Throughout his career Crist has been a fighter for innovative, positive change. As a state senator, Crist fought for and passed the STOP (Stop Turning Out Prisoners) legislation that required prisoners to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences.
He also co-sponsored legislation to implement the charter schools bill, which gives parents the freedom to pick the best schools for their children.
As commissioner of education, Crist supported early reading programs to better prepare children to read at grade level when they enter school.
As attorney general, Crist helped draft, and worked to pass, tougher price gouging and looting laws; supported stronger penalties for identity thieves; and spearheaded landmark legislation requiring prescription drugs to be tracked from the manufacturer to the pharmacy to ensure drug safety.
He also created an innovative program to aid victims of domestic violence, and was named the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence's 2005 Advocate of the Year.
He has vowed that as governor, he will promote business in Florida and appoint conservative, not activist, judges to the courts. Despite Gallagher's claims to the contrary, Crist is solidly pro-life and supports a constitutional amendment to define marriage as being between a man and a woman.
Significantly, polls have consistently showed that Crist is the stronger GOP candidate, and he would fare better against either of his Democratic rivals, Rep. Jim Davis and state Sen. Rod Smith, in the general election to replace outgoing Gov. Jeb Bush.
One recent poll revealed that in a head-to-head match-up, Crist outpolled Davis 48 percent to 32 percent, compared to Gallagher's margin of 41 percent to 38 percent. Against Smith, Crist won by 18 percentage points; Gallagher led by only 10.
Crist has also won an impressive list of endorsements. Recently Sen. John McCain expressed his support for Crist, as did the National Rifle Association, whose past President Marion Hammer said "no one has been stronger" than Crist in support of Second Amendment, self-defense, and anti-crime issues.
Other endorsements have come from Sen. Mel Martinez, Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart and Jeff Miller, the Police Benevolent Association, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Florida Association of State Troopers, the Cuban American Veterans Association, and the Florida Nurses Association, as well as 46 members of the Florida Legislature and 28 county sheriffs.
Gov. Jeb Bush promised to remain neutral in the race and has not endorsed a candidate. But NewsMax believes Charlie Crist is the best candidate to continue Gov. Bush's legacy in Tallahassee and keep Florida among the most prosperous states in the Union. -------------------------------------------------------
OK, that's what NewsMax had to say -- I only met Crist once, and I liked him. I also don't appreciate the lies and innuendoes put out by the Gallagher camp... If you want more reasons after reading all of this - I'll give you more.
You guys come on and say that he's pro-life when he himself says he wants the law to stay the same (albeit he did say "I'm pro-life, I'm just for Roe v Wade to stay in place.") You guys say he's against gay adoption when he himself just said in a radio interview that he's for it and has said nothing to the contrary. You say he's a tax cutter when he openly advocates some of the biggest spending measures imaginable, often surpassing those supported by the Dems.
You bring up Gallagher's positions in 1994, still far more conservative ones than any espoused by Charlie Crist, and portray them as recent opinions, despite the fact that Gallagher has not only been a steadfast conservative since 1998 but he openly admits being a moderate before then and has gone into detail about what changed his views.
Your candidate runs around calling himself a "Reagan Republican," all the while supporting gay unions, gay adoption and record spending. Yet we're the ones who are "spreading lies and innuendoes." Go soak your head!
I'm not from the "Gallagher camp." I'm just fed up with liars and liberal who are trying to take the GOP in Florida and turn it into a second Democrat Party.
The only honest poster from your camp was MonroeDNA who openly admitted that he rejoiced when Terri was starved. The rest of you have repeated the same lies over and over in spite of irrefutable evidence.
Did you or did you not hear your candidate, the upstanding "conservative" condescending express his support of "civil" unions, insinuating that those who do not are "closed minded" and won't "let people just live their lives?"
Did you or did you not hear your candidate express support for amnesty while half hazardly trying to dodge the issue?
Did you or did you not hear your candidate falsify his record on taxes?
Did you or did you not hear your candidate make outrageous spending promises, that even he knows would never pass, allowing the Dems to rightly paint him as both reckless and a liar should our party have the misfortune of having him as our nominee?
He's a louse, and I can provide many more examples. So by all means continue to expose yourselves.