Marco Rubio - U.S. Senate - 2010

MR. GREGORY: Do you think the president has the right prescription to ease this recession?
GOV. CRIST: I think he’s on the right track.

Here’s a reminder of Charlie Crist’s stimulus victory lap the last time he was on “Meet The Press.”

WATCH THE VIDEO

Between his negative personal attacks against Marco Rubio and his sudden interest in debating, it’s clear Charlie Crist is a desperate politician in search of a game-changer to distract from his support for stimulus spending, higher taxes and cap-and-trade. For someone who repeatedly ignored Marco Rubio’s year-long call for debates because he claimed he was “governing,” it’s also interesting that Governor Crist suddenly wants to debate just as Florida’s legislative session begins.

As Marco has said all along, he would be glad to debate Charlie Crist on Meet The Press any time after he keeps his commitment to debate first on FOX on March 28. After that, he looks forward to discussing why Charlie Crist was wrong to endorse and promote the stimulus the last time he appeared on Meet the Press.

Unfortunately for Governor Crist, no one really believes Marco Rubio is afraid to debate him, just like no one trusts him to stand up to Barack Obama.

Alex Burgos, Rubio for Senate spokesman

FLASHBACK: Following Passage Of The Stimulus In February 2009, Charlie Crist Took A Victory Lap On Meet The Press

GOV. CRIST: It’s not a matter of bucking the party, it’s a matter of helping the people. I mean, I really view it as an issue of what can I do that’s best for the people of Florida? We’ve got almost 20 million people that live in the Sunshine State now. I think my obligation is in essence the CEO of the state, to do everything I can to help us get through this tough economy. Certainly this stimulus package, about $12.2 billion to Florida, will help Florida an awful lot.

MR. GREGORY: You heard Governor Jindal on the program just a couple of minutes ago. Much different view, thinks they got the plan all wrong. You disagree with the government role that’s being exercised here in trying to fix the economy?

GOV. CRIST: I do. I think that, you know, there are times when you’re in a crisis and we all need to work together in order to get through those crises. And I think that this is one of those times. It is fundamental to be able to make sure that we help our children in school. This is going to help us in our education in Florida by about $3.5 billion. It’s going to help us with Medicaid, the most vulnerable among us who really need help and need it now. That’ll be in excess of $5 billion for Florida. It also helps us in road construction and producing jobs. That’s almost $1.5 billion for the Sunshine State. It’s fundamentally important that we help the people, we reach out to them, we understand they’re in a time of need. In the past five weeks, I’ve visited six unemployment offices throughout Florida. I look into the eyes of these people and I understand that the challenges are serious that they’re having to deal with, and I want to do everything I can to help them.

MR. GREGORY: There’s no Republican from Florida in Congress who supported the stimulus. One prominent Republican consultant said this about you and your support for it: “I don’t think he’s helped any national Republican ambitions he may have had by stepping up to the plate and batting for the other team. … There’s a difference between working in a bipartisan way for the common good and switching sides and putting on the other team’s jersey. At the one moment when we finally found our voice and remember who we are as Republicans, Charlie Crist forgets. It is stunning.” Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford, also said nobody thinks you’re a fiscal conservative. Are you an Obama Republican?

GOV. CRIST: I’m a Florida Republican. And in the Florida way, we work together in a bipartisan fashion to do what’s right for the people. That’s really what it’s all about. You know, people run for office in order to try to help their constituents, the people of their state or their district or their country. In my case it’s Florida, and that’s all I care about. And in Florida we work across the aisle. My friends in the House and the Senate that are of the Democratic Party, I reached out to them. People like Robert Wexler. He wanted to have a paper trail for our elections. We had some embarrassing elections in the past in my state. I didn’t want my state to be embarrassed anymore. So I’ll take ideas from anybody. It really doesn’t matter if they’re a Republican, a Democrat or an independent; if they’re a Floridian and they care about the people of our state, I want to work with them to make sure that we have a better future and a brighter future.

MR. GREGORY: Do you think it’s a mistake for the Republican Party to define itself by opposition to the stimulus?

GOV. CRIST: Well, it may be. All I know is I have to do what I think is in the best interest of the people of Florida. And from my perspective, it’s to try and help them. Help them every single day in every way that I can in education, in infrastructure, in health care; do the kinds of things that keep us from having to raise taxes. You know, another part that people don’t talk about in the stimulus bill is that it cuts taxes. About a third of it cuts taxes. That’s an important thing for people to remember, I think, because people need a break. We’ve been able to cut taxes in Florida. We have reduced our property taxes. It’s the largest single tax cut in the history of my state. I’m very proud of that. At the same time, because of the stimulus we’ll be able to pay our teachers more next year than we were this past year. So I think it works, it works well, it helps people, it does what’s right.

MR. GREGORY: Do you think the president has the right prescription to ease this recession?

GOV. CRIST: I think he’s on the right track. I don’t think anybody says this is a perfect bill. I don’t. I don’t think even President Obama says that. But we’ve got to do something. We are at a time of need, and to do nothing certainly is not acceptable. This is not perfect, but we’ve got to do something to try to get our country back on track for the benefit of our people.