Gov. Charlie Crist is wrapping his high approval ratings around the shoulders of business interests and asking for a favor: $500,000 or more to promote the property tax cut plan on the Jan. 29 ballot.

From the cozy confines of the Governor's Club, Crist made his pitch to the Florida Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, Florida Retail Federation and others.

At least one group had a lukewarm reaction to last week's proposal. "It's always a challenge to raise a lot of money," said Carol Dover of the restaurant association, who like others contacted Wednesday was reluctant to spill details. "But we certainly recognize you have to raise money to make sure the message gets out. We're going to raise what we're able to raise." (Full story here.)