Florida's new governor | The frugal fisherman | Economist.com

Here's a Republican that I LIKE!!

OR much of his political career Charlie Crist, the new Republican governor of Florida, was seen as a bit of a lightweight. With his tanned face and neat silver hair, he looked a standard-issue moderate conservative. But since his election last November he has impressed both the left and the right. A poll by Quinnipiac University in March found that 73% of Florida's voters, including 71% of Democrats, approve of the job he is doing. Amazingly, that is 11% better than the highest approval rating of his popular predecessor, Jeb Bush.

APCrist is risen

In his first 100 days Mr Crist has called for a fight against global warming, an expansion of stem-cell research and the introduction of paper ballots to replace the state's infamous touch-screen voting machines. He also wants to restore voting rights for criminals released from jail: quite a reversal for someone once nicknamed “Chain Gang Charlie” for advocating forced prison labour. And his efforts on behalf of minorities have prompted some to call him the state's “first black governor”. He prodded the state legislature to give $5m to the family of a 14-year-old black boy who died after a beating by guards at a boot camp for juveniles.

Things are going so swimmingly for the governor that even his frugal visits to the hairdresser are winning raves. The St Petersburg Times recently reported that Mr Crist has used the same barber for 30 years, at $9 a snip. The paper compared that to the $800 paid by John Edwards, a particularly preening Democratic presidential candidate, for two haircuts.

Mr Crist was elected after beating a more conservative Republican rival, Tom Gallagher, who was favoured by Jeb Bush and much of the Republican establishment. The right had reason to resent his independence. As state attorney-general he refused to intervene in the case of Terri Schiavo, a brain-damaged Florida woman who was allowed to die after her feeding tube was removed. And when George Bush flew to rally support for Republicans in Pensacola the day before the governor's election, Mr Crist declined to join the president, infuriating party leaders.

Since taking office, his moderate Republicanism has blossomed in a way few had imagined. But he has not had a particularly easy time. After several years of revenue growth in a booming economy, a crisis is brewing over rising property taxes and homeowner insurance. The state's legislative session, which ended last week, faced some difficult choices. Republicans, led by the powerful House speaker, Marco Rubio, strongly pushed for raising the sales tax to increase revenues, but Democrats said this would place the tax burden disproportionately on the poor.

Mr Crist tried to steer a deft middle course between the opposing camps. After the partisan, intimidating “my way or the highway” style of his predecessor, the new governor's all-inclusive approach is seen as a breath of fresh air. Mr Crist has thrown open his office doors to Republicans and Democrats alike.

He also likes Florida, which is an advantage. Governor Bush, a Texan implant, was happy in the Latin hubbub of Miami but famously disdained Tallahassee, the small town in Florida's rural north where the state government sits. Mr Crist is a native Floridian who grew up on the beach with a love for boating and fishing. His fans credit him with putting Florida ahead of his party. “I feel very proud as a Floridian to watch him move forward in such a non-partisan way,” says Susan Glickman, a veteran environmental consultant who did not vote for Mr Crist. “I had no idea he would be this kind of leader.”