Charlie Crist, taxpayers and the next hurricane

From the Wall Street Journal

Who needs Mother Nature to cause a catastrophe? Florida's politicians are busy creating an unnatural disaster in their state insurance market that will blow away taxpayers when the next big hurricane hits. And we mean taxpayers across America.

Last month State Farm pulled the plug on its 1.2 million homeowner policies in Florida, citing the state's punishing price controls. The state's largest insurer joins a raft of competitors that have already reduced or dumped their property and casualty business in the Sunshine State, including Prudential, Allstate, Nationwide and USAA. This is the inevitable result of Governor Charlie Crist's drive to control property-insurance premiums. The Republican also lobbied his GOP legislature to make the state government a giant competitor in the market, undercutting private insurers.

State Farm's local subsidiary recently requested an increase of 47%, but state regulators refused. State Farm says that since 2000 it has paid $1.21 in claims and expenses for every $1 of premium income received. Since January 2008 alone, the company's surplus has fallen to $621 million from $820 million. Every month in Florida, State Farm loses $20 million. So it finally said, No mas.

Meanwhile, Floridians have been signing up with Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state-run insurer that Mr. Crist unleashed in 2007. Because it has an implicit taxpayer guarantee, and because its actuarial assumptions are, well, loose, Citizens can offer lower premiums than private competitors can. Citizens has become the largest insurer in the state, with 1.1 million policies.

Mr. Crist has thus guaranteed that Floridians, rather than the global insurance industry, will be on the hook for property damage when the next Katrina hits. Citizens is facing more than $400 billion in potential exposure, yet Citizens Chief Financial Officer Sharon Binnun was recently cited in the South Florida Sun Sentinel as saying it had only $3.4 billion in net assets. Anxious to keep voters happy, legislators have frozen Citizens premiums the past three years.

Some 25% of the coastal property in U.S. hurricane zones is located in Florida, and another storm is inevitable. To pay for those claims when they come, Mr. Crist will either have to raise taxes on Floridians, or beg Congress for a rescue. Mr. Crist tried the latter in 2007 when he pushed federal legislation to distribute below-market loans to state insurance programs and create a federal reinsurance body to backstop undercapitalized states.

Even the Governor may be catching onto his folly. While dismissing State Farm's exit -- "Floridians will be much better off without them" -- he is pushing for a law barring the company from dropping more than 2% of its customers in a single year. So, having publicly brutalized State Farm, undercut its business and set its prices, Mr. Crist now wants to require it to keep losing money.

Mr. Crist's behavior stands in contrast to that of Louisiana, of all places. Baton Rouge also established a Citizens insurer after Katrina but only as a "last resort." Louisiana has a thriving private insurance market, in part because regulators have let companies adjust their rates. By law, Louisiana Citizens cannot offer competitive prices, save in a few high-risk coastal areas. From a peak of about 170,000 policies in 2007, it now holds about 130,000 (about what it had before Katrina) and is aiming to get below 100,000.

It's scary to imagine the bill taxpayers will get when the next big hurricane hits Florida. It's even scarier to think Mr. Crist is being touted as a potential GOP candidate for the White House.

Gov. Palin Continues to Express Serious Concern with President’s Stimulus Package

February 3, 2009, Juneau, Alaska - Governor Sarah Palin again today expressed her serious concerns with President Obama’s proposed stimulus package. In a joint letter sent to Alaska’s congressional delegation, Governor Palin, House Speaker Mike Chenault and Senate President Gary Stevens cautioned that unrestrained spending, initiation of new programs that the states may be asked to continue after the federal stimulus is gone, and the borrowing of hundreds of billions of dollars to pay for it may result in serious economic problems in the future.

Governor Palin recently traveled to the nation’s capital to personally express her concerns with the stimulus package with business, economic and political leaders. The trip was not an effort to endorse or lobby for the current stimulus package now before Congress.

“I agree with the decision of Senator Murkowski and Congressman Young to vote NO on the package,” Governor Palin said.

The governor has strongly supported funding for infrastructure that creates good American jobs and will have a positive effect on the nation for generations to come.

