Crist: Pondering the interim senator possibilities over the weekend

The rumor mill had suggested Gov. Charlie Crist would announce his choice to fill Sen. Mel Martinez's seat as soon as tomorrow. But it looks like it may not happen so quickly.

"I now have before me one of the most important decisions as your Governor, which is to appoint a person to serve the remainder of Senator Mel Martinez’s term," Crist said in a letter to supporters. "I welcome
the counsel of each of you this coming weekend, as I reach this decision."

Lincoln Diaz-Balart: "I could have done a good job in the Senate"

Lincoln Diaz-Balart -- a candidate on Gov. Charlie Crist's shortlist to succeed the retiring Mel Martinez -- said he believes he would've made a good temporary senator, but decided to stay in the House, where he has more seniority.

He said he fielded a lot of calls from folks asking him to stay in the House -- where he believes he can still work on important issues.

"He's invested 17 years in the House and it would have been a lot to give up," said Diaz-Balart's political consultant, Carlos Curbelo. "At the end of the day, though he was honored by the possibility and by being approached by the governor, he's invested a lot of time and effort into his work in the House."

Charlie and Bobby's excellent adventure

Gov. Charlie Crist met with one of his possible Senate appointments, former U.S. Attorney Roberto Martinez, for about 45 minutes this afternoon at the Signature Flight building near Miami International Airport.

Crist declined to release any new names he is considering to replace U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez. He said of the former U.S. attorney, "I think the world of him, and this process will continue for a period of time.''

Asked whether his Cuban heritage was a factor in replacing the Cuban-born senator, Crist said, "Certainly it's a factor. The greater factor is the tremendous integrity Bobby Martinez possesses, the great intellect that God and his parents have given him, and the wonderful heart that he has. Those things are incredibly important to me.''

Asked about Martinez's lack of Capitol Hill experience, Crist said he is looking for "a balance of a lot of different factors that are important, experience among them. Public safety is an important issue, and it's hard to find many people who have had more experience than Bobby Martinez as it relates to public safety as a former U.S. attorney...I know he's a great Republican and he's a dear friend, and I'm sure he would have the interests and concerns of the people of Florida at heart."

Martinez said: "It was a great honor to be meeting wth Gov. Crist. We discussed a lot of issues, and I'd like to keep it in confidence for the time being. He's going to make his decision, and whatever it is I'll support it and I'm sure it will be the right one."

Lincoln Diaz-Balart: "Seriously considering" Crist's request

Lincoln Diaz-Balart said today he's "seriously considering" Gov. Charlie Crist's request to fill out an application to fill retiring Sen. Mel Martinez's term.

Crist said Friday he'll ask as many as 7 people to fill out the application. Diaz-Balart's name has sparked interest because his appointment would leave his congressional seat wide open, prompting speculation that his brother, Mario, could run for his seat and that Crist's GOP rival, Marco Rubio, would run for Mario's seat.

The Florida Democratic Party has questioned whether Lincoln would quit early to run for president of Cuba, should the Castro brothers exit the scene. Speculation has long followed Diaz-Balart that the job he really wants is the presidency of Cuba.

During last year's re-election campaign, Diaz-Balart told the Herald he finds speculation about his presidential aspirations offensive.

"That's an insult to those who today are in Fidel Castro's dungeons," he said in an interview. "Those are the heroes of Cuba. Those who have given their freedom, their blood, they are the ones who have earned the presidency."

U.S. Senator Lincoln Diaz-Balart? U.S. Rep. Marco Rubio?

Here's what Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart had to say about reports that he's on Gov. Charlie Crist's list for potential Senate candidates.

"Governor Crist has the best interests of the people of Florida at heart," Diaz-Balart said Friday night. "I trust his judgment."

Florida Democrats suggest this scenario: Diaz-Balart is appointed senator, opening up a congressional seat for Crist GOP primary rival, Marco Rubio, to run for Congress in a special election. That could prove a tidy solution, allowing Crist to score points with the Hispanic community and dispatch his pesky rival. It would also allow the GOP to give Rubio, its young Cuban American star, some love.

"Stranger things have happened," said Eric Jotkoff, spokesman for the Florida Democratic Party. "How else can one explain LDB being on the short list?"

