Charlie Crist: Using the power of the pen for evil — a case study

Each Florida Governor swears to enforce the laws of the land. The governors role is as chief administrator and not law maker. In Florida a duly elected Governor takes the following oath:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support, protect, and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States and of the State of Florida; that I am duly qualified to hold office under the Constitution of the State, and that I will well and faithfully perform the duties of Governor on which I am now about to enter, so help me God.

Both Rick Scott and Charlie Crist have taken this oath. But have they kept true to their oath? That is the question.

When Crist was governor he used the “power of the pen” via Executive Orders to bypass the legislature and impose his “green agenda” upon Floridians. The EPA.gov website has archived examples of former Governor Crist issuing Executive Orders to impose his agenda:

• In May 2008 the state legislature passed an energy bill that included a prohibition on the state DEP from adopting GHG auto standards without legislative approval. On July 13, 2007, Florida Governor Charlie Crist issued Executive Order 07-126, which requires the Department of Management Services to only approve the purchase of new vehicles with the greatest fuel efficiency in a given class as required for that vehicle to minimize GHG emissions. The Governor also issued Executive Order 07-127 (July 13, 2007), which adopted California’s GHG standards for motor vehicles.
• On July 13, 2007, Florida Governor Charlie Crist issued Executive Order 07-127, which established statewide GHG emission reduction targets of 2000 levels by 2017, 1990 levels by 2025, and 80% below 1990 levels by 2050.
• Executive Order 07-128, signed by Governor Crist on July 13, 2007, creates a new “Action Team on Energy and Climate Change,” to develop a “comprehensive energy and climate change action plan” that would lay out policy options and suggest strategies for meeting the orders’ goals and provide analysis of whether to implement mandates, voluntary standards, or market-based regulatory mechanisms.

When he signed these EOs gas prices rose and five coal fired energy plants closed causing electric bills to rise.

It appears Crist is up to his old proven tactics of bypassing the legislature in order to implement his personal beliefs upon all Floridians. According Brandon Larrabee and Dara Kam of The News Service of Florida report:

When former Gov. Charlie Crist floated a campaign promise this week to use executive orders on state contractors to boost wages for some workers and to bar discrimination against gay and transgender Floridians, Republican condemnation quickly rolled in.

GOP leaders in the Legislature issued a joint statement comparing the Republican-turned-Democrat Crist unfavorably to President Barack Obama and saying the proposal amounted to a power grab.

“Crist is lifting a dangerous page from President Obama’s playbook, saying he will do an end-run around the people’s elected representatives and single-handedly mandate policies through executive order,” said the statement, signed by the outgoing and incoming House speakers and Senate presidents. ” … Florida needs a governor who will work with the Legislature and not force his personal agenda on Floridians with the stroke of a pen.”

Larrabee and Kam point out that in 2011 Governor Rick Scott also used the power of his pen requiring all of Florida’s agencies and contractors to use the federal e-verify system when hiring. E-verify is a Department of Homeland Security system. According to the DHS website, “U.S. law requires companies to employ only individuals who may legally work in the United States – either U.S. citizens, or foreign citizens who have the necessary authorization. This diverse workforce contributes greatly to the vibrancy and strength of our economy, but that same strength also attracts unauthorized employment.”

Governor Scott used the power of his pen to enforce the laws of the land. Charlie Crist has a history of using the power of the pen to force his ideology upon all Floridians. That is a key difference between Rick Scott and Charlie Crist.

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