Obama and Crist, who will appear together in Ft. Myers Tuesday, boast a modern brand of politics that seeks to avoid ideological battles and mixes centrist instincts with a people-first approach. They are essentially politicians cut from different sides of the same political cloth. Obama on the left; Crist on the right…

Obama’s harsh words for corporations last week was a blend of populism that Crist has exhibited in the past two years as he’s scolded insurance companies for ripping off his “fellow Floridians.”

Crist also tends to overlook the far right of the GOP – saying last year, for instance, that he would vote for an anti-gay marriage amendment, but refusing to campaign for it. His stance has prompted complaints from religious conservatives about the governor much in the way Democratic liberals have at times been upset with Obama.