California environmentalist shakes up Florida race

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A California billionaire environmentalist is pouring millions of dollars into the Florida governor’s race to buy television ads attacking Gov. Rick Scott as a friend of polluters and utility companies, giving the campaign of Democratic front-runner Charlie Crist a boost as polls show a tightening race.

Former hedge fund manager Tom Steyer has put Scott and the Florida Republican Party on the defensive, prompting them to hit back with their own ads attacking Steyer as a hypocrite. They have also threatened television stations with lawsuits if they carry the ads, which Scott’s lawyers say are misleading and defamatory. So far, one Fort Myers station has stopped running them.