In the end game on financial reform, Democrats figure that even if the GOP successfully filibusters reform in the Senate, they can use the issue politically to beat up on Republicans. That’s why Dems see financial reform as a win-win.

So you figure the Democratic messaging, ahem, machine — on the Hill, at the White House, within the party committees, and among outside groups — must have a strategy for how to capitalize politically, a game plan for messaging across all platforms to all audiences … right?

Right?

If Charlie Crist takes the plunge and goes independent, as publisher of TPM I’ll be happy because it will make for a considerably more interesting race. I also think it would be a good thing for the country in as much as it might get you a little closer to a sane center-right faction if not a sane center-right party in the US. Not that I see Crist as any avatar of moderation or political wisdom. But structurally I think it would be a good thing.

A whole lot of signs over just the last couple days that Charlie Crist is getting ready to bail on the GOP and make an independent run for senate — including taking GOP primary-focused ads down off the air and not returning calls from the national Republican senate campaign committee (NRSC). Eric Kleefeld brings us up to date on the very latest. This is looking like it’s really going to happen. Definitely give this a look.

Florida Atty General Bill McCollum has become the face of the national anti-HCR lawsuit movement being taken up by so many state Attorneys General running for Governor in their states. But it looks like it may actually be hurting him in the polls.

As I mentioned over the weekend, I know just enough about British politics to get myself in trouble when writing about it on the blog. But with the surge of support for the Liberal Democrats in the upcoming UK election, a lot of readers have written in to ask just who the Liberal Democrats are? Who would they be in the context of US politics. Complicated question. And with the proviso that if you’re interested in learning more, I’d strongly advise you to peruse some of the many valuable sources of information available Interwebs, let me take a crack at answering this question. Read More

While the SEC was strutting its stuff Friday about suing Goldman Sachs over allegedly fraudulent derivatives, the SEC’s inspector general issued a scathing report on the commission’s handling of the case of Sir Ponzi, Texas billionaire Allen Stanford. The SEC knew as early as 1997 that Stanford’s business was a sham, but didn’t take any steps to pursue him until 2005.

There’s a pretty high bar on Tea Party Crazy. But down in Greenville, South Carolina over the weekend, I think we had what was probably the craziest, most violence-strewn Tea Party event so far: repeated calls to march with guns on Washington, Tom Tancredo asking to send Obama back to Kenya and, well, just a lot more. See the video.

The New York Times profiles the Obama administration officials who will implement the new health care reform law. That and the day’s other political news in the TPMDC Morning Roundup.

Obama will head to New York on Thursday to give a speech at Cooper Union on financial reform.

The pace of the financial reform story has picked up, and this week will be a critical week, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid still promising to try to bring the bill to the Senate floor by the end of the week, even though he’s short of 60 votes. Will any Republicans come over? What concessions will the administration have to make to entice them? Or will Democrats be content to let the GOP stand tall as the party of Wall Street during this election year?

A lot is happening so we’ve set up a Financial Reform Wire where you can keep track of each new development in real time.