Monday, April 09, 2018

Rick Scott: ready, steady, go ... by gimleteye



Florida Rick Scott got there, first. Before there was a Donald Trump, Scott decided to deploy a portion of his considerable fortune to buy the office of the governor. It didn't matter than he had zero experience in public policy (like Trump). Didn't matter that his business accomplishment were deeply stained (like Trump). Or that he had nothing in common, at all, with the Tea Party and rabid right-wing that propelled him to office (Trump).

The Republican Party looked down its nose at Scott (like it did, to Trump). When he arrived in Tallahassee in 2010, he barely had competent staff (Trump).

What Scott discovered, to the great satisfaction of his mentee -- Trump -- , was that winning high elected office was a rigged game and that the winners best understood how to navigate the margins for best forward speed.

Scott's favorability numbers are very low. He is a disaster in unscripted moments before the cameras, and so his approach has been to tightly limit the opportunities for the press to catch him off guard. Within his own party, Scott's relations are frosty. But big donors from industries regulated by the state are happy to support Scott, as they are to support Trump in Washington.

Now that Scott has formally announced his intention to take on Senator Bill Nelson, the race is on. Neither party can control the US Senate without winning Florida. The race will be about Trump, Scott's best friend. That is why Scott wants to declare victory in the Everglades and why a Republican Congress will quickly move to provide the federal cost share to a new multi-billion dollar reservoir that will not work, because Big Sugar has already turned the reservoir, legislatively, to its purposes.

The Democrat's best argument is that Florida is swimming in a sea of pollution, and that sea includes toxic water and toxic politics in equal mix.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

The people of Florida must recognize that the party in power for the last many years, along with its Governor, Scott, have been selling our State's assets and funneling money to private interests, polluting our State, and relying on apathy, blatant lies, and slight of hand tactics to continue this bad behavior. It must be stopped, and that means at the polls.

Senator Nelson has been and always will be a hard working, honest representative of the people of Florida, and Florida has been fortunate to have him. The alternative to Senator Nelson scary for our State of Florida.

Anonymous said...

Actually according to a Quinnipiac poll conducted in February..

Scott Approval - 49%
Nelson Approval- 48%

Scott Disapproval- 40%
Nelson Disapproval- 34%

Nelson and Scott are running about even , so I wouldn't say Scott's approval rating is very low; if I used your logic, Nelson's would be also. Scott's ratings are at record highs (for Scott). Other polls show that nearly half of Florida voters have no opinion on Nelson because they don't know enough about him to form one. I think that speaks volumes for a man who has been in office since the 1970's.

https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/02/27/poll-nelson-leads-scott-in-likely-senate-contest-rubio-approval-rating-hits-new-low-281203

Anonymous said...

I'm afraid that in this race, the bigger lire will win hands down.
The interview Nelson gave about Face book sell out, was about: "This has to be changed, other wise Americans have no privacy left" !!!!! Wow. These words from a man that should know, that the NSA, previously only allowed to spy and record abroad against "enemies", Is now doing the very same domestically, since shortly after "peace broke out".

At least the EU country's pretend to have privacy laws, at the consumer level. Where as here, what's good for (insert your favorite corporation),is good for US, as far as privacy goes.

Nelson with his comment showed ignorance about the face book theft.

Anonymous said...

Rick Scott just signed Resign to Run into law requiring elected Florida officials running for Federal seats to resign. Except the bill was changed last moment by his party to exempt Rick Scott. A grotesque reminder of the reality of our elitist system.