21 replies to this topic

[Iyouboushi]

Lex Luthor--er I mean, Florida Gov. Rick Scott--was once the CEO of a huge hospital chain, Columbia/HCA... which was (while under his leadership) convicted of 14 felonies for medicare fraud and forced to pay a ~$2 billion fraud settlement, the largest ever! After getting out of this by "pleading the fifth" against self-incrimination 75 times, he went on to win the Fl. Gov. position by a tiny margin. I'll just let that sink in for a minute.

 

 

Maybe it's just because I live in Florida and hear about this bozo more than the others Govs/political people in office, but this guy is diabolically, if not comically, evil and is systematically destroying this state. So as to avoid posting 500 separate threads about everything he's doing, I figured it'd be best to just have one Megathread for him!

 

All Rick Scott news and comments will now go in here!

 

--------------------------------------------------------

 

Florida Gov. Rick Scott orders random drug testing of state employees

Florida Gov. Rick Scott orders random drug testing of state employees

 

Gov. Rick Scott's executive order requires quarterly drug tests
ACLU says courts have already found similar attempts unconstitutional

 

March 22, 2011|By David Royse, The News Service of Florida

 

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott signed an executive order Tuesday that will require random drug testing of many current state employees as well as pre-hire testing for applicants.

 

"Floridians deserve to know that those in public service, whose salaries are paid with taxpayer dollars, are part of a drug-free workplace," Scott said. "Just as it is appropriate to screen those seeking taxpayer assistance, it is also appropriate to screen government employees."

 

The reference to taxpayer assistance referred to a push by Scott and legislative Republicans to require those who apply for state benefits under the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program to submit to a drug test before getting benefits. That proposal (SB 556) was approved unanimously Tuesday by the Senate Criminal Justice Committee. It has another stop before the Senate floor.
Advertisement

 

Under Scott's order, current employees in agencies that answer to the governor, would be subject to periodic random screening. The executive order signed by Scott says the tests would require testing of each employee "at least quarterly." The random testing of current employees will begin in 60 days under the order.

 

"A better, healthier, more productive workforce is something taxpayers deserve," said Scott spokesman Brian Hughes.

 

Effective immediately, any new hires in governor's agencies would also be subject to pre-hire drug testing under the order.

 

State agencies are already allowed — though not required — to do pre-hiring drug screening under the Florida Drug-Free Workplaces Act. State officials couldn't say Tuesday which, if any, agencies already do that.

 

State agencies, under that law, also can already require drug testing when there's suspicion that a current employee is using illegal drugs, but courts have generally found that random testing of government workers who aren't in jobs that affect public safety amounts to a "search" by the government. Such searches must be "reasonable," generally, and some courts have interpreted such requirements of ordinary government workers as a violation of the U.S. Constitution's Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable searches.

 

Scott's order came under fire from the ACLU, which said that a 2004 federal court ruling in Florida on exactly this issue made at least part of Scott's order unconstitutional.

 

In that case, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle ruled that the Department of Juvenile Justice was violating the Fourth Amendment in ordering random drug testing. Hinkle ordered the agency to halt the random drug testing and pay the employee who sued, Roderick Wenzel, $150,000.

 

It's not clear whether the agency ever did stop its random drug testing. A spokeswoman for the agency referred that question to the Governor's Office.

 

Hughes, the Scott spokesman, said he didn't know enough about the case to comment on what ever happened to the Wenzel case, or why it didn't have a bearing on Tuesday's order.
Advertisement

 

But the ACLU contends that random searches of all employees aren't allowed.

 

"I'm not sure why Gov. Scott does not know that the policy he recreated by executive order today has already been declared unconstitutional," ACLU of Florida Executive Director Howard Simon said in a statement. "The state of Florida cannot force people to surrender their constitutional rights in order to work for the state. Absent any evidence of illegal drug use, or assigned a safety-sensitive job, people have a right to be left alone."

