Chan Lowe: Rick Scott Inauguration
This being the January right after the election, it’s time for Floridians to begin their four-year-long blind date with their new governor.
I say “blind date,” because we know so little about him.
To use a homely expression, we bought a pig in a poke—well, actually, he bought us to the tune of $3.89 of his own personal fortune for every man, woman, and child in the state.
In fact, you could probably march Rick Scott down any street in Florida and ask passersby who he was, and chances are they wouldn’t recognize him. You could even whisper a hint, like: “He’s the governor of a state,” and they might say, “Oh, YEAH…it’s Jesse Ventura after a year on Weight Watchers.”
We know no specifics as to how he will wrench the state out of its straits. We do know something about his business practices, but now isn’t the time to go and rehash tired old stories. We’ve already done that, and it didn’t make any difference. What we are left with is “Seven hundred thousand jobs in seven years,” and “Let’s get back to work.”
Actually, we did learn something new in the past few days. Gov. Scott is allowing a raft of high-powered special interests to foot the bill for his inaugural festivities. Outfits like Blue Cross Blue Shield, AstraZeneca, Wal Mart, AvMed, U.S. Sugar… I’m sure all they’re interested in is making certain that celebrants have the best possible time, but you’d think a guy who found a way to spend $72 million of his own money to get elected as an unfettered outsider could cough up a couple million more to convey the initial impression that he can’t be bought.
Gov. Scott says he’s going to run Florida state government like a business.
It’s beginning to sound like business as usual.
CHAN LOWE has been the Sun Sentinel’s first and only editorial cartoonist for the past twenty-six years. Before that, he worked as cartoonist and writer for the Oklahoma City Times and the Shawnee (OK) News-Star.
Comments
Lex Luthor
Posted by: Tom | January 3, 2011 5:02 PM
Sounds like Rick scott is already in violation of the Sunshine Law by accepting contributions/gifts from private organizations. Wake up Rick your not in private life anymore you serve the public now.
Posted by: Woody | January 3, 2011 9:28 PM
I like to think of him as Governor Nosferatu.
Posted by: Jerry | January 4, 2011 11:04 AM
I prefer Skeletor
Posted by: A1ACharles | January 4, 2011 12:53 PM
Very sad --- the peasants voted a corrupt man into office, because they want to be free to be corrupt.
This is one more sign of a declining society.
Posted by: RJP3 | January 4, 2011 12:57 PM
I must have missed Chan Lowe's complaints about the Obama Bashes. Or, is Lowe simply being selective with his complaints based on who he personally supported?
Bloomberg had a story on the Obama balls...
Posted by: Rick Caird | January 5, 2011 1:30 PM