FL SEN: Martinez Resigns, Speculation Begins
**Updated at 4:20 PM**
Crist just said he will not pick himself for the caretaker slot.
Crist: "Florida will have an opportunity in the next few weeks to make sure that an honest person of great integrity that will protect the public trust will be appointed to go ahead and serve the remainder of this senate term. I will not appoint myself. And I have gotten a lot of recommendations about very qualified people who can serve in this senate term."
So that's one down. But Crist didn't put an end to the speculation entirely.
More from the Gov: "No decision's been made. There is not a short list. There is not a long list. But I'm getting a lot of calls and recommendations and volunteers."
Original post:
Sen. Mel Martinez (R) formally announced his resignation this afternoon in a 3 PM statement sent from his camp office.
Throughout the afternoon, FL press has weighed in on what happens next. The Miami Herald caught up with ex-Sen. Connie Mack, who the paper called Crist's "first choice" to replace Martinez. Mack said he spoke with Crist and told him he wasn't interested. From the paper:
"I spent 18 years in Washington and concluded at the end of that 18 years that it was time to come home," Mack said by phone Friday. "It was time for someone else to fill that position."
Mack told the paper he backs ex-FL AG/ex-FL Sec/State Jim Smith (R) to take Martinez' spot.
"I have a great regard for Jim Smith," Mack said. "He has a depth of experience and knowledge, both from a legislative perspective and from a Florida perspective."
He's not the only one. The Palm Beach Post reports Smith, the current board chair at FL State Univ, is Crist's "likely choice" for caretaker of Martinez' seat.
It wouldn't be the first time Smith has stepped in after a elected official's resignation, the paper reports:
In 2002, Smith was appointed by then-Gov. Jeb Bush to fill the vacancy of Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris, who left the position after being elected to the U.S. House. Smith served in the same office from 1987 to 1995. He was also state attorney general from 1979 to 1987.
Gov. Charlie Crist (R), who's already running to replace Martinez, could pick anyone he wanted to fill the seat -- including himself. But Martinez counseled him against that in an interview with the Herald:
Asked if Crist should appoint himself, he said that would be unlikely. "He wants the people of Florida to make that decision. Certainly it would be good in terms of seniority but I leave that to him. It's a decision for the governor to make."
But not everyone thinks a Crist self-appointment is far-fetched. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel caught up with Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid just before the Senate left for its August recess:
Reid: "I felt he [Martinez] had kind of decided to get Crist up here. That's what I expect."
An unnamed "Crist ally" threw cold water on Reid's take, but still left the door open -- a little -- for Crist to name himself FL's next Sen.:
"[I'm] 99.9 percent certain (Crist) would never appoint himself, but you never know."
(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)
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