Charlie Crist had been awkwardly mum on whether he would support the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Now that it's almost assured she'll get confirmed, he has finally decided to let everyone know that, no, he would not vote to confirm this lady.
Here's his statement (via Naked Politics): "Judge Sotomayor is worthy of respect for her many accomplishments and her remarkable story of success. However, I have strong concerns that Judge Sotomayor would not strictly and objectively construe the Constitution and lacks respect for the fundamental right to keep and bear arms. For these reasons, I cannot support her appointment to the highest court in the land."
Interestingly enough, Republican Sen. Mel Martinez -- whom Crist hopes to succeed -- has already announced he's planning on voting to confirm Sotomayor.
This is pretty transparent political gamesmanship. The issue is basically decided. By the time we get to the ballot box in November 2010, Sotomayor will be on the Supreme Court, an institution most voters ignore. So what would it matter to most voters what Crist did or didn't say about how he'd vote? Meanwhile, he gets to appear butch and conservative by releasing statements with words such as "fundamental right to keep and bear arms," while he's fending off a rabidly right primary foe.
Or maybe he was just genuinely concerned by her decision in Maloney v. Rice.