“It's a given that a stimulus package is needed and will happen,” Palin said. “With guaranteed spending on the table, I am arguing for needed construction projects and tax breaks that will truly stimulate the economy and create jobs, and against increased federal programs that will become a state's unfunded mandate to continue funding for generations.”

Senate President Gary Stevens agreed. “We need the funding but not more federal programs to maintain,” he said. “We need to make wise use of limited state funds.”

House Speaker Mike Chenault added, “The letter addressed to members of Congress and the Alaska Delegation basically tells those members where Alaska sits on the issues of the stimulus package and how it will affect Alaska as far as a funding formula goes. So it just gives them a little bit clearer picture on what the needs are for the state of Alaska in comparison with the rest of the nation.”

Governor Palin and the legislative leadership also highlighted the conventional fuels that Alaska has to offer and the need to find ways the federal government can help bring the state’s clean burning natural gas through a pipeline to the midwest.

Crist joins 18 other Governors in Supporting Stimulus Bill

from Media General

Tue, February 03, 2009 - 2:13 PM
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist today joined 18 fellow governors, Republican and Democratic, in sending a letter to President Barack Obama signaling support for the stimulus bill, which passed last week in the U.S. House and is currently under consideration in the U.S. Senate.

Along with Crist, Republicans Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, James Douglas of Vermont, Jodi Rell of Connecticut were among the 18 governors who signed the letter.

"We are writing to express our support for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which passed last week in the House and is under consideration currently in the Senate," the letter states.

The letter adds: "As stewards of the economies of our respective states and regions, we urge the Congress to reach prompt resolution of all outstanding differences and you to sign the bill when it reaches your desk."

"We support the objectives of ARRA and welcome the partnership it offers us as governors," said Crist.

Join Sen. Jim DeMint on a conference call Wednesday

Join special guest Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) for a telephone town hall meeting hosted by Americans for Prosperity to learn more about the Big Government "stimulus" scheme that will hurt, not help, American taxpayers.

When: Wednesday, February 4th
8:00pm EST

Participant #: 1-877-229-8493
Pin #: 13896

This message is urgent. Only days remain until the U.S. Senate votes on an astonishing trillion-dollar plus borrow-and-spend plan that will dramatically expand the size of government. With all 58 Democrats in the U.S. Senate likely to vote in favor of the bill, and 60 votes needed for it to pass, liberal politicians and special interests are trying to chip away at conservative resolve, and heave this trillion-dollar debt and spending scheme on the backs of American taxpayers.

Can I count on you to stand firm with us? You’ve already joined tens of thousands of American taxpayers in opposition to the so-called stimulus package, and together we have come so far in changing the nature of this spending beast. Now, let’s shape the outcome. We have a good chance to beat the special interests and politicians who are bankrupting our nation. But only if folks like you support our efforts

to keep the pressure on the Senators who will decide this issue.

If you can't make the telephone town hall, please make sure to visit www.NoStimulus.com

and tell your friends and family to join the growing army of taxpayers saying NO by signing Americans for Prosperity’s petition

to stop this disastrous trillion-dollar debt scheme, known as the “Stimulus Package.”

Sincerely,


Tim Phillips
President, Americans for Prosperity

Charlie Crist Golf Tournament on Saturday, February 7

Dear Friends:

You are invited to participate in the first Annual Charlie Crist Golf Tournament at the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The tournament will take place at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, February 7, 2009, with a Welcome Reception taking place the Friday evening before from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. If you would like to participate in the tournament, please make a $5,000 contribution made payable to the Republican Party of Florida. Should you wish to attend the Welcome Reception and Awards Ceremony Luncheon only, please make a $2,500 contribution. Personal and corporate contributions are welcome. If you have any questions or would like to RSVP, please contact me or the Finance Department at (850) 222-7920.

Warmest regards,

Jim Greer
RPOF Chairman

Greer, Crist Try To Bring Moderate Tone To National Party

By WILLIAM MARCH | The Tampa Tribune


Florida Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer and Gov. Charlie Crist have tried to bring a more moderate tone to the Florida Republican Party, and they've encountered some criticism from conservatives along the way.

