According to Gov. Rick Scott, his budgets are only getting better --- even as they keep getting bigger.
"What's great about this is, it's way better than my first budget," Scott said Monday as he unveiled his $79.3 billion spending plan for the year that begins July 1. The governor noted that the state was facing a shortfall when he took office in 2011, prompting cuts.
After Monday's event, while talking to reporters, Scott seemed happy about the new turn of events. The budget would grow by nearly a billion dollars in the coming year, which would help fund some of Scott's priorities, like an increase in education spending.
If adopted, it would also mark a new record for state spending.
"We have the money to invest," Scott said after his budget announcement. "We have to make smart investments. Why are we going to make these investments? Because it's good for all of our families."
It's not the first time that Scott has put forward a plan with record state spending. But it once again highlights a difficulty Scott has wrestled with before --- the fact that he came to town promising to slash the size of state government and hasn't done so in terms of raw dollars.
The final size of Scott's first budget was $69.4 billion, which was a decrease from the year before that, though it was bigger than what he asked the Legislature to approve. But if the budget weighs in at his target number this session, the governor will have added almost $10 billion to the spending plan in five years. Compare that to his widely cited zeal to decrease government spending dollar-for-dollar in his first spending plan in 2011.
"So join me today as we set an example for the nation that you can in fact shrink government, return tax dollars to their rightful owners --- you --- and create an atmosphere that creates new and better-paying jobs," Scott said then.
The governor's office has pointed out before that Scott's budgets aren't always record numbers when inflation and population are taken into account.
And it might not matter whether Scott ends up calling for the size of the spending measure to grow or shrink. Scott's proposal for the current budget, unveiled this past January, included a 0.1 percent reduction in state spending. By the time lawmakers were done with it and Scott has used his veto pen, it checked in at $78.4 billion --- up more than $1.3 billion from the year before, and at a level never seen in Florida.
TRUMP STAFFS UP
With poll numbers still showing real-estate tycoon Donald Trump leading the Republican field in Florida --- something his campaign is quick to point out --- the GOP front-runner announced some additions this week to his operation in the state.
Trump had already tapped Karen Giorno, former director of external affairs for Gov. Rick Scott, as the director of his statewide campaign. Joe Gruters, vice chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, and Susie Wiles, who managed Scott's 2010 campaign, were named co-chairs of the effort.
The latest hires, announced Tuesday, give Trump four more operatives in the state. Jennifer Locetta, who was statewide data director for the RPOF in 2012 and worked for Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in the state, will be Giorno's deputy. Ken Mayo, who has worked with conservative groups like Americans for Prosperity, will be the director of field operations.
Craig Bachler, who worked on Scott's campaign and was the state director of field operations for former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum four years ago, joins as "director of coalitions," while John Ross Pughe, who formerly served as an aide and campaign manager for state Rep. George Moraitis, R-Fort Lauderdale, will be Southeast regional field director.
The moves are another sign Trump is serious about contending in Florida's March 15 primary, which no longer looks like a sure bet for the state's native sons, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and former Gov. Jeb Bush. The winner will capture all of Florida's 99 delegates to the Republican National Convention --- a healthy chunk of the 1,236 delegates needed to clinch the GOP presidential nomination.
"I have created thousands of jobs and own some of the most iconic assets in the state," Trump said, with his characteristic effusiveness, in a new release announcing the hires. "I love the people of Florida and I am proud to have such overwhelming support and a great staff in place."
TWEET OF THE WEEK: "Disappointed, frustrated firefighter pay raises were left out of the Governor's budget. We won't give up on this."---Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam (@adamputnam), after Scott's budget proposal included bonuses for state employees but not firefighter raises Putnam had sought.