 

Hughes said Scott, obviously, believes otherwise.

 

"The governor has some of the best legal advisors available," Hughes said. "This executive order is within his legal authority."

 

This is also the guy who committed medicare fraud, lied about it, went to court and plead the 5th/ignorance/dodged questions.

 

Way to go Florida.

[Iyouboushi]

Gov Rick Scott orders immediate cuts to programs for disabled

Gov Rick Scott orders immediate cuts to programs for disabled

 

Florida Gov. Rick Scott ordered deep cuts Thursday to programs that serve tens of thousands of residents with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism and other developmental disabilities.

 

Though a range of state services face cuts from this year's Legislature, the governor invoked his emergency powers to order the state Agency for Persons with Disabilities to immediately roll back payments to group homes and social workers by 15 percent — an amount providers say could put them out of business and threaten their clients' safety.

 

"lt's not like, 'Gee, does this mean I have to skip a vacation this year?'" said Amy Van Bergen, executive director of the Down Syndrome Association of Central Florida. "Potentially, these cuts have life and death implications for these people."

 

An estimated 30,000 Floridians with severe developmental disabilities receive services that help them live outside of nursing homes — typically with family or in small group homes. Aides help them eat, bathe, take medication and otherwise care for themselves.

 

But the governor said the Agency for Persons with Disabilities' ongoing budget deficit — currently at $170 million — had reached a critical point and needed to be addressed immediately.

 

The cuts go into effect Friday and last at least through the fiscal year, which ends June 30. Lawmakers are currently debating what will happen after that.

 

Providers had not been informed of the cuts.

 

"No one has gotten any notice," said Linda Cumbie, an Orlando social worker who coordinates services that clients need to live outside of a nursing home — which would be a more expensive arrangement for the state. "We have to find out through the newspapers."

 

Cumbie said funds for the disabled already had been pared back to skeletal levels. She personally is holding a carwash and bake sale to help out one young disabled client so he can attend a daily workshop program.

 

Katie Porta, president of Quest Inc., which operates a series of group homes and programs for those with disabilities, said provider rates in Florida already rank in the bottom 10 percent for all states.

 

"We are almost to the point of impossibility in providing for our clients' basic health and safety needs," she said. "I just fear for our people."

 

She wasn't the only one. Alan McIntosh, a 57-year-old Orlando man with cerebral palsy, relies on an aide to do just about anything requiring movement. "I don't know what he [Gov. Scott] is thinking," McIntosh said. "As it is, I'm just trying to survive."

 

His aide, Debbie Pascascio, works 24 hours a day, four days in a row, to care for McIntosh and two other people with severe disabilities. Though she did not want to reveal her salary, other aides say $800 a week for round-the-clock care is typical, and many workers receive no health insurance, sick leave or retirement benefits.

 

APD Chief of Staff Bryan Vaughan said his department had no choice. "These actions are necessary … so that we are not forced to eliminate services to this vulnerable population," he said in a news release issued late Thursday. "APD is committed to protecting the health and safety of Floridians with developmental disabilities while living within our budget."

 

But at the Threshold Center for Autism in Winter Park, former CEO and current board member Bob Wright said something has to give. Staffers there work with children and adults who are severely impaired and sometimes violent.

 

"If this were any other workplace, you would consider it a war zone," Wright said. "My staff gets bitten, hit, kicked, spat upon, defecated on, urinated on — for $8.23 an hour. And every time we start talking about giving our guys a pay raise, the governor comes along and cuts the rates."

 

The center has not had a rate increase for its services since 2005, and it has had several rounds of cuts since then. At the same time, training requirements for staffers have increased.

 

"The state can cut my rates by 15 percent, but I can't cut my staffing 15 percent or I'll be in violation of staffing ratios," Wright added. "This may break our backs."

 

You know, I hate this guy. Really and truly. And the odd thing is, out of everyone I've ever talked to here in Florida.. I can't find a single person who voted for this idiot. How did he even get elected!?

