Gov. Charlie Crist today expressed agreement with one of the Republican candidates running to replace him, who said the state GOP should open its credit-card records and make a full disclosure of spending by party officers.

But Crist, Attorney General Bill McCollum and Marco Rubio, who is running against Crist for the U.S. Senate, said that’s a decision the next state Republican chairman will have to make. All three ducked a question about publicly disclosing details of individual credit-card purchases made by party officers and public officials.

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State Sen. Paula Dockery of Lakeland, running against McCollum for governor, said Monday "it’s time to come clean" and urged both candidates for the GOP chairmanship to promise full disclosure of spending by party leaders.

The party has been rocked in recent weeks by disclosure of a secret contract that paid former executive director Delmar Johnson nearly $200,000 for fundraising activities, along with lavish expense-account purchases by him and other top party leaders.

Last year, a subpoena for former House Speaker Ray Sansom’s party credit-card records showed $173,000 in travel, food and other expenses. This week, it was disclosed that House Speaker-designate Dean Cannon pulled $655,000 out of the state party and put it in a separate political fund he set up last year.

At a morning news conference, Crist was asked about Dockery’s demand that the party "come clean."

"I feel the same way," Crist said, but he quickly added, "I think it’s a decision for the new chairman, frankly."

State Sen. John Thrasher and Republican National Committeewoman Sharon Day are running for the chairmanship at a specially called GOP state committee meeting Feb. 20. Both have promised future transparency and an audit of books to be disclosed among state committee members and other officers, but not a public disclosure of credit-card charge receipts.

Under state law, the party is required to report amounts it pays to credit-card companies but not to break down the charges.

Rubio, interviewed by Tallahassee radio station WFLA-FM this morning, also said how much to disclose is up to the next chairman.

"I think there are pros and cons to doing some public spectacle that opens up the private books of a private entity, which is the Republican Party, to media scrutiny — not to mention the impact it can have electorally, going forward," he said.

McCollum, interviewed before the weekly Cabinet meeting, said there should be an audit of past spending but that disclosure should only be available to state committee members, county GOP chairs and other party officers.

"Right now, the party matters are totally internal," said McCollum. "I don’t think it’s good for any party to have everything that’s done inside the party open to the press and public. I don’t think that’s something historically that they do."

Earlier: Dockery calls for full disclosure

A Republican candidate for governor challenged both major contenders for her party's chairmanship to disclose all of the Florida GOP's finances, including credit-card bills of party officers.

"It's time to come clean," state Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, wrote to state Sen. John Thrasher, R-Jacksonville, and Republican National Committeewoman Sharon Day of Fort Lauderdale.

Thrasher and Day are running to succeed state Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer at a specially called meeting in Orlando on Feb. 20. Greer announced his resignation last month amid an uproar over party spending, sluggish fund-raising and his personal involvement in primaries for the U.S. Senate, governor and attorney general.

Greer, who backs Attorney General Bill McCollum over Dockery in the primary for governor, canceled all party-issued credit cards last year. The move came after former House Speaker Ray Sansom's American Express records were subpoenaed and it was revealed he spent some $174,000 on travel and questionable purchases. Last week, the Orlando Sentinel reported that former party executive director Delmar Johnson was paid more than $400,000 under a secret contract Greer entered into with him for party fund-raising.

Johnson had also run up big tabs for nationwide travel in raising money for the state party.

Dockery urged Thrasher and Day to say what they would do, as chairman, to "restore member confidence that hard-earned donations are helping communicate our party's conservative message, not funding massages for party elite."

Thrasher said he would require full disclosure of finances to the budget and audit committees of the state party. As chairman, he said in a prepared statement, he would also tighten controls to prevent "frivolous" spending, "excessive salaries" and secret contracts.

But he wouldn't commit to revealing past charge records.

"While I fully agree with disclosure, the question is disclosure to whom?" said Thrasher's statement. "The decision to have these issues aired in the mainstream media will only serve to trap our party in a continual discussion about the past, instead of looking forward to our future."

Day said she would order an audit of state GOP books, if she becomes chairman, but would not commit to making the credit-card records public.