Under bright sunshine on a crisp sub-60-degree January day in Tallahassee, Gov. Rick Scott was sworn in for his second term, repeating the theme that "brung him," calling for an increased commitment to job creation and fiscal conservatism.
Following the state constitutional revisions of 1968, Scott is only the fifth governor in Florida history to serve a second consecutive term, joining former Govs. Reubin Askew, Bob Graham, Lawton Chiles and Jeb Bush. Scott defeated former Gov. Charlie Crist in November.
Having focused on job creation during his two gubernatorial campaigns and in his first term, Scotts inauguration Tuesday featured everyday Floridians talking about their experiences getting new jobs in recent years.
Joined by fellow Republicans Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, Attorney General Pam Bondi, state CFO Jeff Atwater and Agricultural Commissioner Adam Putnam, Scott took the oath of office before a packed courtyard of invited guests, military personnel, media and Capitol staffers shortly after noon. They were joined by two former governors -- Democrat Wayne Mixson and Republican Bob Martinez -- and two current leaders of other states considering running for president in 2016: Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., and Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas. Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, R-Fla., leaders from the Florida Legislature, state Supreme Court justices and various state commissioners and members of the Scott administration were also at the dias.
The campaign is over, Scott said in his inaugural address. Now we turn to governing.
Scott promised to fight for all Floridians and called for coming together on a number of issues for the benefit of each and every Floridian. As he had in his two gubernatorial campaigns, Scott focused on job creation.
A lot of people ask me why I ran for governor, Scott said. I ran for governor to change lives by giving people better opportunities. I can tell you from watching my parents struggle for work that if you want to change a life -- get someone a job!
If I can make Florida the worldwide location where families who have struggled to make ends meet can get a job, then I have fulfilled my goal as governor because a job is the No. 1 way to change a life, Scott added. A job helps families put food on the table, pay the rent and buy a car. A job gives families hope for the future. The importance of continual job creation is something that we can all agree on. Jobs and opportunities are good for all of us.
You have heard me constantly talk about jobs since I ran in 2010. I want to promise you I will never stop," Scott said. I will be working to make Florida No. 1 in job opportunities and growth right up to the last day I serve as your governor. Jobs for Florida families have been my focus every single day for the last four years and jobs will continue to be my mission for the next four years.
Florida businesses have created more than 700,000 jobs in less than four years, Scott insisted in his speech, before turning his fire toward President Barack Obama and big government states led by Democratic governors.
While we are focused on growing jobs in Florida, we must realize that that positions our state as a fighter in a great movement against the silent growth of government, Scott said. Many states, like Florida, are fighting to limit the growth of government and grow opportunity instead.
Over the last 20 years, millions of people have escaped from states with climbing tax rates to move to states with lower taxes. Why does this matter? Scott asked. For starters, estimates say individuals who escaped these high-tax states have taken with them around $2 trillion in adjusted gross income.
They are voting with their feet, Scott continued before pointing to states led by Democratic governors. They are leaving states like New York, which lost $71 billion in adjusted gross income from 1992 to 2011. And they are leaving Illinois, which lost $31 billion in adjusted gross income over that same period. The people that left New York and Illinois had one thing in common their No. 1 destination was Florida."
Scott called on residents of these other states to move to Florida.
I have a message today to the people of New York, Illinois, California, Pennsylvania and others: move to Florida! Scott said. We want you to keep more of the money you make because we understand its your money. We want your businesses to grow and succeed. We want to compete globally and win. Over the next four years, I will be traveling to your states personally to recruit you here.
Scott contrasted the growth of Florida with the lack of opportunity in big-government states.
We are first for families deciding where they can live the American dream," Scott said. When people move here, they spend their money here, they bring their businesses here, they support our charities and they create more jobs and opportunities for others in our great state. In fact, this national battle against growing government so intensely affects Florida that we just recently surpassed New York as the third largest state in the nation.
In Florida we are proving that government can do better without getting bigger, Scott added. We have two choices: we can pretend this migration would have happened regardless of our tax burden or what government policies we enact, or we can acknowledge Floridas very serious advantage over other states in not just this last decade but the next decade to come.
Scott tied Floridas job creation to its economic climate and lower taxes.
Florida must stay committed to smaller government and lowering taxes to become the top destination in the world for jobs, Scott said. "I know there is a great temptation in government to think that you can spend peoples money better than they can. But, if that were true, more than 1 million people would not have left New York and Illinois over the past 20 years for Florida and other lower tax states.
Scott also vowed to continue to cut taxes.
In the next four years, we will build on our legacy of cutting taxes more than 40 times, Scott said. We will cut another $1 billion in taxes in the next two years and continue to roll back the business tax while permanently eliminating the tax on manufacturing equipment. As Florida businesses are better able to compete globally, we will have more and more jobs.
Scott also noted he had an ambitious agenda" to become the global leader for job creation by the year 2020 and linked in his commitment to education.
We know the workers of tomorrow are in our classrooms today and that is why this year we will increase per-pupil K-12 education funding to the highest level in Florida history, Scott said. And as we do that, we will be ever mindful of the fact that more money alone does not guarantee success in education. Florida has led the nation in education reforms, providing equal opportunity in education for all, and we will continue to do that. We will also compete globally for jobs by investing in workforce training programs that focus on science, technology, engineering and math.
Keeping our costs low doesnt end with tax cuts it also includes lowering the cost of higher education opportunities as well." Scott added. That is why we have already worked with the Legislature to stop tuition increases in our undergraduate programs. And, to make higher education even more affordable in the next four years, we will increase the number of $10,000 bachelor degrees offered at our state colleges; while also holding the line on graduate school tuition.
With an amused Perry looking on, Scott renewed his call to unseat Texas within the next four years as the top spot for job creation and called for spending an additional $1 billion on ports and $25 billion for roads over the next five years. Scott also promised to invest $1 billion to restore our springs and help develop water supplies and pledged to fight for the environment.
Scott left to the sounds of Anchors Away, a song associated with the U.S. Navy in which the governor served.
While jobs were on top of Scotts agenda, they were also on the minds of the governors foes. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) launched a strike against Scott on Tuesday morning, before the inauguration ceremony. The DNC hit Scott, Christie and Perry for sharing a failed economic philosophy that benefits the select few over the priorities of working Americans and calling the three governors the poster children for the GOPs failed economic leadership and fiscal management.
The DNC hit Scotts record on jobs, insisting he promised to create 1.7 million new jobs in 2010 while the Republican and his team note they promised to create 700,000 new jobs, a mark they have already reached.
Scott isnt even halfway to the promise he made in 2010 to create new jobs in Florida despite his claim that he fulfilled that promise, the DNC claimed on Tuesday. In fact, he completely flip-flopped on how to calculate his jobs promise. But its no surprise he has to make up statistics, since the reality in Florida is bleak. The Sunshine State ranks last in the nation in home foreclosures, it ranks in the bottom of the heap on median income, and the number of its citizen enrolling in food stamps has gone up while the national average has declined. And to add insult to injury, as the Tampa Bay Times reported, Scott has used tax breaks and other incentives to attract tens of thousands of new jobs to Florida, but after nearly four years, most of the jobs still dont exist.
Ken Farringdon, an accountant from Orlando, called himself "a Rick Scott believer." He told Sunshine State News, "I'm here because to me Rick Scott is a great man. My old company has been able to expand and I got back the job I lost. I'm here today (at the inauguration) just to say thank you to this man. Rick Scott made it possible."
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
