I was driving down the road on my way home from work at 6PM CT.
The local public radio station was carrying the Crist / Scott debate live. At 6PM, debate coverage started. Charlie Crist took the stage.
Rick Scott was nowhere in sight. According to the moderator, Scott would not be participating in the debate.
It was a GOP moment to be enshrined in political history for all time. I'm sure that everyone next to my car was wondering what I was laughing about hysterically.
As I said in a previous comment, you had to be there. Live. To truly appreciate the absurdity of the moment. I invite you to consider the abject panic that must have been unfolding behind the scenes in the Scott dressing room. I'm sure that Reinhold Reince Priebus was soiling his drawers and immediately on the phone with Scott's handlers.
This was Scott's "Todd Aikin" moment.
It's easy to get a laugh out of the video, but I can't imagine the shock and horror among any marginally Scott supporters in the auditorium at Broward College. At the risk of being repetitive, you really had to hear this unfold live.
Rick Scott is roasted, toasted political meat. He'll still pull a lot of votes from the red hinterlands of Florida, but this was the end. The chaos in the Scott green room must have been a true sight to behold as the debate started without him.
I've witnessed many political "moments" live in my lifetime. This was one of the best.