Rubio, who volunteered for Diaz-Balart's 1992 campaign, says the congressman is "very talented, very qualified and he'd do a great job in the U.S. Senate." And would he run for Diaz-Balart's seat?

"I'm running for the U.S. Senate," Rubio said. "All of that is political speculation. It's been an unusual political year but the fact now is I'm running for the U.S. Senate."

Waiting for other shoe to drop in Mel Martinez departure

Political consultant and pollster Matt Towery is convinced we haven't heard the whole story of why Sen. Mel Martinez is leaving 17 months before his term ends.

"It's like being a king. No one wants to give that up,'' he said. "I find it suspicious, weird, odd and inexplicable."

Towery also thinks Gov. Charlie Crist has underestimated his problem with the conservative base of his party. More here.

Crist seeking counsel on '7 or so' for Martinez replacement

Gov. Charlie Crist said Wednesday morning that he is reaching out to people he trusts for advice on how best to fill Sen. Mel Martinez' seat, now that Martinez is stepping down early.

Crist made the statements when asked about Roberto Martinez, former U.S. Attorney and current Board of Education member, as a potential pick. Here's the exchange:

Crist: "I have reached out to several people that I have a great deal of respect for, to get their advice and counsel on some names. and there's probably about seven or so names... and we will have more for you later."

Times/Herald: "What about Rep. (Anitere) Flores, whose name has begun circulating as yet another potential replacement?

Crist: "She called me this morning."

Times/Herald: "Is she on the list?"

Crist: "There is no formal list."

Times/Herald: "You said there's seven names."

Crist: "I said there may be."

No campaign, but Mel Martinez still spending donations

U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez announced eight months ago that he would not seek reelection but has continued to spend campaign donations on consultants, staff, air fares, meals, cellphones and purchases at the Senate gift shop.

Federal Election Commission records show Martinez has spent $147,642 since his Dec. 2 announcement. He also returned $419,051 to his contributors, with $456,200 remaining in the account as of June 30.

Federal law gives officeholders wide latitude to spend campaign donations on anything related to their election or in connection with their official duties.

"My general advice is, 'contributors beware,' '' said Paul Ryan, an election law expert at the Campaign Legal Center, a Washington-based watchdog group. "The door is close to wide open for what federal officeholders can do with the money in their coffers.''

Keep reading here.

Another Martinez in the mix for Senate

Add former U.S. Attorney Bob Martinez to the shortlist of names under consideration by Gov. Charlie Crist to serve the rest of Sen. Mel Martinez's term.

Martinez is a longtime friend of Crist and headed his transition team when he was elected in 2006. He's a partner in the Coral Gables law firm of Colson Hicks Eidson and serves on the Florida Board of Education and Florida Federal Judicial Nominating Commission.

 Martinez is a Republican but gets good reviews from Democrats like state Sen. Dan Gelber, who worked for Martinez in the early 1990s.

"Bob has got extraordinary character and intelligence and is as current on the issues as anyone I know,'' Gelber said. "He's a good Republican, but more importantly, he's a good American."

A Cuban-American with a whiff of bi-partisanship and a background in law enforcement sounds like a safe and appealing choice for Crist. Sources closed to the governor say Martinez and Crist's former chief of staff, George LeMieux, are at the top of his list.

Crist seeks Martinez replacement with "integrity"

Gov. Charlie Crist ultimately wants Mel Martinez's U.S. Senate seat, but for now he has to appoint what amounts to a placeholder for the seat, thanks to Martinez's announcement last week that he'll step down early.

This morning, speaking to reporters, Crist said he has not yet made any decision about whom to appoint. But he vowed to take great care and deliberation. Names are already emerging, with the consensus being he'll appoint a known, trusted person who has no desire to hold the seat for more than the duration of Martinez's final term.

"It's an important decision, and I want to make sure it's transparent," said Crist, who faces former House Speaker Marco Rubio in the Republican primary for the seat and is expected to face off against Democrat Kendrick Meek in the 2010 general election.

"I want to make sure the people interviewed are people of integrity and character," Crist said, adding that he is "not sure" if he will do all the interviews himself.