In it, but not of it. TPM DC  Whole New Game: Crist's Likely
Independent Bid Makes FL-SEN A Strange, Unpredictable Race
Crist started out as the seemingly prohibitive frontrunner a
year ago. Republican Sen. Mel Martinez was retiring after one
term, and the party establishment coalesced around Crist's
candidacy as a popular governor. (Martinez later resigned his
term early, and Crist appointed a long-time ally, George
LeMieux, to the seat.) However, Crist's support for President
Obama's stimulus package -- and his having actively campaigned
alongside Obama himself for the bill -- seriously undercut
Crist's credibility with the newly-rising Tea Party right.
Former state House Speaker Marco Rubio has since been able to
build up a huge lead in the polls for the GOP primary, seemingly
shutting Crist out of the race.   When asked for comment on
today's expected news, the Rubio campaign pointed us to this
strategy memo they posted yesterday, which argues that Crist
will simply fall by the wayside: "Marco and Meek