Even if it did involve a rule being violated, or a genuine misunderstanding it was akin to one of two job applicants appearing to throw an infantile tantrum when an employer has called them to meet him together so he could compare the two. Republican Gov. Rick Scott stalled his debate with challenger former Governor Charlie Crist, a former Republican now running as a Democrat, due to a fan. Crist had a small fan installed under the lectern, apparently to keep from sweating.[icopyright one button toolbar]

What happened next is a true political meltdown — one that produced a bit of video that will be shown for many years, particularly to candidates who are coached what NOT to do. Yes, there are news accounts, but it’s best to take in the stunning political misstep, the sheer chutzpah it took to not get out there, by just watching the video. It was a moment with a comedic awkwardness that seemed as if it was a scene from The Office. Was Rick Scott separated from birth from Michael Scott? He didn’t hold his breath until his face turned blue but the way it came across on the tube, he might as well have done it. Watch the Rick Scott-created weirdest moment in bigtime American political debate history for yourself:

My view: Crist scored points here when noting the absurdity about the initial press question about the fan. Our journalism focuses on small things and if Crist hadn’t said what he said about the big issues it could have evolved into an inquiry about why he had a fan. PREDICTION: Fox News will show a screen shot of the rules sheet and the narrative there will be all about Crist violating the rules about a fan (I won’t even bother listening to conservative talkers on the radio on this one).

MORE BLUNT FLAT PREDICTION: Rick Scott will lose the election because — no matter what the actual circumstances — by not going out, he came across as a petulant, unlikable wimp.

It’s hard to see how Scott did anything but undermine his image with all but those who intended to vote for him for the sole fact that he has an “R” in front of his party affiliation.

The image to (all but die hard Republican) voters is that this is someone who doesn’t have a good sense of perspective. The larger priority was to do a debate on serious issues. The question it raises: so exactly how does he weigh other decisions he has to make?

Salon:

Let’s talk about The Fan for a minute. Better yet, let’s consider The Fan. The Fan is now the hottest story in American politics. With good reason, because it was the strangest moment in a political debate this year, and precisely the sort of stupid thing that the Florida governor’s race deserves to hinge on….

What could the Scott camp have been thinking? The governor’s advisors, who should all be fired today, must have made the calculation that refusing to go on stage to highlight Charlie Crist’s obsession with fans was a winning political move. As in, voters would overlook Scott’s incredible pettiness and instead focus on how much of a kook Charlie Crist is. That’s what we’d call a completely unnecessary gamble. Sure, we’re in desperation season, but Scott is not trailing by 10 percentage points. This is one of the closest high-profile races in the country. And Scott decided that he wouldn’t come on stage for a debate because his opponent enjoys a good fan.

(It’s long been a joke in Florida politics about how Charlie Crist is never more than arm’s length from a fan, because the guy doesn’t like to sweat. A little obsessive-compulsive, sure, but on the other hand… ever been to Florida? It’s always about 118 degrees and humid in Florida. The sun feels like it’s about three feet above your head at all times. Air conditioning can only mitigate the problem, not stop it. The merciless sunlight and death heat sneak sideways, through door cracks, through walls, through sheer force of will. If you are a man who sweats, Florida is your enemy. You want to lug a fan around, wherever you go? Fair enough.)…

…Scott and his campaign seem to have recognized how far out of their way they went to screw things up, because they’re changing the story. It was Crist who refused to take the stage…This doesn’t make much sense, because Crist was onstage for many minutes before Scott relented and appeared. You could see, on the teevee, that Crist was standing there waiting to debate.

The Miami Herald:

The debate began with no candidates and “an extremely peculiar situation,” moderator Eliott Rodriguez of WFOR said.

Less than a minute later, Crist rushed on stage. But Scott didn’t show until 7:07. He told CNN’s Wolf BlitzerThursday that he was told not to go on stage by “organizers.”

Rather than staging a brief boycott, Pozzuoli said, Scott should have used humor to defuse the controversy: “He would have gotten a lot more mileage out of it,” he said.

Instead, the flap became a social media punch line and the talk of morning cable TV shows. On MSNBC’s Morning Joe, viewers saw the video and an incredulous Mike Barnicle asked: “What’s wrong with these people? The governor of Florida demanding no fan?”

The debate sponsors, Leadership Florida and the Florida Press Association, released a statement Thursday saying that Crist’s insistence on a fan was a violation of debate rules.

The two groups said they sent letters dated Oct. 6 to both candidates specifying that they “may not bring electronic devices (including fans), visual aids or notes.”

Politico:

“Rick Scott never refused to take the stage and debate,” said Melissa Sellers, Scott’s campaign manager. “In fact, our campaign was not notified Charlie had even taken the stage because the last we heard, Crist was in an ‘emergency meeting’ with debate organizers pleading for his precious fan.”

But “#Fangate” and “#FLGOVDebate” were still trending on Twitter hours after Wednesday night’s debate. Florida’s major newspapers led with the fan incident on the front pages, and fan puns are still dominating social media and news coverage of the debate. Thursday’s lead headline in the Naples Daily News, Scott’s hometown newspaper, was “Airing their differences.” The Miami Herald led with “‘Fangate’ then debate,” and the Tampa Bay Times headline was: “After fan delay, a sharp debate.”

Although Republicans are split on how much of an impact the incident could have on the race, they agree that Scott, the incumbent seeking a second term, mishandled it.

“What Rick Scott should have done is walk on the stage, shake [Crist’s] hand, bend down, pull the cord out, and say, ‘This is how rules work, bitch,’” said Rick Wilson, a Florida-based GOP consultant.

Another Republican operative in the state, Alex Patton said: “He should have just gone on and done the debate. To not come out was just petty and looked insignificant compared to the issues Florida is facing.”

SOME TWITTER REACTION:

meltdown graphic via shutterstock.com

JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief

Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.

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