Oh, man. The scheme former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer has been charged with is so blatant and so simple that if you’ve ever been in and around state party politics you ought to just read the affidavit by the lead investigator yourself (starting on page 4).

Among the highlights:

— Greer cut out the state party’s existing successful fundraiser, according to the affidavit. First he tried to muscle in on her business then slashed her salary when she didn’t play along. He also began restricting her access to Gov. Charlie Crist and blocking her from meeting with major donors, telling her they were “men’s only” meetings.

— Greer’s alleged scheme coincided with some tough economic times for the Florida GOP. At one point Greer held a press conference where he cut up an American Express card as a symbol of the party’s new austerity measures. Except, the AMEX card didn’t belong to the state party. It was some poor staffer’s personal card. Other staffers scrambled to pick up the cut up pieces before the press could photograph them and discover who the card really belonged to, according to the affidavit.

David Kurtz

David Kurtz is Managing Editor and Washington Bureau Chief of Talking Points Memo where he oversees the news operations of TPM and its sister sites.