Now Greer, presumably with backing from Crist, is working for a candidate for national party chairman some believe would do the same at the national level.

In an election for Republican National Committee chairman to be held in Washington on Friday, Greer is behind former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele.

Steele, who would be the party's first black chairman, has been criticized by some conservatives in the party for not being conservative enough – just as Crist and Greer have in Florida.

Crist isn't favoring any candidate publicly, but Greer wouldn't make a major political move of this kind if it weren't acceptable to Crist, whose support made Greer state party chairman.

Steele says he's an anti-abortion, pro-gun rights conservative and has rejected the label "moderate."

But he has also been criticized by conservative Republicans for joining the Republican Leadership Council, an organization started by former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman.

Whitman, an environmentalist, is widely perceived in the party as a moderate. Steele says he joined because Whitman helped him politically and quit when he realized the organization was unfriendly to social conservatives.

In Florida, Crist and Greer have made outreach to minorities and civil rights issues a major part of their political philosophy and pushed the party farther on environmental issues than some conservatives want to go.

Steele differs with Crist and Greer on some hot-button conservative issues – for example, he opposes embryonic stem cell research and doesn't put much emphasis on the environment and climate change.

But Greer said Steele "embraces the issues of family and faith but is focused on issues important to all Americans – education and employment opportunities."

He said Steele exemplifies his and Crist's governing philosophy of focusing on results and accomplishment rather than ideology, and trying to make the GOP more diverse.

"He gets it," Greer said. "He's not looking through rose-colored glasses. He looks at building our party the same way I do - every person who has a stake in the issue gets to have a seat at the table."

Since Crist replaced Jeb Bush, a hero to the conservative side of the Republican Party, there have been some indications of a division between the party's conservatives and moderates in Florida.

Conservatives, including state Attorney General Bill McCollum, have criticized Crist policy issues, including the governor's push for quicker restoration of voting rights for felons who complete their sentences.

This week, Crist faces tension and possible conflicts with the state Legislature because he vetoed budget-balancing cuts they just enacted in education, environmental land purchase programs and other areas.

Conservative criticism has been muted so far, largely because Crist's popularity ratings remain high.

Steele is considered an underdog in tomorrow's vote – the leader appears to be incumbent Chairman Mike Duncan.

But Greer said it's virtually impossible to pick a frontrunner in the race because of the way the election is conducted.

The winner will be the first candidate to get an 85-vote majority in a series of votes by RNC members. It appears unlikely any candidate will win on the first ballot, and between ballots, there will be horse-trading and candidates dropping out and endorsing each other.

"The person who comes out strong on the first ballot is not necessarily the leader on the second and third ballot," as RNC members make deals to switch to their second or third choices, he said.

Greer is "whip" for the Steele campaign, a job that includes keeping track of Steele supporters and implementing strategy during the voting.

MSNBC reported this week that it surveyed all but 10 of the RNC members and found 44 committed to incumbent Duncan on the first round and Steel next with 20. But most wouldn't name their second choice.

Jerry Gerde Hospitalized

By BCREC Chairman John Salak

Our former BCREC Chairman, State Committeeman, and long time friend Jerry Gerde has been hospitalized and is in serious condition at Bay Medical Center. Ted has just returned from visiting him and recommends that visitation may not be advisable at this time due to his current state of attentiveness. Please join Anita, I, and many others in praying for our dear friend as God fulfills his plan for him.

Call Allen Boyd to oppose the Stimulus Package

Here is his contact information:

Washington, DC Office
1227 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-5235
(202) 225-5615 Fax

Tallahassee Office
1650 Summit Lake Drive
Suite 103
Tallahassee, FL 32317
(850) 561-3979
(850) 681-2902 Fax

Panama City Office
30 W. Government St.
Suite 203
Panama City, FL 32401
(850) 785-0812
(850) 763-3764 Fax

Tips for the Loyal Opposition

By Andy Levy, Big Hollywood

DON’T question the motives - question the policy. When you disagree with Obama’s policies, say so, and make it clear why. But remember that President Obama is doing what he thinks is best for the country, as President Bush did. Both men love America and want what’s best for her. End of story.