[Iyouboushi]

Gov. Rick Scott's proposed budget will cut $4.5 million from Crime Stoppers

Gov. Rick Scott's proposed budget will cut $4.5 million from Crime Stoppers

 

St. Petersburg, Florida - It's a program that's led to 44,501 arrests, 80,690 cleared cases and 347,122 anonymous tips.

 

But if Gov. Rick Scott has his way, Crime Stoppers of Florida could be going away.

 

Scott's proposed budget includes taking $4.5 million from the Crime Stoppers Trust Fund and moving it to general revenue.

 

"If that trust fund were to be totally swept to zero, it would devastate Crime Stoppers throughout the state of Florida," said Lisa Haber of Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay.

 

Haber says that without that funding Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay would be able to keep its tipline, but only for about a year. And all other outreach programs would have to stop.

 

What's confusing to Haber is why Gov. Scott would propose the change in the first place.

 

That $4.5 million isn't tax dollars. It's part of court fees, paid for by people who are found guilty or plead no contest, and it's protected under Florida Statute 938.

 

"We don't know why [Gov. Scott proposed the change]. We do know that he and his staff are somewhat new to government," Haber said. "We're looking at it more from the aspect of maybe a lack of familiarity with how the money comes about."

 

Crime Stoppers of Florida has spent the last two months sending biweekly newsletters to legislators, urging them to vote against the change.

 

The effort appears to be working.

 

Both the Florida House and Senate have released their budgets online, which show the $4.5 million staying with Crime Stoppers.

 

Legislators will most likely vote on the budget in early May, near the end of the session.

 

After that, Gov. Scott has about a month to approve the changes.

 

 

 

[Iyouboushi]

Rick Scott "Trusts BP To Do The Right Thing," Do You?

Rick Scott "Trusts BP To Do The Right Thing," Do You?

 

Is Florida Gov. Rick Scott poised to let BP and Transocean off the hook for last year's Gulf oil spill as far as Florida is concerned? It sure looks like it.

 

Do Rick Scott's loyalties lie with the citizens and businesses who have lost so much along the Gulf coast of Florida, or do they lie with the oil companies? His business friendly demeanor seems to suggest the latter, and his actions, or rather his inaction, seem to suggest that he will let time run out on joining a lawsuit against the oil companies as the deadline approaches.

 

You've probably seen the ads recently claiming that BP has cleaned up and everything is just fine along the Gulf coast, but evidence suggests otherwise for those who are really looking:

 

BP, which seemed in danger of collapse a year ago, is on the financial rebound. Ken Feinberg, the independent administrator of BP's $20bn compensation fund, says he is close to finishing compensating individuals and businesses who were hurt by the disaster – without even coming close to exhausting the $20bn. He paid out only $3.6bn last year.

 

The cleanup operations are also winding down, at a cost to BP of about $13bn (it has also pledged $500m to scientific research in the Gulf). The company took out an ad campaign this week to express regrets for the spill, showing a picture of shimmering Gulf waters. It could still be liable for up to $18bn in penalties and fines, however, under a US law that imposes a levy of $4,300 for each barrel of oil. But Feinberg was so upbeat he told reporters the Gulf could see a complete recovery by 2012.

 

Government scientists have not gone so far. A spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) said there was "no basis to conclude that the Gulf recovery will be complete by 2012", and warned that some of the consequences of the spill may not be known for decades. The spokesman went on to note that about 60 miles of the coastline remain oiled. Tar mats continue to wash up on beaches in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. And although Gulf waters have reopened to fishing, many oyster beds were wiped out when state authorities flushed fresh water into the Gulf in the hopes of rolling back the oil. At a public meeting last month in Biloxi, Mississippi, fishermen said they were hauling up nets full of oil with their shrimp.

