Nan Rich: Help Me Call for a Debate With Charlie Crist; Sign My Petition

Democrats -- the real ones, not the ones who think they have to vote for Charlie Crist to win -- are increasingly uncomfortable with Charlie's right-of-center answers to basic Democratic policy questions.

They want a good look at the alternative.

And now Nan Rich, the only real Democrat in the gubernatorial race, is not only saying the same thing, she's calling for her party leaders to give her and Charlie that much-anticipated debate.

"How can we trust Charlie Crist to represent our progressive values in the governor's office," she asks in her Thursday eblast, "when he won't even defend his self-described 'anti-tax, pro-life, pro-gun' record against Democratic primary opponent Nan Rich?

"Sign our petition to call on the Florida Democratic Party to support a Democratic gubernatorial debate."

Last week, Charlie said hes "not even thinking of debating Rich. Of course not. He knows full well she would roast him like a hen on a spit.

Last week he told a South Florida TV audience he "didn't know" what he would do about school vouchers.

"I can tell you exactly what I'd do," Rich told me at "Rock the Moon," a Tallahassee charity event Monday night. "Democrats want to know where he stands and if the things he believes in are the same as the ones they believe in."

Refusing to debate is just wrong especially when so many questions remain about how recent Republican Charlie Crist will govern, Rich said. Voters deserve a discussion of the issues before we go to the polls this summer.

"... We have two very different candidates in our primary election," Rich's eblast said. "Nan Rich has a long track record as a real progressive, pro-choice Democrat. But so many questions remain about Charlie Crists record and his ability to now govern as a progressive."

Click here to check out Rich's petition.