Apparently John McCain's short list of anybody willing to appear on the same stage as him, much less end their political career on his USS Titanic presidential campaign as his running mate, just got shorter.

The Republican Governor of Florida, Charlie Crist, was frequently named as a possible running mate. There was some logic to that. He was a Republican, from a state important to McCain and Charlie Crist would have made a nice appearance with McCain. Crist is tanned, which would contrast with McCain's pale, cadaver skin tone. Crist is probably somewhere in his 60's, which would make him appear young enough to be McCain's son. He has all his own hair, again making a nice contrast to McCain's ridiculous comb-over, and he's tall, compared to McCain's pygmy-like stature.

But Charlie Crist now has bigger problems than worrying about throwing away his political future on McCain's Stumble & Mumble campaign.

Last Friday this story appeared in newspapers across Florida...

Florida Supreme Court Smacks-Down Charlie Crist
By Steve Bousquet, Tallahassee Bureau Chief

Published Friday, July 4, 2008 8:57 PM

Rarely is a governor subjected to a judicial smack-down the likes of which occurred Thursday. A unanimous court came down hard on Crist, ruling that the casino gambling deal he cut with the Seminole Tribe of Florida in November is illegal because it sanctions blackjack and baccarat games banned by state law. Only the Legislature can change the law, the justices wrote, concluding that Crist overreached in striking a deal to steer billions of dollars in gambling revenue to the state.

"The Governor does not have authority to agree to legalize in some parts of the state, or for some persons, conduct that is otherwise illegal throughout the state," justices wrote in the case of Florida House of Representatives vs. The Honorable Charles J. Crist Jr. In the past, Crist has championed the very judicial independence that smacked him Thursday. Ironically, in its decision Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that Crist's deal with the Seminole Tribe violated the separation of powers. "The Governor has no authority to change or amend state law," the justices wrote.

So after seven years of George W. Bush claiming he was above the law, and able to pick and chose which laws to follow or ignore, it's not likely John McCain will find it in his best interest to bring in another arrogant, "above the law", Republican to join his campaign. McCain has quite a challenge to find an ethical Republican, much less one willing to end their political career on a fool's errand, but that's what happens when a political party winds up with a candidate they're struggling to just tolerate.