Rick Scott's fake "Progressive Group" launches race-baiting ad against Crist

Rick Scott has no trouble running racially offensive ads, like this one.

Yet even someone as thick-skulled as Rick Scott knows that he isn't in ANY position at all to run an ad to say he is a champion of African-American rights. You see, if you are primarily known for fighting the Justice Department and Civil Rights groups to make it harder for minorities to vote, while simultaneously targeting them for purging disproportionally from the voting rolls (in the area of 87%!!), it's kinda hard to make that claim.

Also, ending state support for our only two historically black colleges, abolishing a state office that helps minority-owned businesses outright refusing to appoint more minority judges, doubling-down on our awful "Stand Your Ground" killing laws, and assuming most blacks are poorly educated and come from public housing probably doesn't help your image much either.

So Scott is trying to do for his election the same thing he wants to do in every election: keep the African-American vote light. Suppression and purging will only do so much. People here have showed they will vote if they are angry enough--no matter how many polling places you close or how many hours you make them stand (or how many bathrooms you close at polling places.)

And how does he do this? By doing THE WORST thing he could do to Charlie Crist: convince people that he is just like Rick Scott.

The following despicable ad isn't directly from Rick Scott's campaign. It's from a fake front group that calls itself "Progressive Choice Florida". This is an underhanded strategy that Scott's own campaign manager admitted that he would do last November. I already wrote about this phony group back in May. It refuses to list donors, has no contact information, and supports conservative causes like local anti-tax initiatives and school vouchers.

Then outright offensive ad targets African-American voters and accuses Charlie Crist of being everything Rick Scott actually is: anti-black and pro-NRA:

The punishment fits the crime. It's enshrined in our Constitution -- the essence of American Justice, unless you live in Florida and happen to be black."

"Under Gov . Charlie Crist, the NRA called the shots in Tallahassee, giving Crist big money and an 'A' rating, stopping even the most sensible gun control bills, allowing weapons to flow into our cities, even permitting concealed guns at work."

"But while Crist was coddling the gun lobby, he was cracking down on us -- passing maximum sentencing laws, signing the nation's harshest marijuana laws, and enacting the country's strictest penalties against non-violent offenders, many of whom just happen to be black."

"It's time Charlie Crist answer to Floridians for his record, for a lost generation of African-Americans and for trampling on the ideal that the punishment fit the crime."

What liberal African-American is going to hear this and say, "Yeah! I DO want a governor who won't coddle the NRA and will stand up for us! That's Rick Scott in a nutshell"!

Charlie Crist called the ad "a new low for Rick Scott and his special interest donors".

I couldn't disagree more. After four years, I've seen how low he can go and believe me, this doesn't come close.