bobbyw24
11-05-2009, 03:23 PM
hink his words at that event speak for themselves,' Gibbs said. AP Close
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist may be distancing himself from his support for the stimulus bill Congress enacted earlier this year, but the White House isn't playing along.
A day after Crist denied having endorsed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters the governor's February appearance with President Obama in Fort Myers, Fla., left little doubt about his views on the law.
"I think his words at that event speak for themselves," Gibbs said. "I think he was very supportive of the legislation and supportive of the benefits that it would have and has had for the state of Florida."
Crist has played down his support for the stimulus in his Senate primary campaign against former state House Speaker Marco Rubio. Crist has consistently led Rubio in public polling, but the conservative former state legislator has won a series of local straw polls and appears to be closing the gap in some surveys of the race.
http://images.politico.com/global/politico44/091105_gibbs_crist_ap_392_regular_regular.jpg
Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos reacted to Gibbs's remarks in an email to POLITICO: "Charlie Crist's support for the stimulus is undeniable. Charlie Crist supported the stimulus, and we have the photos and video to prove it."
A day earlier, Crist flatly denied backing the Recovery Act in an interview with CNN.
"I didn't endorse it," Crist told interviewer Wolf Blitzer Wednesday. "I didn't even have a vote on the darned thing. But I understood that it was going to pass and I wanted to be able to utilize it for the benefit of my fellow Floridians."
Back in February, Crist was singing a different tune. When he introduced Obama in Fort Myers, he told his audience: "It's getting harder every day and we know that it's important that we pass this stimulus package."
"Mr. President, we need to do it in a bipartisan way," Crist said. "This issue of helping our country is about helping our country. This is not about partisan politics. This is about rising above that, helping America and reigniting our economy."
Read about another Crist stimulus flap at Ben Smith's blog.
http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/1109/kiss_of_death_1fa538c0-ac7b-45eb-bd9e-1fa09e006689.html
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist may be distancing himself from his support for the stimulus bill Congress enacted earlier this year, but the White House isn't playing along.
A day after Crist denied having endorsed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters the governor's February appearance with President Obama in Fort Myers, Fla., left little doubt about his views on the law.
"I think his words at that event speak for themselves," Gibbs said. "I think he was very supportive of the legislation and supportive of the benefits that it would have and has had for the state of Florida."
Crist has played down his support for the stimulus in his Senate primary campaign against former state House Speaker Marco Rubio. Crist has consistently led Rubio in public polling, but the conservative former state legislator has won a series of local straw polls and appears to be closing the gap in some surveys of the race.
http://images.politico.com/global/politico44/091105_gibbs_crist_ap_392_regular_regular.jpg
Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos reacted to Gibbs's remarks in an email to POLITICO: "Charlie Crist's support for the stimulus is undeniable. Charlie Crist supported the stimulus, and we have the photos and video to prove it."
A day earlier, Crist flatly denied backing the Recovery Act in an interview with CNN.
"I didn't endorse it," Crist told interviewer Wolf Blitzer Wednesday. "I didn't even have a vote on the darned thing. But I understood that it was going to pass and I wanted to be able to utilize it for the benefit of my fellow Floridians."
Back in February, Crist was singing a different tune. When he introduced Obama in Fort Myers, he told his audience: "It's getting harder every day and we know that it's important that we pass this stimulus package."
"Mr. President, we need to do it in a bipartisan way," Crist said. "This issue of helping our country is about helping our country. This is not about partisan politics. This is about rising above that, helping America and reigniting our economy."
Read about another Crist stimulus flap at Ben Smith's blog.
http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/1109/kiss_of_death_1fa538c0-ac7b-45eb-bd9e-1fa09e006689.html