Gov. Charlie Crist called for bipartisanship to address Florida's problems. "Extreme views rarely solve problems and frequently create them. While there is great virtue in being true to your principles, conviction must be tempered with practicality and pragmatism. Taken to an extreme, conviction becomes inflexible - even destructive."

With a sluggish economy and efforts to boost economic development, he called for less "red tape" for business, toughter anticorruption laws and passage of a Seminole Indian gambling compact that lawmakers have rejected twice.

He stated that he had no regret for taking Florida's share of federal stimulus money from President Barack Obama's administration. "While not particularly pleasant for any of us, this step was the responsible thing to do for our people."

On gambling, Crist called for a "consensus" to generate more money for schools, while acknowledging that some legislative leaders oppose what they view as an expansion of gambling. "Florida desperately needs the money. Wouldn't it be appropriate to set aside personal biases and approve a compact that will help pay to educate Florida's schoolchildren?"

He cited his administration's accomplishments including a drop in violent crime to a barebones health insurance program i.e. Cover Florida and the advent of hand-held mobile devices to track foster children.