DON’T make it personal. We don’t need another Derangement Syndrome. We don’t need people doing things like emphasizing Obama’s middle name in a derogatory fashion. How anyone would think that’s beneficial to their cause, or to the country as a whole, is beyond me. Also, it’s not even clever. Neither are smushwords like BusHitler, or sillywords like Rethuglicans and Dhimmicrats.

DON’T cozy up to and champion foreign dictators and despots. Sean Penn is an ass. No reason to be like him. ‘Nuff said. (Corollary: Don’t cozy up to and champion foreign dictators and despots and then act outraged when people question your patriotism.)

DON’T pretend you’re being brave when you criticize your government. Not while people in other countries actually, y’know, DIE, when they do that.

DON’T use the word “divisive.” At this point, all that word means is “You disagree with me,” and the English language gets mangled enough these days.

DON’T use the phrase “speaking truth to power.” EVER.

DON’T move to Canada.

DON’T say you’re going to move to Canada and then stay here. (I know it’s too late for Stephen Baldwin, but not for the rest of you.)

DON’T apologize to foreigners and say things to them like, “I didn’t vote for Obama,” or “He’s not MY president.”

DON’T say or do everything in your power to drive this country apart and then claim you want unity when it’s your guy in power. This is like the convicted felon who conveniently finds God when he’s up for parole.

DON’T call people un-American one week, and then talk about how “We are not blue states or red states, we are the United States” the next. (This rule may only apply to Tom Hanks, but I put it in just to be safe.)

DON’T automatically think people who disagree with you are stupid or evil. Some of them are, of course. But most of them aren’t, and you might actually learn something if you listen to them.

And finally, DON’T use the fact that many on the left behaved abominably for the past eight years as an excuse to behave the same way. America needs adults. And if it bothered you when they did it, it’s a good sign that you shouldn’t do it.

Lessons from 2008 trenches in Florida

by Chris Faulkner, The Next Right

This part of The Next Right's series was with Erin VanSickle. She is the communications director for the Republican Party of Florida. She served as the RPOF’s press secretary during the ’06 election cycle and served as press secretary for the Florida Senate Majority Office prior to that.

Florida GOP’s Lessons from the Trenches

CF Tell me about Florida?

EV Due to its sheer size, the State of Florida necessitates more than retail politicking—it requires any statewide campaign to have a methodical and energized ground game that can conquer ten media markets and a message that resonates with an incredibly diverse population—Hispanics from distinct countries of origin, African Americans, Veterans, seniors, the Jewish community, and military families, to name a few. This vast state compels campaigns to master a complex political strategy that incorporates the ever-critical I-4 corridor, “condo commandos,” Hispanic Little Havana, and conservative Northwest Florida. As a political party, the Republican Party of Florida is here to provide support, guidance, infrastructure, and fundraising for campaigns, from the presidential campaign down to the Broward County Sheriff’s race.

CF What does Obama’s victory in Florida over the McCain campaign say about the political ground game in Florida?

EV It shows that this was a perfect Democrat year. The Obama campaign simply had more resources. The Obama camp out-spent McCain 7-1 in Florida, an extreme TV state where TV advertising is critical to success. I would note, however, that because of the Republican team in Florida, McCain came within 21/2 points of winning Florida—which says a lot about the folks who worked tirelessly across Florida on behalf of the Republican ticket. Additionally, while Florida Democrats were awash in cash, political operatives, and newly registered Democrat voters, the Florida Democrat Party utterly failed to take advantage of it, defeating not one single Republican incumbent in the Florida House or Senate. Congressmen Gus Bilirakis and Bill Young both got 60+% in Tampa – an area Obama carried. In Miami – another area Obama carried – Mario and Lincoln Diaz-Balart both fended off credible, well-funded, DCCC-backed candidates. I think our performance across the board bodes very well for the Florida GOP.

