Gov. Rick Scott tipped a few of his cards on Tuesday as the crowded field of Republican presidential candidates gets ready for their first debate on Thursday. Scott didn’t offer an endorsement on Tuesday but he did offer some insights on who he might eventually back.
Scott talked to Politico for an article published on Tuesday and sent a statement to the media later on Tuesday morning.
“I am asked all the time who I will vote for, but like most voters, I really don’t know the answer to that question yet. I hope the upcoming debates on August 6th will help,” Scott said in the statement. “America needs a strong, intelligent, driven leader who has a specific action plan for our country. Entertaining speeches are not enough. We have had almost eight years of great speeches and they all glossed over massive government takeovers that grew the government sector of our economy at the expense of individual opportunity. America is a superpower because we have long been a place of opportunity for all.”
Scott left no room for doubt: economic issues are what drive him, just as has been the case since he emerged in 2010 and won the governorship.
“Yes, foreign policy is very important, and yes, cultural issues are very important as well,” Scott said. “But, as for me, I will support the candidate who has both the best plan to grow the real American economy, not the government economy, and the capability to actually execute that plan.
Pointing to his record on job creation in Florida, Scott insisted the “next president must have a plan to add 12 million jobs across the country in four years” and one good way of doing that was to “cut federal regulation in half.”
“The growth of government regulation is stifling American companies’ ability to create jobs,” Scott insisted. “The next Republican president must also balance the budget now and not in 10 years. American families and business owners are expected to balance their budgets. We have to balance our budget at the state level in Florida. Over the last four years, we have balanced Florida’s budget and reduced state debt by $7.5 billion. Career politicians in Washington should be forced to do the same. Making a national balanced budget a priority is common sense.
“The next Republican president must immediately eliminate the individual and employer mandates and all taxes under Obamacare, and also transform the federal insurance exchanges in the Medicaid program into a block grant system that gives the money directly to governors so they can provide health care the way they think is best for their citizens,” Scott added. “The one-size-fits-all mandates that are the hallmark of the Obama administration have to go. Obamacare is crippling business growth and will cripple state governments that chose to implement it. (Notably, we have not expanded Obamacare in Florida.)”
Scott called for the next president to scrap President Barck Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran and outreach to the Castro regime in Cuba. Taking aim at former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the favorite for the Democratic presidential nomination, Scott insisted she had a large hand in shaping Obama’s foreign policy and could be beaten in 2016.
“Hillary Clinton will be beaten by the most intelligent, driven, selfless, determined individual of the 17 Republican candidates,” Scott said. “This candidate must not be afraid to stick to his or her ideals and transform America into the economic superpower we should be. Which Republican individual possesses these attributes? It may be a while before we know. Hopefully, we will start to get an idea in this first round of Republican debates this week. But again, I believe that I speak for most Americans when I say that having a specific plan to make sure every American family who wants a job has one has to be job one.”
Scott is wise to keep his powder dry and not offer an endorsement yet. Donald Trump is rising in the polls and there are two candidates from Florida -- former Gov. Jeb Bush and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio -- near the head of the pack. Two other candidates -- former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and Dr. Ben Carson -- have moved to Florida in recent years. Old allies of Scott -- Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey who helped Scott’s re-election efforts when he led the Republican Governors Association; Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and former Gov. Rick Perry of Texas -- are also running for the Republican nomination.
By holding off on backing a candidate, Scott is setting himself up to be a kingmaker in the Florida Republican primary in March. Scott didn’t back any of the Republican candidates in the 2012 cycle but he is in far better shape now than he was then. There have certainly been some rough spots -- the RPOF did not back his candidate to lead it earlier this year -- but Scott retains the support of most Florida Republicans after winning a second term and cutting taxes.
Florida political figures can make a difference in presidential primaries. When he was still a Republican back in 2008, then-Gov. Charlie Crist helped John McCain beat Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani to win the presidential primary. Then Gov. Bob Martinez helped George Bush carry Florida over Bob Dole in 1988. While his presidential campaign went nowhere in 1984, former Gov. Reubin Askew endorsed Gary Hart and helped him beat Walter Mondale in the Democratic primary.
Not really closely tied to Bush or Rubio, Scott can now see how the early states weed out the various candidates and help a contender win Florida. Scott is well-positioned to be a major factor in picking whoever the Republican presidential candidate will be and perhaps pick up a few IOUs if he decides to run for the U.S. Senate in 2018.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
