Posts Tagged ‘Charlie Crist’
I Never Met That Guy!
Charlie Crist has tried his best to distance himself from the scandal surrounding Jim Greer, the former Chairman of the RPOF. “I didn’t know anything about this Victory Strategies thing,” Crist told a St. Petersburg Times reporter a day after saying “I do not feel complicit,” despite his close ties to Greer.
Greer’s shell company, Victory Strategies, INC., was being used to siphon money from the Party coffers. Coincidentally, Victory Strategies, LLC was incorporated in such a way as to hide from view the person or persons who are officers of the corporation. To do this, Greer used a law firm to file the necessary paperwork with the state of Florida.
The law firm used was GrayRobinson, P.A. An office manager with the firm, Marie-Anne Luber, is listed on the corporation filings as the contact person at the address of the principal office listed on the filing, which is the office of GrayRobinson, P.A. This seems to be a rather routine procedure on the surface, except it appears that most of work the law firm does is lobbying, not lawyer-ing.
GrayRobinson P.A. is registered as one of the largest lobbying organization in the State of Florida and is the only law firm listed among the top lobbying firms. What ties does this law firm have with Charlie Crist? Prestigious appointments…lots of them. Here’s a brief list:
Marlene Quintana, a shareholder in GrayRobinson’s Miami office, appointed by Crist to the Eleventh Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, which covers Miami-Dade County.
Edwin A. Scales, III, to the Sixteenth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, which covers Monroe County. Scales is resident in GrayRobinson’s Key West office.
Jason Unger, shareholder in the Tallahassee office, Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission
R. Lee Bennett, shareholder in the Orlando office, Fifth District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission
Pete Antonacci, shareholder in the Tallahassee office, First District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission
Kim Vance, 49, of Tampa, attorney with Gray Robinson P.A., reappointed to the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council for a term beginning April 9, 2010.
And saving the best for last…….
Lori Rowe, Judge, First District Court of Appeals in Tallahassee. Ms. Rowe’s judicial qualifications for the position are, well, none. Although an attorney holding a law degree, she never tried a case prior to her appointment. She was also a member of GrayRobinson P.A.
Kim Vance, 49, of Tampa, attorney, Gray Robinson P.A., reappointed for a term beginning April 9, 2010, and ending October 1, 2012.
Keeping company in these circles, I am having a difficult time believing Charlie Crist, at some social function, wasn’t told about his buddy, his friend, his confidant’s new business venture, Victory Strategies, LLC. It seems plausible that it would have come up in conversation with the management of the firm that filed the paperwork. After all, there appears to be some pretty cozy relationships there.
Surprise! I'm Liberal!
VoteSmart.org is the web portal for the organization known as Project Vote Smart (PVS). PVS is comprised of a mostly volunteer force of Americans young and old, who take no money from special interest groups, and have committed themselves to providing their fellow citizens with the tools to empower themselves in the political process. They are best known for providing useful information to determine where a candidate stands on the issues that they will be representing you on before our law making bodies.
One of the tools used to provide this information is the Political Courage Test. It’s a series of questions on issues from taxes to welfare, abortion to education, crime and health….you get the drift. Some politicians won’t answer these questions, yet won’t supply a reasonable excuse for ducking this request. I see it as typical of some politicians to duck the issues, because most don’t have the backbone to stand firm on what and who they represent. One of these weak-spine politicos is the ever-changing Charlie Crist.
Charlie Crist was elected Governor of Florida in 2006. As Governor, he has several times refused to take the Political Courage Test, even when requested to by Senator John McCain and the president of PVS, Richard Kimball. This is no surprise for anyone, as he has worked hard to hide any position he might have on just about anything in the political spectrum.
However, while a Florida State Senator in 1998, he did answer SOME of the question on the Political Courage Test, agreeing to take the Congressional test. I guess he had political ambitions other than State Senate back then. Of course, he answered mostly those questions that were related to strong Republican talking points of the period, such as our presence in Bosnia and our role in United Nations peace-keeping missions. However, he also answered some other questions that have sparked some curiosity in my brain.
On the issue of abortion, he DIDN’T check IN FAVOR OF prohibiting public funding of abortions, and he DIDN’T check that ALL abortions should be illegal. So, Governor Charlie is pro-choice.
On the issue of budget and spending, Governor Charlie suggested eliminating arts funding and voted for a “slight decrease” in foreign aid. Otherwise, he voted to INCREASE spending in every other category. A government spender…who would have known!
On the issue of the economy and employment, he DIDN’T vote in favor of eliminating federal programs designed to reduce unemployment. Those are called welfare programs. That sounds like a socialist concept to me.
On the issue of the environment, he voted IN FAVOR of imposing stricter national air quality standards. Can you say, “Cap and Trade”?
On the issue of immigration, Governor Charlie DIDN’T vote in favor of establishing English as the recognized language of the United States government, nor did he vote AGAINST allowing children of illegal immigrants to become naturalized citizens.
Of course, what politician wouldn’t want to lower the tax on alcohol? Governor Charlie voted to greatly decrease those taxes. After all, a liar has to have a drink to relieve stress, doesn’t he?
Then there’s the issue of international trade. You know those trade agreements that have sent so many of our jobs over-seas and weakened our country and deteriorated our middle class? Well, Governor Charlie says he supports the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Of course, he also supports the World Trade Organization (WTO). Imagine that! The very people that find in favor of the Chinese every time we discover the Chinese are cheating us. I guess Charlie cares more about big business making a profit than he does about the American worker.
When it comes to welfare, Governor Charlie shows his liberal colors once again. He refused to vote IN FAVOR OF requiring that unwed teenage mothers live with a parent or guardian (if possible) and attend school to receive benefits. So I guess he thinks it’s OK for unwed mothers to drop out of school and stay on welfare their entire lives. I guess we should expect that from someone who has spent his entire life living on the public dole, bouncing from one elected position to the next.
All of the commotion about Governor Charlie switching parties was based on the unexpected decision to do this. Governor Charlie was behind in the polls, and his only hope was to dance around a primary election he was sure to lose. So, the Republican Party made a show of calling Governor Charlie a traitor and a turncoat. I find that amusing, because it appears….at least since 1998….that Charlie was well on his way to becoming the shining star of liberals everywhere, but nobody bothered to notice.
