Straight from his primary win against Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D), Florida Rep. Charlie Crist (D) is now mounting attacks against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R). Crist, who defeated Fried by a wide margin, is now positioning himself as the Democrat that can unseat DeSantis in the November election. Releasing a new advertisement, Crist is calling for Florida voters to “defeat fascism, defeat DeSantis.”
During the primary season, Governor DeSantis remained largely mum against his political rivals, and despite speaking at the Keep Florida Free tour, DeSantis still has not commented on his November opponent.
In contrast, Crist has released a new advertisement, chiding DeSantis as a political figure that doesn’t “represent” Florida.
Let’s make history, Florida.
Defeat fascism, defeat DeSantis. pic.twitter.com/o5AwUDtTjO
— Charlie Crist (@CharlieCrist) August 24, 2022
The video goes on to cite a number of political issues including the Don’t Say Gay Bill, DeSantis’ political bout with Disney, and Roe vs. Wade being overruled as indications that Governor DeSantis must be taken out of office.
Crist is not the first Democrat to express that the DeSantis administration is employing an “authoritarian” political grasp, and in the advertisement, Crist affirms, “Florida, we deserve better.”
“I’ve spent my whole life fighting for the people of Florida,” he argues, adding that “as the grandson of immigrants, I know what it means to live the American Dream.”
However, Team DeSantis has sent a message to supporters, calling Crist "Biden's biggest cheerleader" and expressing that "according to Charlie, anyone who supports Governor DeSantis’s freedom-first, anti-woke agenda has 'hate in their heart.'"
Also directing verbal jabs at the Biden administration, the message from Team DeSantis dismisses Crist as a political threat, arguing that Crist only "cares about himself and continuing his role as Joe Biden’s puppet here in the Sunshine State."
Citing that Crist "voted to add 87,000 IRS agents to target the middle class on the taxpayer's dime, he supports defunding the police, and he supports the woke indoctrination of our children," the team says that "Charlie Crist is bad for you, bad for your family, and bad for Florida."
