advantage to fund the law. "Today, President Obama is coming to Florida to raise money and do a campaign-style event,” Scott said. “No one knows specifically what he’s going to talk about, but it’s safe to say he won’t be addressing the 1.3 million Florida seniors who are in danger of losing their health care benefits, doctors and...

HOUSTON, TX – The nation’s leading labor union will plan to spend $300 million in 2014 trying to unseat Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and four other Republican Governors. More: AFL-CIO to Target Walker, Other Governors People’s World reported that the AFL-CIO announced on Thursday morning during a press conference in Houston that they would spend money trying to unseat Governor Walker. Other Governors that the labor organization is targeting are John Kasich (R-Ohio), Tom Corbett (R-Pennsylvania), Rick Snyder (R-Michigan), and Rick Scott (R-Florida). The American Federation of Teachers backed the AFL-CIO’s plan. President Randi Weingarten said: “In many ways it...

WEST PALM BEACH — Wooing politicians like Gov. Charlie Crist and U.S. Sen. John McCain was a key to the success of his $1.4 billion Ponzi scheme, convicted fraudster Scott Rothstein testified Wednesday in federal court.In a wide-ranging discussion of how he built the scheme and how it imploded in October 2009 that came during his testimony in the trial of lawyer Christina Kitterman, Rothstein was both confident and contrite.

TAMPA -- Some Florida Republicans fear, and some Democrats hope, that a November referendum on legalizing medical marijuana in Florida will drive young and liberal voters to the polls, helping Democratic candidates including gubernatorial challenger Charlie Crist. The initiative, still not certified for the November ballot, is generating charges of political motives from both sides. Some Republicans call it an expensive ploy by Crist's backers to help him win. "It is no coincidence that Charlie Crist's law partner and biggest supporter, John Morgan, is financing medical marijuana," said Gainesville-based GOP consultant Alex Patton. "It's a plan." Some Democrats, meanwhile, say...