 

So how could the disaster possibly be over, asks Joye. "You talk to people who live around the Gulf of Mexico, who live on the coast, who have family members who work on oil rigs. It's not OK down there. The system is not fine. Things are not normal. There are a lot of very strange things going on – the turtles washing up on beaches, dolphins washing up on beaches, the crabs. It is just bizarre. How can that just be random consequence?"

 

More than 150 dolphins, half of them infants, have washed up since the start of 2011. At least eight were smeared with crude oil that has been traced to BP's well, NOAA said, and 87 sea turtles – all endangered – have been found dead since mid-March.

 

"To me it makes no sense to think that it is random consequence, but it is kind of maddening because there has been a lot of energy and effort put towards beating the drum of everything is wonderful, everything is going to be fine by 2012," says Joye.

 

Again, which side does Rick Scott really side with? It would seem to be the oil companies:

 

Rep. Rick Kriseman of St. Petersburg, the Democratic Caucus policy chair, accused Scott of being too chummy with the company. Earlier this week, Scott stood with a BP senior vice president to herald a company grant of $30 million to promote tourism in seven Gulf coastal counties.

 

"The governor accepted $30 million which he dedicated to marketing in the Panhandle. Wonderful. We're glad he's doing that," Kriseman said.

 

But that's peanuts compared with the $1 billion that one attorney insists Florida could recover in a lawsuit, Kriseman said. Kriseman complained that Scott has so far failed to indicate whether he would meet a deadline — the April 20 anniversary of the rig's explosion — to join a federal lawsuit.

 

"What is he thinking? Who does he represent? Does he represent Floridians or is he more concerned about a foreign corporation like BP," Kriseman said. "It makes no sense. We have to ask this question loud because we are running out of time."

 

Scott said he's considering all his options.

 

"I want to make sure litigation is the last resort so we are sitting down with BP, making sure we know what our claims are and using our best efforts to make sure the state is treated fairly without having to file a lawsuit," Scott said.

 

Not long after he took office in January, Scott dismissed a "dream team" of attorneys and dissolved an oil spill recovery taskforce, both put together by Scott's predecessor, Charlie Crist. Scott is working with Attorney General Pam Bondi and his own attorneys to explore all options, Scott spokeswoman Amy Graham said.

 

Rick Scott seems to have embraced the "just trust us to do the right thing" attitude blatantly displayed by the oil companies since this entire disaster unfolded last April:

 

Scott told reporters at the event that he saw no need for a lawsuit. "I'm very comfortable that my discussion so far with BP is that they're going to continue to do the right thing," he said.

 

Tampa lawyer Steve Yerrid questioned that assumption. He spent eight months last year documenting the short- and long-term damage from the blowout for then-gov. Crist but has been rebuffed in his efforts to share it with Scott, he said.

 

"Imagine someone owed you a million dollars and gave you $30,000 and said 'trust me for the rest.' How would you feel?" Yerrid asked.

 

"BP has the best legal defense in the world and now Gov. Scott is going to trust them to do the right thing. They should have already done the right thing."

 

While not always the answer, a lawsuit can be important because it creates pressure for action, Yerrid said. And in this case, Florida has the advantage because the damage and the causes of the damage are so well documented.

 

I would venture to say we can trust BP and Transocean to do the right thing about as much as we can trust a governor who ran a health care company and bought his way into office while doing his best to defeat a health care bill that would save money and lives while trimming costs from insurance companies. Not so much.

 

Kriseman and Yerrid aren't the only ones baffled by Scott's lack of action. U. S. Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL) has been fighting for Floridians on the oil spill since it began. She worked with former Gov. Charlie Crist, but when Scott took over, her pleas fell on deaf ears.

 

Scott has also heard from U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, a Tampa Democrat. In a letter on Monday, she urged Scott to join the Transocean lawsuit, saying "Florida needs you to steadfastly fight for the sovereignty claims of the state. Florida taxpayers should not be left on the hook for one dime of BP's damage."

