NRCC Weekly Rundown: Charlie Crist Is Back, Dems Fail to Stand Up to Obama on NDAA Veto, and NV-03 Dems Strike Out

A busy week in Washington and across the country. Here’s your latest look at what’s going on:

Look Who Just Won’t Go Away: The Charlie Crist Story

The flip-flopping failed candidate—and fan aficionado—Charlie Crist just hasn’t gotten the memo that Floridians don’t want him. After losing in last year’s gubernatorial election (when his running mate was another perennial failed candidate Annette Taddeo, who is trying to make a run in FL-26 this year), Crist has decided to give it a go in FL-13.

Our own Chris Pack noted the spot-on comparison between Crist and those seagulls in Finding Nemo that keep saying “Mine! Mine! Mine!” The comparison drew praise across the Sunshine State due to Crist’s incessant demand someone give him a seat in public office.

To make matters worse, after just one day on the campaign trail, Crist was caught already hanging around DC rather than trying to convince voters to give him yet another look. Here’s the timeline: On Tuesday, he announced his candidacy in Florida; On Wednesday, he was spotted in Washington, DC. Not a great start for what is sure to be another unsuccessful Crist bid.

Democrat Candidates Fail to Stand Up to Obama on National Security, Pay Raises for Troops

Democratic members of Congress and candidates across the country once again displayed their loyalty to President Obama comes before their constituents this week. After the president publically threatened to veto the latest National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which ensures that men and women of our military and their families receive the funding they have rightfully earned, including pay raises.

Rather than speak out and emphasize the importance of following through with our commitment to our brave servicemen and women, Democrats like Ami Bera, Emily Cain, Morgan Carroll, Gretchen Driskell, Melissa Gilbert, Gwen Graham, Steve Israel, Lon Johnson, and Annette Taddeo, among others, chose to stay quiet amid President Obama’s veto threat. In many case, these Democratic members have military bases, or have supported for pay raises for themselves, yet still have the nerve to say no to those serving our country and their families.

On a related note, Republican Congressman and Marine Corps vet Mike Coffman penned an important op-ed in the Aurora Sentinel urging the president to sign the NDAA and explaining why the bill is so important to our military families, both nationally and in CO-06.

Three Strikes, You’re Out, NV-03 Democrats

After whiffing on their three top recruits thus far, Democrats in NV-03 are getting desperate. Their failure to put forward a candidate in a district that they’ve lost three elections in a row is now getting so embarrassing that the Las Vegas Sun published a piece titled, “Search is on for viable Democratic candidate in CD3.” Perhaps Ross Miller, Aaron Ford, and Heath Murren—all who turned down the DCCC’s efforts to woo them—saw the writing on the wall.

As Roll Call noted last month, Democrats “are without quality recruits in nearly a dozen competitive districts across the country.” It looks like you can put NV-03 safely on that list.

Speaking of Which, In VA-10…

After getting called out by local press for their inability to find a candidate in VA-10, the DCCC is apparently trying to recruit someone who doesn’t even live in the district. Instead, she lives in the District… of Columbia, that is.

LuAnn Bennett was spotted with “VA-10” on her nametag outside of the DCCC’s candidate boot camp this week. This is despite the fact that she shared on Facebook that she moved to D.C. last year to a condo at the Ritz Carlton. She does have a home in Virginia—just not in VA-10. Instead, Bennett’s mansion is in VA-05.

Perhaps Bennett is using Annette Taddeo’s playbook: Running in a district she doesn’t live in.

Nancy Pelosi Thinks Pete Gallego is ‘Perfect’

Even though Pete Gallego lost last year, he’s hoping to get his old seat back this cycle, and it looks like Nancy Pelosi is eager to welcome him back. TX-23 voters: Beware.

Over the weekend, Pelosi praised Gallego as “really a perfect person to be in Congress.” Of course she think he’s “perfect”: He was a rubberstamp for her agenda in his one term. That was clearly enough proof for voters to realize that Gallego is not in step with the district and send him home.

MIGOP to Melissa Gilbert and Her Husband: Pay Your Taxes, Not Fund Your Campaign

The Michigan Republican Party is calling on Democratic candidate in MI-08 Melissa Gilbert to use her husband’s donation to her campaign to instead pay for her hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. Gilbert’s husband gave a total of $5,400 to his wife’s campaign, according to recent campaign finances reports. Gilbert, meanwhile, owes $470,000 in back taxes, which has dogged her since she launched her bid.

Other News and Notes

• Rodney Davis of Illinois co-led a bipartisan seven-month review of spending by Congressional offices, which has now resulted in “creat[ing] even greater transparency and accountability” of members, he said in a statement.
• Arizona Congresswoman Martha McSally’s “Border Jobs for Vets” bill, which puts a bigger emphasize on recruiting and hiring veterans for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, signed into law.
• Will Hurd of Texas, Chairman of the United States House Oversight Subcommittee on Information Technology, urged federal agencies to modernize their cybersecurity protections and adopt cloud-computing technology.
• Democratic candidate in PA-08 Steve Santarsiero recently paid himself back the $40,000 he loaned to his campaign, a move generally seen as an indication that a candidate is packing up and dropping out. The DCCC has been trying to push out Santarsiero for months.