Mike Prendergast is out as Gov. Rick Scotts chief of staff. The governor announced Monday that the retired Army officer will take over the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs if approved by the Cabinet Wednesday.
I can think of no better advocate on behalf of Floridas 1.6 million veterans, their families and survivors, than Mike Prendergast, said Scott. His devotion to duty and commitment to our military men and women will be evident in the way he advocates for their health and economic well-being.
Mike committed to getting me through the first legislative session, and he did so with great success. The team he led did a great job of laying the foundation for my 7-7-7 jobs plan. Im grateful for his leadership and Im confident he will continue that in this new leadership role that Ive asked him to assume.
A Tampa native, Prendergast served in the Army for more than three decades, both in domestic assignments and overseas, including active duty in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq. During his service, he was honored with numerous citations and medals including the Bronze Star and the Defense Superior Service Medal.
A graduate of Jacksonville State University, Prendergast received three graduate degrees -- an M.A. in international relations from the University of Florida, an M.P.A. from Troy University and a Masters of Strategic Studies degree from the U.S. Army War College.
While Prendergast had a brief stint as an aide to former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham and as a legislative liaison in the secretary of the Army's office, he had little in the way of political experience, despite a spirited challenge to Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor in 2010, which won the backing of prominent national figures, including Mike Huckabee, Jeb Bush and Newt Gingrich. Indeed, the fact that Prendergast was an outsider was one of the reasons Scott named him chief of staff.
Mike Prendergast will operate as COO of the administration and direct the affairs of Florida government with precision and unwavering ethical rigor, said Scott back in December when he announced the appointment. Moreover, Mikes outsider status gives him the ability to evaluate and manage issues and agencies from a perspective untainted by the business-as-usual culture in Tallahassee.
However, there have been serious setbacks for the Scott administration after less than six months in office. Despite Republican supermajorities in both the House and the Senate, Scott came up short in his plan to reform state employee pensions and in pushing for tax cuts. According to a recent poll from Quinnipiac University, Scott won the approval of only 29 percent of Floridians.
The state VA department has had interim leadership since Admiral LeRoy Collins Jr., the son and namesake of the former governor, was killed in a traffic accident last July.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
