A day after it was announced that Gov. Rick Scott would be among the speakers at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, his speech is a long way from being written.
But during an appearance on WCOA 1370-AM in Pensacola on Tuesday morning, Scott said -- as one would expect -- the topic will center on Floridas economy since he took office in 2011.
I havent decided exactly what Im going to talk about, but typically what I talk about is how Florida is becoming the model for the country, Scott said. By reducing taxes, by reducing regulations, by saying we want business people to do more business in Florida, weve been able to dramatically reduce our unemployment and increase our employment.
Our unemployment in the last 18 months has dropped faster than every state but one.
We had, I think, about a drop of 40 percent in the number of people on unemployment because were running the state like you run a business: watch how you spend your money; and we want more business people to start their businesses here, expand their businesses here, and move their businesses here.
The Republican National Committee on Monday released a list of some of the speakers for the convention, including Scott, with New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, both mentioned as long-shot potential running mates for Romney, along with South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Arizona Sen. John McCain, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former Arkansas governor and current Fort Walton Beach resident Mike Huckabee.
But, just announced Tuesday morning as speakers are former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin.
Republican Party of Florida Chairman Lenny Curry said Monday he expected Scott to highlight the direction Scott and the GOP-led Legislature have steered the Sunshine State.
"My guess is (Scott) will talk about the success that we have in Florida; that, in fact, unemployment is on a three-year low; that we've created an environment that is pro-job creation and pro-education and we'd be that much more successful if we had a partner in Washington," Curry said.
Democrats have claimed to be elated by Scotts selection among the speakers, pointing to his low approval ratings among Floridians and media reports that he was being kept off the presidential campaign trail.
Scotts 52 percent disapproval rating is handicapping the Republican operation in Florida and its hamstringing Mitt Romney, David Bergstein, a spokesman for the Florida Democrats, told WCTV in Tallahassee.
We are extremely happy to welcome Governor Scott to the campaign trail and look forward to hearing him explain how he and Mitt Romney share the same tea party vision, said Bergstein.
Said Republican political consultant Joel Endelman, "Gov. Scott has a speaking coach, he has a whale of a message about the performance of his state, he's made the tough choices our president should have been making and I expect to see his approval ratings rise significantly in the not too distant future."
Reach Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 215-9889.
