Charlie Crist

Gov. Charlie Crist and two Cabinet members who sit on a panel that invests state money chastised their top staffer for failing to keep them updated on a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation. But the State Board of Administration on Tuesday also praised Ash Williams' overall performance and unanimously reaffirmed his appointment for another year overseeing more than $130 billion in investments. Crist, Attorney General Bill McCollum and Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink had complained Williams didn't advise them in October 2008 when he received a formal order of private investigation from the SEC. Williams said the order, which arrived just a day or ... Read Full Story

A South Florida lawyer suspected of operating a $1 billion Ponzi scheme is asking for his own disbarment. A Florida Bar committee has approved the disbarment request submitted by attorney Scott Rothstein. A spokeswoman said Wednesday the final decision must be made by the state Supreme Court. The FBI says Rothstein sold investments in legal settlements that did not exist. The total amount lost could top $1 billion. No criminal charges have been filed yet. Once disbarred, Rothstein would no longer be allowed to serve on a panel that nominates appeals court judges. Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Rothstein to that panel in 2008. Rothstein ... Read Full Story

Former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio, who criticizes Gov. Charlie Crist for being a fan of President Barack Obama's stimulus package, is himself a fan of one of Obama's campaign ads. Rubio's U.S. Senate campaign posted a Web ad criticizing Crist, a fellow Republican also running for the Senate seat. The ad uses the same music, lettering and style of an ad Obama ran against Republican John McCain. The Obama ad pointed out McCain's comment that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. The Rubio ad points out that Crist appeared with the president to support the $787 billion stimulus package. A Web site ... Read Full Story

The Crist/Rubio match up in Florida is heating up with the arrival of new campaign manager Eric Eikenberg in the Crist camp. Via Memeorandum , the National Journal's On Call reports that the Crist campaign is going on the offensive, challenging Rubio's "failure to advance some conservative causes while leading the state House, for spending excessively while in the Speaker's office and for dragging his feet on immigration legislation that many Republicans favored." Eikenberg said, ""Over the last five to six months, the governor has been focused on governing and our opponent's been running around the state because he doesn't have an office," Eikenberg ... Read Full Story

In a heated race for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, Gov. Charlie Crist keeps moving away from his support of President Barack Obama's stimulus package that the governor called "fantastic" and "remarkable" when lobbying for its passage. Faced with an increasingly difficult primary challenge from former House Speaker Marco Rubio of West Miami, the governor now claims he didn't endorse the $787 billion economic stimulus that included a generous contribution for Florida. "It seems to be the president's answer to almost every challenge that's facing our country is to spend more money," Crist said Thursday. He commented in response to a question while on ... Read Full Story