A.G. Gancarski
Sen. Rick Scott continues to argue against using federal relief money to bail out the “bad decisions” of traditionally Democratic states.
Wednesday evening saw more of that message, delivered to a receptive crowd via a virtual town hall in conjunction with Americans for Prosperity.
Americans for Prosperity aligns with Scott’s message generally, but especially on this issue.
The first-term U.S. Senator has been messaging heavily against taking on debt, and here he was pointed, saying that debt could lead to hyperinflation or to deflation.
Scott noted that Federal Reserve policies in the 1910s and 1920s led to the Great Depression and argued that accumulation of debt could similarly imperil contemporary America.
“It looks like we’re going to spend 7-something trillion and get back 3-something trillion this year,” Scott said. “There’s no free money here.”
“I’m very concerned about where we’re heading, and about the size of the Federal Reserve balance sheet,” Scott continued. “We’ve got to figure this stuff out.”
He also resumed his increasingly one-sided diss war against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, perpetually “mad” at Scott for taking jobs from New York.
Scott, who flirted with Medicaid expansion while Governor until he was reelected, also lamented that New York gets double per capita what Florida does in Medicaid.
AFP President Tim Phillips jumped in, comparing Florida’s “prosperity” and “fiscal strength” with that of New York.
“Live within your means,” Scott said. “Do as we did in Florida.”
Scott, always on-message in his eight years as Governor, stuck to a familiar script here.
With great empathy in his voice, he advocated immunity from liability suits for businesses that may be prone to frivolous litigation in the post-COVID 19 climate.
And he continued to harangue federal unemployment benefits, claiming somewhat less empathetically that there are employees who wouldn’t return to the 9-to-5 until “the unemployment runs out.”
Scott, blamed by the current Governor for leaving him a “designed to fail” unemployment system, has felt comfortable being breezy on this topic, and the AFP town hall was no deviation from the norm.
12 comments
Patti Lynn
May 6, 2020 at 8:30 pm
This person is a DISGRACE!!!! I love it, he said, “Live within your means.” Well, FloriDUH doesn’t!! The federal government sends BILLIONS of dollars to Florida OVER AND ABOVE what Florida pays into the Federal government. The BLUE STATES, however, CONSISTENTLY send 40 – 50 BILLION dollars MORE to the Feds than they receive from the Feds. BLUE States are keeping our country safe, providing for first responders; educated, paying teachers MUCH more than the RED states. RICK SCOTT is a disgrace as a human being. He cheated MEDICARE as head of the HCA Hospital system. Where did he get all of his money??? He STOLE it from Medicare…and FloriDUH elected him as governor, and now senator. A CHEAT!!!
PeterH
May 7, 2020 at 5:26 pm
Excellent post! Detailed and accurate.
Nancy
May 6, 2020 at 9:00 pm
But the largest rip off of Medicare, where he pled the fifth 75 times, wasn’t free money for him?
Frankie M.
May 6, 2020 at 10:17 pm
Scott knows all about the free $$ with his medicare scam. I never saw him turn down federal relief $$ either after we got slammed by hurricanes. No he was flying around in a helicopter shooting defacto campaign ads while hugging the flag in his navy cap. Learn to live within your means Scott and stop sucking from the guvmints teat.
Vanessa Ortega
May 6, 2020 at 10:56 pm
Mr.Scott,
I always find it funny that the most politically incorrect are the ones in politics…shame on you ,I am a single mother that at 51years of age have never asked for unemployment but has worked all my life and paid taxes which makes me a perfect candidate for payment but has been unemployed since 3/19/2020 no child support because of coronavirus and when I call both agencies don’t answer…I forgot to mention I was born in the USA…shame on you eating your $2,000 lunches and expecting for the rest of Floridians to live in minimum wage and pay $2,000 rents..You are supposed to be a public servant and all you are is a thief..yes Medicare fraud you God knows what you did
BlueHeron
May 7, 2020 at 12:02 am
Any comments I would make have already been posted by others.
This is a man who is a pathetic excuse for a human being.
An empty shell of a man.
We knew what we were getting when he was elected Governor for two terms.
We knew what we were getting when we elected him for US Senate. Now he’s in a major place of power. He’s gone national and has the ear of POTUS. The world is his oyster.
Floridians be damned.
Floriduh, indeed.
Andre
May 7, 2020 at 6:17 am
What your solution senator. What is it.You can’t rail against something with out a solution. This crisis is the worst we will have faced in our 250 year history as a republic. 75k dead and rising , we are heading towards 30 percent unemployment.
You have billions in tax breaks to corporations, you absolutely wrecked the unemployment system.
Everyone of you ill fitted elected officials should be imprisoned for your disgraceful handling of this crisis. YOUR NO ABE LINCOLN.
Jack SMith
May 7, 2020 at 9:18 am
Formerly prosperous Americans who did nothing wrong are having a tough time getting back to work – especially if they have a small business. Bounce this clown out of office ASAP! Unlike the Washington elite on the VIP list, working businessmen are left to go out of business. THis guy is a crook. Deserves to be buried.
Lee
May 7, 2020 at 10:32 am
“It’s not too late for the Fed and the treasury to take shares of stock in every corporation that gets bailed out.” Robert Reich
PeterH
May 7, 2020 at 5:23 pm
I have no idea what Rick Scott is talking about! My home state of Florida is a federal ‘taker’ state. Florida receives more federal money than it gives to the Treasury. California and New York are both ‘giver’ states …. they give more to the national treasury than they receive.
Arie Wellner
May 8, 2020 at 9:23 am
Scott is another scammer with
kim b.
May 9, 2020 at 12:16 pm
All I can say is Rick Scott proved he’s the best example how to be a scam artist. Everything from medicare scams, unemployment scam, political scam, you name the scam Rick Scott has played a part. The unfortunate part is that the citizens of Florida continue to pay the price of his incompetence.
Comments are closed.