Is Charlie Crist dissing Jeb Bush's legacy?

[ccharles000]

If they didn't know much about Jeb Bush, people listening to Charlie Crist at a GOP conference in Michigan this weekend may have been under the impression the ex-governor was tax and spender ignoring schools:

"We understood we needed to reign in spending. When I got elected governor our state budget was $73 billion. I cut it $8 billion in 2 1/2 years. Now it's down to $66 billion," Crist told the crowd.

"When I got elected governor, out of 50 states, Florida in K-12 education was ranked 31st -- 31st out of 50. Not so good. Last year we went from 31st to 1,4 and this year, top 10. We're very proud of that," Crist said.

Listening to the speech, we didn't hear Crist say Florida was plagued by high unemployment when he entered office, but of course it wasn't. Unemployment, now at 10.7 percent, was 3.3 percent when Crist took office.

Naturally, the Marco Rubio campaign had a reaction: "Unfortunately for Charlie Crist, what happened in Michigan this weekend, didn’t stay in Michigan," said Rubio campaign spokesman Alex Burgos. "In an effort to hide his own economic record, Charlie Crist even appears to have taken a page out of the Obama playbook by blaming a Bush for what he inherited. Charlie Crist needs to own up to the fact that he inherited a state with 3.3 percent unemployment that has now soared to 10.7 percent on his watch."

http://blogs.tampabay.com/buzz/2009/09/charlie-crist-dissing-jeb-bushs-legacy.html

[napi21]

1. Is there ANY truth to Fl. schools improving that much?

If there is, I sure haven't heard about it!

[peekaloo]

3. this article may help

http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/article960721.ece


Governor Carrot Cake, like many career politicians, likes to cherry pick his "achievements".

[CoffeeCat]

2. I think there's some bad blood there...

I don't think Crist has always laid down for the Bush junta. The Bushes had
a career track for Jebbie, and I'm sure Crist was supposed to fall in line--and
run or not run--when the Bushes decided.

I think Crist has balked at all of that. And didn't Crist have a lukewarm response
to McCain as well? Didn't he fail to campaign for McCain?

I think Crist isn't toeing the line that the thugs want.

We've heard Bill Clinton talk about the virulence of the right-wing criminals. I
imagine they come down just as hard on Republicans--when they don't fall in line
like sheep on Quaaludes.

[watercolors]

4. And the loss of health care to thousands of children.

Many were cut without notice to parents at all, it has been a mess. My daughter is