Just in case you still had doubts, wait until you see what's happening down here in the Sunshine State. Florida Republicans thought they were just going to steamroll us wimpy little teachers into submission, and instead their own party is beginning to implode.
Former Gov. Jeb Bush went on national radio today and gave a plug to Gov. Charlie Crist for supporting the controversial teacher tenure bill. "To his credit," Bush told radio host Bill Bennett, Crist supports the idea.
Little did he know, Crist was in Tallahassee changing his tune, saying teacher outrage was weighing heavily on his thinking and hinting at a potential veto.
It's true. We have become such a force that they are turning against each other.
We are strong, we are united, and we are doing some major damage.
The relationship between Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Legislature appears headed to a critical juncture. First, Crist vetoed the leadership fund bill, a priority of the incoming leaders. Now he's making noise about a possible veto of the bill that abolishes teacher tenure and tying teacher pay to test scores, and he's even criticizing the way the House is handling such a key piece of legislation.
Okay. Rub your eyes, you are not dreaming. Here's what happened today.
After two weeks of intense organizing and loud campaigning, the teachers of Florida have gotten serious traction against the Jeb Bush machine. The bill that was headed straight into law has galvanized a whole new voting block that will need to be honored in November and forevermore. We are so powerful at this point that Jeb Bush has started robocalls against us. We are turning Charlie Crist toward a veto, which obviously will be a big swing for the Fl-Sen seat. Check out Crist's reason for the turnaround.
"Shame on any public servant who doesn't listen to the people.''
When I read that, I just about lost my lunch. Why? Because I had spoken the exact same sentence to his secretary the day before.
Charlie Crist had a revelation. One of his close friends has a disabled child. This friend explained to the Governor that Senate Bill 6 would set up the Special Needs teachers of Florida for likely termination.
Charlie Crist realized that his friend's child might never be able to have the same teacher twice, thanks to Senate Bill 6. If no progress was achieved on a new standardized test (that has yet to be created) then the teacher would actually lose his or her teaching certificate.
Charlie Crist has gotten tens of thousands of phone calls and hundreds of thousands of emails. Teachers protested today at every school in our county, and we were seen on every local news station. We got the front page banner story in the Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel.
So now Charlie Crist is a populist, pitting his "open mind" against Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Bill McCollum, and the Florida Republican Party. He has yet to prove that he has the courage to actually veto Jeb's bill, but the battle lines have been drawn on a national stage.
Unless, of course, Crist is running as an Independent.
The Marco Rubio campaign tells us Crist is spending another $750,000 on additional TV time in the Tampa and Orlando markets starting tomorrow and running until April 25. On top of what Crist has already bought, that's $1-million on TV - a big chunk of his warchest - just before the deadline for qualifying. That's sure to fuel the already growing speculation about Crist dropping from the GOP primary and running as an independent.
"I tend to think he isn't going to run as an independent. But with every passing day, I become more convinced he'll run as an independent,'' said Republican consultant David Johnson of Tallahassee. "You've got several more pieces of legislation. He vetoed the leadership funds (elections) bill. And if he vetoes teacher tenure and there are others he vetoes that his Republican colleagues want, then it's clear which way he's heading."
Florida's Teachers have become a force. Still don't believe me? Then enjoy our first mailer.
Jeff Atwater is one of the most vulnerable of Jeb's minions. He is the Senate President. He co-sponsored this tragic bill. He is a perfect target. Florida's Teachers have become a force, and we will make this a November to remember.