 

She hasn't received a response, she said.

 

She had been working with former Gov. Charlie Crist to pursue "any and all causes of action against BP," she said.

 

After Scott's election when he came to Washington, she said she talked to him about the issue and gave him a packet of information.

 

"He ensured us he would be just as proactive. He took the packet and thanked me, and I didn't hear anything back," she said. "We've heard nothing about any strategy."

 

Kriseman also pointed out another reason why he believe Scott may not be eager to join a lawsuit, and it's hardly because of an interest to stand up for those who suffered damages from an oil gusher in the Gulf. It's personal:

 

Kriseman voiced the same criticism. "Instead of joining the lawsuit at a time when we're in position of negotiating from strength," the governor seems only to want to talk with BP about reparations.

 

Referring to Scott's CEO experience with health care giant Columbia/HCA, Kriseman suggested that Scott wasn't comfortable "making a claim for a billion (dollars) and suing a big corporation because he's personally experienced it himself and didn't like the feeling of it."

 

For a governor who claims to have no conflicts of interest (Solantic anyone?) it sure doesn't look good.

 

I'm sure those businesses who will be damaged beyond repair from oil washing up on the beaches may feel a little differently about the governor who rode into office claiming he'd be a businessman's best friend.

 

Running a state like a business and actually "governing one" don't exactly mix.

 

If Rick Scott hasn't figured that out by now, he's probably in for more than a rude awakening.

 

TL;DR: BP claimed that the whole Gulf situation is a done deal and everything is clean despite evidence otherwise. People are still waiting for money and compensation from the company. Lex Luthor just says "hey, they'll do the right thing!" when BP has done no such "right thing" since the whole fiasco began (I'm willing to bet money if the oil spill had happened and no one reported it, it'd STILL be pumping oil into the gulf right now). People in congress are urging Lex Luthor to stand up for the people of Florida and force BP to do the right thing but it's falling upon deaf ears (who didn't see that coming?).

 

 

No, Rick Scott, I do NOT trust the huge oil company that pumped millions of gallons of oil into the gulf, photoshopped images to try and trick the public into believing they were working harder than they really were to fix it, and has spent the last year trying to get out of giving compensation to the businesses' they've hurt/destroyed will do the right thing. Not for one second. Anyone with half a brain wouldn't either.

 

[Iyouboushi]

Governor to EPA: Water guidelines aren’t necessary here

Governor to EPA: Water guidelines aren’t necessary here

 

Gov. Scott asks EPA to rescind federal water pollution control rules, saying the state already has guidelines in place that accomplish the same things.

 

TALLAHASSEE -- The day after the Florida House passed a bill to ban implementation of water quality standards set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Administration, Gov. Rick Scott on Friday asked the agency to rescind a January 2009 determination that the federal rules are necessary for Florida.

 

Opponents of the federal requirement say the state is better equipped to decide how best to comply with the federal Clean Water Act, which is intended to manage nitrogen and phosphorous pollution of lakes, rivers, streams and bays. They say the EPA standards will be costly to implement, don’t address specific conditions of local waterways and provide little biological benefit.

 

According to Scott’s office, the petition sent to the EPA details eight pollution control measures already in place Florida that mirror EPA recommendations for effective water pollution control.

 

“Florida is one of the few states that has a comprehensive program in place to address excess nutrients, and we continue to lead the nation in developing innovative tools to ensure the health of our state’s waterways,” Scott said in a prepared statement. “I look forward to working with the EPA to reach an agreement that will promote clean water standards in the way that makes the most sense for our state.”

 

The U.S. EPA released pollution standards for Florida waterways in December 2010 as part of a 2009 legal settlement with environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, who sued the agency for not enforcing the Clean Water Act in Florida.

 

The EPA told all states in 1998 to set limits on nitrogen and phosphorous pollution, and warned it would do it for them if no action was taken by 2004. But 2004 passed with no action. Hence the lawsuit.

