A.G. Gancarski
In a Thursday morning op-ed in USA Today, Florida Governor Rick Scott blasted the federal government for its “incompetence” in the fight against Zika.
Scott, who has made many fruitless appeals to the federal government to be a “good partner” in the battle against the mosquito-borne virus in recent months, reprised critiques familiar to Florida media and audiences on a national platform.
The governor discussed his trip to Washington, D.C. last week, where he met with the Florida Congressional Delegation, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“Everyone in both parties told me they enthusiastically support the federal government getting serious about erasing Zika,” Scott wrote.
“In all my meetings with both Republicans and Democrats, I couldn’t find anyone who opposes the federal government spending money to eradicate Zika. But, what has happened? Nothing. It’s a perfect example of the complete dysfunction in Washington. Everyone is for funding to get rid of Zika — so of course nothing happens,” Scott added.
The governor, channeling the spirit of Ronald Reagan, expanded his critique of the “incompetent” federal government throughout the piece.
“When you travel around and talk to voters all across the country today, they will tell you that Washington is broken. That’s not really true, it is much worse than broken. To call our federal government broken is far too complimentary. No, the truth is that Washington is completely incompetent,” Scott wrote.
After an accurate description of the abject horror of a child being born with microcephaly, the governor noted that his administration, after committing $26 million to the fight against Zika already, has allocated another $10 million “to ensure our counties and local mosquito boards continue to have all of the resources they need to combat Zika.”
From there, Governor Scott — sounding like a reform candidate as much as a sitting governor — made the case that no viable business would be run like the federal government.
“Our broken federal government would never survive in the business world. If they were a company, they would fail. They would go under. They would be fired. Yet, members of Congress scratch their heads and wonder why the public is fed up with Washington,” Scott wrote, before arguing (as he did during the summer) that Congress must pass Zika funding before going on recess.
Governor Scott also contended that re-election campaigns should be suspended until that funding is passed.
“Inaction and incompetence — not common sense — rules the day in Washington. And, for every day that goes by without federal action against Zika, the continued spread of this virus and illnesses that result from it are the sad, sick proof that Washington isn’t just broken, it must be completely overhauled from top to bottom,” Scott concluded.
Or, to put it another way, Scott’s message to Congress: Let’s get to work.
