Dems say Crist's chair is empty half the time

The Florida Democratic Party is turning the tables on the television commercial that helped Republican Gov. Charlie Crist get elected in 2006.

Crist mocked his Democratic challenger's voting record in Congress in an ad that depicted U.S. Rep. Jim Davis' empty chair whizzing around Washington.

Now Florida Democrats are accusing Crist of neglecting the state while campaigning with Republican presidential contender John McCain. According to the party, Crist took more days off than he actually worked in the first month and a half of 2008, posting a 48.3% attendance record during 30 potential work days. Check it out at www.emptychaircharlie.com.

"These days, Floridians are more likely to see their Governor's perpetually sunny face in the background of a McCain campaign press conference than working to deal with the state's economic crisis,'' said Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman.

The party says it culled the information from the governor's calendar at www.flgov.com/calendar but says it "may not be comprehensive."

Crist's spokeswoman, Erin Isaac, did not dispute the numbers but said that the governor has been with McCain outside of Florida only when they traveled together on Feb. 4 and 5. Their schedules overlapped during two consecutive weekends in Washington, where Crist was attending meetings with members of Congress and other Republican governors.

"Gov. Crist has campaigned with Sen. McCain just two days outside of our state,'' Isaac said.  "There is no doubt Gov. Crist has been focused on Florida."

The Democratic attack comes in the wake of a snafu in which Crist canceled plans to attend a United Way of Broward County charity event to accept McCain's invitation to his Arizona ranch. When confronted by the media, Crist backtracked. Read Beth Reinhard's column about Crist's juggling act here.

Comments

[ItFigures]

It was just a matter of time before the Democrats turned on their "friend".