 

The environmental group Earthjustice immediately criticized Scott’s petition, sent through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The group said the move protects polluters by rejecting a plan for preventing slimy algae outbreaks that kill fish and make Florida water unfit for boating and swimming.

 

“It is particularly galling that Scott is thumbing his nose at clean water on Earth Day. It says a lot,” said Earthjustice attorney David Guest in a prepared statement. “Polluters have been using our public waters as their private dumping grounds for too long, and it needs to stop. The corporate lobbyists who have Scott’s ear are good at what they do. Unfortunately, when they win, the rest of us lose.”

 

The federal rules, the organization said, cut down on nitrogen and phosphorous pollution by encouraging better sewage treatment, more precise fertilizer application and better controls for manure at industrial agricultural sites.

 

Florida elected officials, though, including Scott, Attorney General Pam Bondi and leaders in the House are resisting what they consider federal meddling in state decisions.

 

Bondi filed a lawsuit challenging the standards earlier this year.

 

Rep. Trudi Williams, R-Fort Myers, who chairs the House’s Select Committee on Water Policy, filed HB 239, which orders the Florida DEP to ignore the EPA standards. The House passed the bill Thursday with a 90-27 vote. Twelve Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the measure.

 

Similar bills filed by Sens. Greg Evers, R-Crestview and Charlie Dean, R-Inverness, are stalled in Senate committees.

 

Well, all that needs to be said is in that article. I'll just repeat it here:

 

“It is particularly galling that Scott is thumbing his nose at clean water on Earth Day. It says a lot, [...] Polluters have been using our public waters as their private dumping grounds for too long, and it needs to stop. The corporate lobbyists who have Scott’s ear are good at what they do. Unfortunately, when they win, the rest of us lose.”

 

 

Who needs clean water, right? That stuff is for the animals!

[Iyouboushi]

Citizens, Florida's Insurer of Last Resort, is Under Attack

Citizens, Florida's Insurer of Last Resort, is Under Attack

 

If Governor Rick Scott has his way, the 1.3 million customers of Citizens property insurance will be looking for new coverage before he starts a second term.

 

Reports over the weekend claim Scott wants to dismantle the state run property insurance company. There's legislation to scale back Citizens but lawmakers say their plan isn’t as aggressive as the governor's.

 

After Hurricane Andrew rocked Homestead in 1992, destroying thousands of homes, many private insurance companies stopped writing insurance altogether, others just stopped writing insurance policies in high risk areas.

 

The state responded with Citizens property insurance. Lawmakers then called it the insurer of last resort. Today, Sen. Alan Hayes, a Republican from Umatilla, calls it Socialism. “It’s nothing more than Socialism, and we need to stamp out Socialism in this country as soon as we can.”

 

State Senator Alan Hays is sponsoring legislation that would force citizens to drop million dollar properties in 2012, and properties over half a million by 2016.

 

Hays says his legislation would return Citizens to its insurer of last resort status, but Governor Rick Scott may have other plans.

 

Over the weekend reports began to circulate of the governor’s plan to kill citizens in four years. Senator Mike Fasano of New Port Ritchey says ending Citizens would force some people out of their homes. "Those who have mortgages, there would be a forced insurance policy put on them by their mortgage company and it would windup being a surplus lines company and those individuals, those home owners, those condo owners would windup losing their homes because they wouldn’t be able to afford to keep it any longer.”

 

There are 1.3 million Citizens customers. If a major hurricane destroys a lot of Citizens homes, the state insurer could go belly up. And the burden to pay claims would fall on Florida policy holders in the form of assessments.

 

There’s an amendment to the Citizens bill that would rename the state insurer, Taxpayer Funded Property Insurance Corporation. The bill’s sponsor called the proposed name change truth in advertising.

 

HELPIN PEOPLE IS SOCIALISIM!!! THEY SHOULD JUST PULL THEIR BOOTSTRAPS UP AND REBUILD THEIR HOUSES FROM SCRATCH IF THE COMMUNIST HURRICANES KNOCKS THEM DOWN!

