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Crist Should Drop Out Of Veep Race

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By CARL HIAASEN McClatchy Newspapers

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 3, 2008

Despite his coy avoidance of the topic, Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida is acting like he'd love to be vice president of the United States.

He attended a highly publicized gathering in Arizona hosted by Sen. John McCain, who will be heading the Republican ticket. Appearing at the barbecue with Crist last month were former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who also are salivating at the prospect of reupholstering Dick Cheney's Barcalounger.

It's no sin to be ambitious, and it's flattering to be courted by your party's presidential nominee. But if Crist cares as much about Florida as he says, he should graciously excuse himself from the vice-presidential sweepstakes. He's been governor for only 17 months, and it's fair to say that the lives of most Floridians - workers, retirees, students - - have not improved even slightly.

If Crist were to become vice president, he'd leave Tallahassee with virtually no footprints. He would be remembered more for his tan than for his leadership. People are fond of Charlie now, but likability can carry a politician only so far. At some point, voters expect results - and results take time.

Some national pundits say that Crist should be at the top of McCain's list because Crist can deliver Florida in November, and that the GOP can't win the White House without winning Florida. The first part of that theory might be true today, but Charlie might not be the same golden boy five months from now. His approval ratings in state polls, while still high, have slipped markedly.

One reason is that millions of Floridians have opened their tax bills and insurance premiums only to discover that they're still getting hammered. Remember that Crist sailed into the governor's mansion on a pledge of reducing the property taxes and reining in runaway insurance costs. These are huge and complicated problems that apparently require more than 17 months to fix.

The recent constitutional amendment on homestead exemptions, which passed largely because of Crist's barnstorming, will bring minimal relief to homeowners while causing strapped municipalities to cut services and jack up other fees and taxes.

With so much left undone, and dark economic clouds on the horizon, it's awfully early for Crist to be dreaming about higher office. As vice president, he'd be basically useless to the residents of Florida. For one thing, he'd lose all clout over the knuckleheads in our sorry excuse for a Legislature.

Say what you will about Jeb Bush (and I've said plenty that he didn't like), the man put in eight full years as governor, and he worked his butt off. That's what voters expected of Crist - not Jeb's right-of-center politics, but the same dedication to the office.

Crist still has the potential to be one of the state's most influential and unifying leaders ever, appealing as he does to many Democrats and independents. However, in chasing the vice presidency, Crist would trade the opportunity to make a real difference in Florida for a chance to succeed McCain as president in 2012 or 2016.

Maybe that would come to pass, and maybe it wouldn't. In any event, the history books in his home state would treat Crist's once-promising governorship as a forgettable footnote.

Carl Hiaasen is a columnist for the Miami Herald.

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