It’s an election–and gubernatorial re-election–year, and an incumbent governor of the party in utter control can be expected to look at a legislative session as a quite doable exercise in self-interest. It comes with the political territory, regardless of party. Even when an incumbent has been elected as a consummate “outsider.”
But hearing House Speaker/Accomplice Will “Won’t” Weatherford’s gloat-zone exaltation about what the session did for Gov. Rick Scott’s re-election’s chances–however candid–was, well, infuriating. It spoke volumes about less-than-modest agendas and Florida priorities left unaddressed–from Medicaid still unexpanded to springs still unprotected to Stand Your Ground still standing.
“Everything he wanted going into the session, he got,” gushed Weatherford. “I have every reason to believe this will jump-start him into the election cycle. It’s going to be a really successful year for him going forward.”
But Weatherford–as well as Scott–does get credit for legislation allowing undocumented students who attended Florida high schools to pay in-state tuition. Weatherford should, but context can’t be ignored. The bar is set relatively low on this one right now. A majority of Floridians agree this was the right thing to do if we still call ourselves the land of opportunity–and not just opportunism.
And, frankly, it would have been unconscionably unfair not to pass the in-state-tuition legislation. The result: credit allocated for not doing the outrageously wrong thing. These are the times we live in. And, yes, it could help Scott with the non-Little Havana Hispanic vote.
Look for it soon in another one of those Spanish-language Scott ads ironically entitled: “Oportunidad.”