 

I love how insurance companies basically said "nope, no more!" and stopped writing insurance after hurricane Andrew. What's the point of having insurance again when they can do that??

 

[Iyouboushi]

Poll: Floridians Have Strong Buyers Remorse After Electing GOP Gov. Scott

Poll: Floridians Have Strong Buyers Remorse After Electing GOP Gov. Scott

 

Only three months removed from Governor Rick Scott's ® inauguration, a majority of Florida voters now say the state is headed in the wrong direction and that, if they could do it all over again, they wouldn't have elected Scott in the first place, according to a new Suffolk University poll.

 

In the poll, 54% of voters said the state was headed in the wrong direction, compared to 30% who said it was going the right way. Further, just under half (49%) of all voters said they disapproved of Scott's job performance, versus only 28% who said they approved.

 

Scott's approval rating is so bad that the poll found him losing a hypothetical do-over election to Democrat Alex Sink by a ten-point margin, 41% to 31%.

 

Previous polls have also found Scott's job approval deep underwater, including a Quinnipiac poll released earlier this month that pegged his approval to disapproval split at 35% to 48%. A March PPP poll showed Scott with an even worse 32%-55% split, and found him losing a do-over election -- by a 20-point margin.

 

Scott was one of several freshman GOP governors swept into office last year amid the Republican wave nationwide. But since taking office, voters have rapidly soured on Scott as he's pursued some drastic -- and deeply unpopular -- policies.

 

In the poll, 41% of respondents said Scott's first 100 days in office had been "negative and polarizing," compared to 26% who said they'd been "positive and productive."

 

Among Scott's more unpopular moves since taking office were a proposal to cut $155 million from public schools, and signing a bill that eliminated tenure for new teachers while tying future pay to performance levels. In the Suffolk poll, almost two-thirds of respondents disapproved of Scott's education funding cuts, while just one-quarter approved.

 

The Suffolk poll was conducted April 10-12 among 600 registered voters. It has a margin of error of 4%.

 

At least people are realizing that voting in Lex Luthor was a bad idea....even though they can't do anything about it now. Maybe people will keep this in mind next time the elections come up.

[Iyouboushi]

Rick Scott's mom says he's doing a good job

Rick Scott's mom says he's doing a good job

 

Tallahassee, Florida - Gov. Rick Scott may not have gotten everything he wanted out of the 2011 legislative session but, if they handed out political report cards, his mother would still paste this one up on the family refrigerator.

"Not long ago, I told you about my son Rick, and I asked you to vote for him," says Esther Scott, in a YouTube video posted Monday by the Republican Party of Florida. "He promised to get Florida back to work and turn the state around."

 

Mrs. Scott became briefly famous during last year's campaign, when her son's business ethics were being roundly attacked - first in the Republican primary, then by Democrats in the general election. The tag line of her TV spots - "He's a good boy!" - were often called out to her as she travelled with the Scott campaign in the fall.

 

In her 38-second video, she gives him high marks on his first legislative session. "He said he'd cut property taxes for homeowners and business taxes to help create jobs. He'd hold government accountable, reduce spending to balance the state budget and he'd expand educational opportunities for all," she said. "Well, he's keeping those promises and like always, he made me proud.

 

"Like I said, he's a good boy."

 

Actually, Scott got only $308 million in tax cuts in the budget, although he asked for a first-year bite of about $1.7 billion. And the budget cuts per-student state support of schools by more than $500 per student. But mothers don't go into details.

 

[Iyouboushi]

Gov. Rick Scott signs sweeping property insurance changes into law

Gov. Rick Scott signs sweeping property insurance changes into law

 

TALLAHASSEE — The insurance industry celebrated Tuesday after Gov. Rick Scott signed a sweeping property insurance bill into law.

