Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster
When it comes to endorsing a 2016 presidential hopeful, Gov. Rick Scott is standing firm on his belief that it’s all about the economy.
Talking points prepared by the governor’s office show that between Oct. 6 and Nov. 23, the governor was prepared to pivot to the economy when asked about the 2016 presidential race. The talking points, which were first reported by Gary Fineout’s The Fine Print blog, show Scott’s office also prepared to respond to questions about frontrunner Donald Trump.
The issue of endorsements was addressed several times in the dozens of talking point memos. On multiple occasions, Scott was prepared to respond to a question about an endorsement by saying the Republican hopefuls “are not talking about growing our economy.”
“I’m looking for a candidate who will be all-in on growing our economy,” continues the memo.
Scott’s focus on the economy is unsurprising. He has been singularly focused on jobs, and talking points call on presidential candidates to come up with a plan that would add millions of jobs over four years.
“We have several Republican candidates running for President right now. I am watching for WHO HAS THE BEST ECONOMIC PLAN to CREATE JOBS. That is the candidate I will support,” reads talking points from Oct. 6. “We made a plan to add 700K jobs of 7 years when I ran for Governor of Florida. We have already beaten that goal in just over four years. In order to win, our next Republican president has to have a plan to add 12 million jobs in 4 years. And, they have to have the ability to actually implement that plan.”
The economy wasn’t the only subject Scott was prepared to comment on; the governor’s office also prepared responses to questions about Trump’s controversial comments and whether Scott thought Trump was offensive.
“I think people in Washington are trying to figure out why Trump is doing so well, but the reality is he is saying what he thinks,” reads the memo in response to questions about Trump. “He is not being politically correct. I think a lot of people find that refreshing.”
While Trump has dominated the news for months now, Matt Dixon of Politico Florida reported Scott hasn’t used the response to questions about Trump, instead turning the focus back to jobs.
The memos also include talking points for a variety of other news-of-the-day issues, like redistricting and tax cuts.
