Tag Archives: Rick Scott

And The Feeling Is Mutual

“In private, Romney has told friends he has little interest in helping the Republican Party rebuild and re-brand itself.”

Philip Rucker, “A detached Romney tends wounds in seclusion after failed White House bid,” WaPo

Look, I can’t stand the guy, but if the GOP thinks it was just him and his 47% percent — hideous as that was — they’re even crazier than I thought. 

The seeds of Mitt’s defeat were sown in the earlier victories of extremist governors like Scott Walker, Rick Scott, John Kasich, and Bob McDonnell.  They were sown in the spectacle of the GOP debates when Mitt had to share the stage with nutjobs like Cain, Santorum, Bachmann, Perry, and Newt.  They were sown in the Senate races of Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock, dragging Mitt down with them as they drowned. 

Y’All Can Die, Cause Perry’s Running for Prez in 2016

About 25% of Texans don’t have health insurance,  the highest rate in the country.  This is one area where Texas shouldn’t want to be bigger than everybody else.  This high number of uninsured is because states set eligibility based on the poverty line, and Texas sets theirs really low — at only 27% of that line.

By contrast, the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare would cover people up to 133% of the poverty line, which in states like Texas would make an enormous difference.  The cost to Texas for such an expansion?  Zero for the first three years, and then ten percent thereafter.

Sounds like a good deal, right?  Except that Texas Gov. Rick Perry says he won’t participate.  He’s going to hold his breath until all the uninsured turn blue.

Besides refusing to participate in the Medicaid expansion, Perry says he won’t set up an insurance exchange to help people buy coverage from competing private insurers.

This is all about Perry setting himself up to run again for president in 2016, this time without the back surgery, pain pills, and “oops.”  Of course, if he does need more back surgery and pain pills, no problem.  He has health insurance.

But ultimately I believe Perry, and other refusenik governors like Rick Scott of Florida, Scott Walker of Wisconsin, and Nikki Haley of South Carolina, will cave.  They will be under too much pressure from their hospitals and their citizens will not be pleased to watch so much federal money flowing to other states.

 

Mitt Wants GOP Govs to Cool It on the Good News

Reports have emerged (denied by both sides) that Mittens asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to stop talking about how the economy is improving there because it kind of, you know, steps on Mitt’s diametrically opposed message that the economy is terrible and will never get better under President Obama.

If such a message was sent, Scott isn’t listening.  Speaking at the NALEO conference today, Scott went on and on about how great Florida’s doing in terms of jobs and tourism coming back and housing prices stabilizing.  His rosy picture was very much at odds with Mitt’s gloom and doom.

Mitt needs to win Florida, but Scott isn’t going quietly under Mitt’s “Believe in America” bus.

Mitt has this same problem with a number of GOP governors in states he must win or thinks he has a chance, states like Ohio (Kacich), Wisconsin (Walker), Virginia (McDonnell), Michigan (Snyder).  Even in Obama-safe states, it doesn’t help Mitt to have a GOP governor with a national spotlight talking positively about the economy.  That would be you, Chris Christie.  When it comes to the economy, Mitt and his party’s govs are not singing from the same hymnal.

It’s amazing to have this large group of GOP governors providing a Greek Chorus to Obama’s claims that the economy is, indeed, improving.

Preventing Another 2000 in Florida

I had posted about Florida Governor Rick Scott seeking to suppress Democratic votes by removing voters from the rolls under the guise that they are not American citizens, even though they are.  Now the Justice Department is ordering Florida to stop because they are violating the Voting Rights Act and the National Voter Registration Act.  It looks as if Scott will not get away with this crap.

Also, a federal judge blocked a Florida law, another Rick Scott special, that makes it more difficult to register voters (also intended to suppress Democratic votes), to the point that the League of Women Voters cancelled their voter registration drives, so even registration experts felt the law was too onerous.  The judge said the law is “not well crafted” and “virtually unintelligible.”

So Florida should be getting some relief from outrageous GOP attempts both to stop new voters from registering and to keep existing voters from actually exercising that right.  They know Mitt can’t win the White House without winning Florida, and they’re doing everything they can think of to help their guy, these hypocrites who claim to love the Constitution so much.

Mitt’s Map

Mitt’s campaign told major GOP donors that it sees Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio and Florida as must wins.  Then it needs to win one “wild card” from New Hampshire, Iowa, Nevada, Colorado, Wisconsin or Michigan.

I think it’s high unlikely that Obama won’t get at least one of the first four.

But that’s why we see Florida Gov. Rick Scott fanatically pruning his voter rolls of those likely to vote for Obama, falsely claiming that many voters are not U. S. citizens and putting the burden on them to re-establish their voting rights through a hearing.

Just what we need — another 2000.  If Florida screws up another election, I think we should return them to Spain.  Although I doubt even Nordstrom would let you return something almost 200 years later.