 

Consumer advocates lamented the move, which came just six days after the governor received the bill. He had until May 26 to sign it.

 

"No one is shocked that Gov. Rick Scott would sign an anticonsumer bill that raises rates and hurts our economy, but his eagerness is telling," said Sean Shaw, founder of Policyholders of Florida. "There was growing and overwhelming opposition to this bill, which is probably why the governor rushed to sign it into law, to avoid more bad press about rate impending rate hikes in a bad economy."

 

Among other things, the bill allows insurance companies to pass on reinsurance costs to policyholders, shortens the window for filing sinkhole and storm-related damage claims, and limits claims for damage caused by sinkholes to primary structures.

 

From May 6 to 12, the Governor's Office received nearly 400 phone calls, e-mails and letters on SB 408, nearly every one of them opposing the measure.

 

Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, fought the measure throughout the legislative session. Some of the provisions he opposed — such as freeing insurance companies from a requirement to offer comprehensive sinkhole coverage altogether — were removed from the bill.

 

But until the end he objected to the bill in part because of its potential to lead to rate increases.

 

"Big business has triumphed over the needs of the consumer," Fasano said Tuesday. "Insurance companies will only get richer because of this legislation, while policyholders will have to pay more of their hard-earned money for what will amount to less coverage."

 

Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, and Rep. John Wood, R-Winter Haven, sponsored the legislation.

 

Business and insurance groups heralded the bill-signing as an important step toward increasing competition in the insurance marketplace.

 

The Florida Chamber of Commerce called Scott's move a bold act of leadership.

 

"Despite what the critics say, signing this bill into law is the first step toward stabilizing Florida's property insurance market," said chamber chief executive Mark Wilson. "It will increase competition by attracting insurance companies that currently do not write property insurance policies in Florida."

 

Michael Carlson, executive director of the Personal Insurance Federation of Florida, cast the bill as good for consumers, commending the governor for recognizing the "value and importance of a vibrant private insurance market in Florida."

 

Scott signed the bill without ceremony, issuing a brief news release afterward that said the signing followed through on his "campaign promise to allow competition that gives consumers more insurance choices."

 

He characterized the bill as "addressing cost drivers associated with burdensome regulations, and confronting the sinkhole crisis."

[Iyouboushi]

Florida Governor Wants Poor to Pay $35 for Drug Test Before Receiving Welfare

Florida Governor Wants Poor to Pay $35 for Drug Test Before Receiving Welfare

 

Oh, to be a wealthy politician in this day and age. Tanyaa Weathersbee of Black America Web is reporting that Florida Gov. Rick Scott wants poor people to pay $35 for a drug test before they can collect welfare. Weatherbee highlights the fact that welfare recipients are not abusing drugs at a disproportionately higher rate than the general population.

 

In addition to rescinding a rule restoring voting rights of convicted felons who complete their sentences, the governor also wants state employees to submit to drug tests at least four times a year. Again, there is no evidence of rampant drug use among state employees.

 

What about those who abuse prescription drugs, who are more likely to be white? Law-enforcement officials in Florida approved a database that would help stop doctors from overprescribing addictive drugs. Of course, Scott wants to get rid of that database because it is too much government intrusion into people's lives.

 

Maybe Scott is on that stuff, because he is clearly biased about his definition of too much government. Should government be rescinding the right of convicted felons to vote after completing their sentences? That sounds like invasion of privacy and too much government to me. We won't mention how the pharmaceutical companies will benefit from the removal of that database. What is the fee to test CEOs of corporations that collect corporate welfare?

 

We get it: Republicans and Tea Party members want less government when it comes to corporations, taxes and their ability to build and maintain wealth, but more government when it comes to controlling the lives of the poor and disenfranchised. Hypocrisy at its worst.

 

The article also forgot to mention that the money that the people paying for drug testing goes to a company that he has his hand in (i.e. he'll be earning something back for every person who has to go for a drug test).