CF How did the Florida GOP stack up against the Democrats as far as mobilizing grassroots supporters and organizing GOTV?

EV Under the leadership of our Executive Director, Political Director, and 72-hour Director, Florida led the nation in the number of volunteer voter contacts six of the last seven weeks of the 2008 Election Cycle. Through our volunteer efforts, we contacted more voters in 2008 than in 2004, touching more than four million voters this year. We made over one million phone calls and knocked on more than 100,000 doors during the 72-Hour Program. The RPOF also created a new Absentee Ballot Request Walk Program and implemented Absentee Chase efforts, which were nationalized by the RNC. Additionally, we installed VOIP phones and used bubble sheets with cell phones to better capture data on targeted voters.

On the grassroots communications front, we launched a text message pilot program of using text messages to contact volunteers and voters. We also upgraded to an enterprise level blast email distribution system that allows for more segmentation in selecting email recipients. Additionally, each Victory staffer was provided with an account and personalized segments for each county to aide in volunteer recruitment and retention and to provide greater communication between field offices and volunteers.

CF Do you think you utilized New Media effectively?

EV I think there is always more we can do. For example, we are going to have a hands-on training session at our Annual Meeting in January to show folks how to use text-messaging. Keep in mind that many of our grassroots activists are older Floridians who haven’t necessarily had much experience with cell phones, the Internet, email, or social networking.

That said, we’ve accomplished a lot this election cycle, especially this year, communicating to both grassroots supporters and the media via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, our Conventional Wisdom blog, and text messaging. The challenge is to integrate them all together. We’ve done some comprehensive prospecting, cleaned up and built our e-mail lists, implemented the new email system I referred to earlier, and synchronized fundraising efforts. We also advertised online on carefully-targeted sites to maximize the effect.

I am especially proud of our Conventional Wisdom blog (http://rpofconventionalwisdom.blogspot.com/), it was an instant hit and picked up by the media. Disclaimer—Mark Halperin’s The Page was our inspiration and I hope he checks our blog every now and then to see how we’re stacking up. We originally launched the blog during the Democrat National Convention (hence the name “Conventional Wisdom”) to provide a running commentary of video messages, articles/updates, and exclusive political cartoons to bracket the Democrats more creatively, but we ultimately kept it going because it was popular.

We also created a Voter Action Center through our website, a one-stop shop allowing users to register to vote, request an absentee ballot, find Early Voting/Election Day voting locations, sign up to volunteer, find their local field office, etc. The VAC utilized Google Maps so it was helpful for voters.

CF How did you leverage earned media?

EV We quickly found that “earned media” is often synonymous with “new media” and we used it to our advantage to communicate with the grassroots and the media. For example, we created a web ad once Tim Mahoney’s multiple affairs were exposed utilizing his own tape-recorded voice (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCp9mNtZkQM); the media loved it and it fired up the grassroots the way no email response ever could. We had over 2500 hits the first day alone, which is pretty impressive for a state party web ad.

We also launched several microsites, including a Real World spinoff highlighting a Democrat congressional candidate. Our Democrat fundraiser tracker microsite (http://rpof.org/dem/) garnered national attention; this was back when the Democrat presidential candidates were boycotting Florida because of the early primary. Remember that they could come hold fundraisers in Florida, but the DNC forbade them from holding grassroots events. So we illustrated the hypocrisy and ensured that the negative narrative continued.

Once Obama was the nominee, we rolled out the welcome mat for him for his first trip to the state, reminding people that he had not campaigned in Florida; the music was “Welcome Back Cotter” and it certainly got in your head. That microsite also got us quite a bit of national media.

CF What new fundraising techniques did you use?

EV We tried our hand at low-dollar asks based on news and events. For example, we launched a “67 Days, 67 Counties” 67 days out from the election, with a goal of getting folks to donate a dollar for each of Florida’s 67 counties, based on the fact we only had 67 days left in the campaign. As economic times got tougher though, we returned to more traditional fundraisers instead of asking mainstream Floridians to donate. That said, we will continue to identify news stories, holidays, events, etc. that we can take advantage of for non-traditional fundraising.

