Gov. Scott Comes Clean

As inaugural speeches go, Gov. Rick Scott’s paean to promises and get-to-work ethic was hardly an “Ask Not What Your State Can Do For You” moment. No Ted Sorensen touches noted. That’s asking a lot, but, still, it could have been so much more. And Scott could have practiced with a teleprompter so that he at least looked like he had seen the speech before.

Put it this way. Imagine, you’re the governor who obscenely self-funded your own campaign and, as a consequence, owe allegiance to no one. You are your own man and beholden to no special interest. Your ultimate charge is the economy, as in hitting Florida’s reset button, fostering job-creation scenarios and balancing a budget without a state income tax and with vanishing stimulus dollars. You are the consummate outsider-reformer. You’re in no one’s debt–except maybe Alex Sink’s for running such an accommodatingly uninspired gubernatorial campaign.

All that being said, too bad Florida’s 45th governor didn’t actually say:

            “…And so my fellow Floridians, I am not only honored to be your governor, but I’m am humbled by your vote of confidence. In addition, I’m also, quite candidly, grateful for my good fortune. I’m keenly aware that I won the closest gubernatorial race in the Sunshine State in 134 years. Frankly, I don’t have a mandate for anything except what is manifestly obvious: We need to juice this economy, get people back to work and pay as we go.

            “But first things first. Refunds are already in the mail to those who helped underwrite all these inaugural events. If I can pay for a campaign, I can pay for its resultant extravaganza. Should have done it in the first place. My bad. Wouldn’t want the usual donating suspects to think they bought influence. That only applies to ‘career politicians.’ Put me down for the $3.5 million tab.

            “Moreover, after touring the state and setting up those transition teams, I’ve become privy to some realities that frankly look different when you’re no longer a candidate. I’m man enough to acknowledge that. So, we’ve made a couple of bottom-line decisions, major revisions actually, that I can now share.

            “We all want better accountability in our educational system, but that doesn’t make anything you do in the name of ‘accountability’ a good idea. To wit: universal vouchers. It came from a good place, but that’s not going to happen. And that business about ‘parents know best,’ well, there’s a big difference in having a vested interest and knowing what’s best. Being a parent doesn’t make one an expert on anything, including–ironically–parenting. In fact, parental involvement and reinforcement is too often the missing ingredient in the educational process. I’m putting more trust in professional educators.

            “Also not happening: a $1 billion cut for prisons in the economic-mantra name of ‘privatizing.’ That smacks of risking a public-safety compromise. I regret it was even on the table. But at least we’re smart enough to know when we propose a dumb idea. Same for my take on immigration. Campaign flourish, I concede. Florida is not Arizona as you, and now I, very well know.  

            “But here’s what a Scott Administration is definitely committed to: the phasing out of the corporate income tax. It will say loud and clear that Florida is open for business. This will position us as one of the very best states for investment and job creation. And, yes, we will target Medicaid changes, and, yes, we will push for state employees contributing to their retirement. And, yes, we will speed up the permitting process for targeted  business and make sure regulations make sense–and aren’t just bureaucratically self-perpetuating. And, yes, we will look to eliminate waste–legitimate, not ideological–wherever we encounter it. But, no, being pro business doesn’t mean being anti-environment. We can be responsible stewards of this tourist-sensitive, ecologically special place and still grow jobs.

            “But extraordinary times also call for extraordinary measures. So look for the Scott Administration to take the lead and then lead the charge for several proposals that too many career politicians have been ignoring for too long.

            “Because I’m not a political insider, I don’t have to worry about so-called ‘third-rail’ issues. So, if special interests don’t like my outsider approach, tough. And if I’m not re-elected, I’ll manage. Remember, I’m already rich.

            “Ladies and gentlemen, here’s what’s finally coming down: an all-out effort to champion the cause of real revenue reform. It has to happen. Cut and consolidate makes a great slogan. But reality demands an overhaul in how Florida raises revenue.  

            “Anybody notice that we’re no longer in the LeRoy Collins’ era, but we’re still using the same basic, revenue-raising formula? Sales-tax revenue accounts for about 60 percent of total revenue in Florida. That’s almost double the national average. Anybody notice that we’re no longer the go-go growth state of yesteryear? And that dealing with projected budget deficits is now an annual rite of Tallahassee? And, by the way, the next one is headed toward $4 billion. Anybody think that we should be countenancing sales-tax business as usual in one of the Great Recession’s hardest-hit states? My fellow Floridians, this isn’t ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking. This is bottom line common sense. And a word of caution: Anybody who thinks I don’t have the guts to take this on is in for one really, really rude awakening.

            “Yes, I am talking about taxing services and eliminating unjustified sales-tax exemptions. Of course, I am. I’m also talking about getting pro-active about joining a compact of states to tax internet retailers. We’re not far removed from the first brisk holiday-shopping season in three years. Who among you didn’t do some Christmas shopping online? Who among us wouldn’t want a piece of that change for Florida’s coffers? I’ll expend my energies on raising revenue before I lay off a single state employee and add to our unacceptably high unemployment rate.  

            “And while we’re breaking with politics-as-usual precedent, let’s also add this. How can it be that other Southern governors can lead state trade delegations to Cuba, but not the CEO of the state that could benefit most? And during an ongoing, jobs-bleeding recession? Are you kidding me?  No, we’re not talking economic bonanza. But, yes, we are talking economic benefit. Florida is not open to turning down business. Look for me in Havana sometime in the new year. And I won’t be alone.

            “And you know what? I don’t mind at all taking advantage of the opportunity to remind the Obama Administration that U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the new chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, only speaks for her small, strident, vendetta-agenda constituency and not the rest of this state. Certainly not for me. I’m not interested in counter-productive, Cold War-era politics. I’m all about right now and what’s best for our state. That’s my passion and my crusade. I’m not in political debt to Little Havana. But I am beholden to the entire state of Florida and whatever is best for its economy. Florida, si.

            “And last, but decidedly not least. Enough of the campaign-like rhetoric about ‘feasibility studies’ regarding high-speed rail. I’m on board. And I’m finally up to speed.

            “This is no transit starter kit that needs environmental and ridership studies, is vulnerable to right-of-way speculation or will stick the state with open-ended financial commitments. The project’s been decades in the making and the entire construction cost is now accounted for. The private sector has long been factored into the design, operation and maintenance equation. Engineering and site work are already under way as I speak. It will have a catalytic role in key I-4 development scenarios. It will provide a welcome alternative to a chronically clogged highway.

            “Of course, Florida is taking the federal high-speed rail money–and the jobs that it will generate, thank you. We’re not stupid. Sometimes politically obtuse and ideologically self-defeating, but not, ultimately, bottom-line dumb. Trust me, I embrace this opportunity, even if you never see me give President Obama a man-hug over it. We’re already a decade into the 21st century. That’s already too long to have deferred 21st century mass transit and all its spin-off synergies.

            “My fellow Floridians, including all of you–quite a number, I know–who didn’t vote for me, I am now, I recognize, the governor of all the people. In your name, the Scott Administration embraces a common-sense, apolitical approach to jump-starting our economy and fast-tracking Florida toward the future–one that will not be kind to laggards and business-as-usual anachronisms. As far as I’m concerned, the bucks start here. I answer to you. Hold me accountable. The partisan pandering is over.”

            “May God bless the great state of Florida, and let’s get to work.”

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