Gov. Charlie Crist and then-House Speaker Marco Rubio embrace in this 2007 photo from the state archives. The two celebrated the ‘Largest Tax Cut in Florida’s History,’ after a special session devoted to property taxes.

UPDATE: Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos just e-mailed: “After Sunday’s strong performance, Marco looks forward to debating Charlie Crist again, whether it’s in the GOP primary, or in the general election with Crist running as an independent.”

We have yet to hear back after several inquiries to Marco Rubio‘s campaign about whether Rubio wants to wait until May for a second debate with Charlie Crist. (AP‘s Brendan Farrington tweeted Sunday that Rubio wants to wait until after both candidates officially qualify for the race, which can happen anytime between noon on April 12 and noon on April 30.)

Such a tactic enables Rubio to fan speculation that Crist will either abandon the race or switch his party affiliation. But it’s also a departure from his position in June when Rubio called for about a debate per month before the primary. “One debate is not enough,” Rubio wrote at the time.

Crist, who has repeatedly denied any plans to switch parties, accused Rubio of trying to “run and hide.” Of course, Crist didn’t show much interest in lining up debates before the roles reversed in the race and he was cast as the underdog.

“This is a guy who says he’s willing to stand up to Barack Obama, but he won’t sit down with David Gregory on Meet the Press?” Crist said in an interview, referencing an invite Rubio declined for the NBC show. “The hypocrisy and inconsistency from Marco Rubio is appalling.”

Tags: Charlie Crist, debates, Marco Rubio

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 30th, 2010 at 1:02 pm and is filed under 2010 campaigns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.