CF What should readers/bloggers know about the Florida GOP?

EV We do things a little differently here in Florida. Under Governor Crist and Chairman Greer’s leadership, we’ve focused on putting partisan rhetoric aside and instead running on our record. It’s worked for us, keeping the Governor’s approval at record-breaking highs and allowing us to build the party during these Democrat-friendly times. Florida was a bright spot on a relatively tough election day for the GOP, with zero Republicans defeated in the Florida Legislature and a strong showing among our Congressional candidates. Even in the extraordinarily-Democrat Broward County, the first Republican to win a countywide election in 30 years was elected Sheriff.

Look, Floridians voted to maintain overwhelming Republican majorities in the State House and Senate, voted strongly to cut taxes, and voted to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman. I think this demonstrates that we’re doing something right to get our message out, and I’m proud of that.

State of the RNC Chairman's race

from The Hill

Republican National Committee chairman Robert "Mike" Duncan continues to lead in his bid for a second term as chairman, but four other contenders are sneaking up as the final week of the race begins.

Check out our roundup of the race as it stands now.

Half of the 168 voting members have made their stands public. Here's a full list of public endorsements from among the RNC members:

Robert "Mike" Duncan (27):

Jim Burnett (AR)
Reta Hamilton (AR)
Priscilla Rakestraw (DE)
Laird Stabler (DE)
Blake Hall (ID)
Cindy Moyle (ID)
Mike Duncan (KY)
Steve Robertson (KY)
Gail Russell (KY)
Jan Staples (ME)
Mark Ellis (ME)
Rick Bennett (ME)
Ron Kaufman (MA)
Ron Carey (MN)
Evie Axdahl (MN)
Cindy Phillips (MS)
Betti Hill (MT)
Bob Bennett (OH)
Jo Ann Davidson (OH)
Solomon Yue (OR)
Donna Cain (OR)
Carlos Mendez (PR)
Luis Fortuno (PR)
Zori Fondalledas (PR)
Jeff Kent (WA)
Jim Reed (WV)
Donna Lou Gossney (WV)

Katon Dawson (16):

Mike Hubbard (AL)
Demetra DeMonte (IL)
Dee Dee Benkie (IN)
Steve Scheffler (IA)
Kim Lehman (IA)
Henry Barbour (MS)
Brad White (MS)
David Norcross (NJ)
Linda Daves (NC)
Ada Fisher (NC)
Rob Gleason (PA)
Christine Toretti (PA)
Bob Asher (PA)
Katon Dawson (SC)
Glenn McCall (SC)
Cindy Costa (SC)

Saul Anuzis (15):

Chris Healy (CT)
Pat Longo (CT)
Victor Cruz (GU)
Peter Alecxis Ada (GU)
Saul Anuzis (MI)
Keith Butler (MI)
Sue Lowden (NV)
Phyllis Woods (NH)
Tom Wilson (NJ)
Virginia Haines (NJ)
Bo Palacias (NMI)
Carol Mumford (RI)
Gio Cicione (RI)
George Schiavone (VT)
Herb Schoenbohm (VI)

Michael Steele (15):

Sharon Giese (AZ)
Shawn Steel (CA)
John Frey (CT)
Robert Kabel (DC)
Betsy Werronen (DC)
Jim Greer (FL)
Paul Senft (FL)
Norm Semanko (ID)
Pat Brady (IL)
Jim Pelura (MD)
Joyce Terhes (MD)
Holly Hughes (MI)
Laine Johnson (MT)
Reince Priebus (WI)

Ken Blackwell (12):

Debbie Joslin (AK)
Ralph Seekins (AK)
Mark Hillman (CO)
Roger Villere (LA)
Ross Little (LA)
Ruth Ulrich (LA)
Gary Jones (OK)
Tina Benkiser (TX)
Bill Crocker (TX)
Cathie Adams (TX)
Holland Redfield (VI)
Morton Blackwell (VA)

-Reid Wilson