Gov. Rick Scott of Florida certainly doesn’t lack for chutzpah. Meeting with a group of black legislators who expressed their concern over the election law changes that resulted in long lines and tens of thousands of people being unable to vote, Scott says don’t blame him, it wasn’t his law.
Facing a highly critical group of black legislators, Gov. Rick Scott largely defended his record Tuesday but distanced himself from a controversial election law that led to fewer early-voting days and long lines.
Scott agreed with black lawmakers that the 2011 election law contributed to the chaos at the polls in November, including long lines all over the state and up to seven-hour waits in Miami-Dade. But Scott, who is seeking re-election in 2014, said it was largely a decision of the Legislature.
“It was not my bill,” Scott said. “We’ve got to make changes, I agree. … The Legislature passed it. I didn’t have anything to do with passing it.”
Uh, yeah. Your party passed it, you signed it into law, then you defended its legality in court. It’s yours.
13 comments
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John Hinkle
January 20, 2013 at 11:08 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
By passing the blame, sounds to me like he’s tacitly admitting that the election law changes suck. Good to know.
shouldbeworking
January 20, 2013 at 11:15 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Translation: The laws suck only because the wrong guy won.
Randomfactor
January 20, 2013 at 11:32 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
In fairness to Rick, he’s not in charge in Texas. Or they’d be even WORSE.
Modusoperandi
January 20, 2013 at 12:20 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
He tried to do something. He really did. But his hands were tied. The Tied Hands for Freedom Voter Freedom Freedom Act, incidentally, takes effect in 2014.
Gvlgeologist, FCD
January 20, 2013 at 12:28 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
What amazes me is that there still will be people who vote for this SOB here in FL when he runs again.
timpayne
January 20, 2013 at 12:32 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I read somewhere that they had the number of machines and early voting days exactly right. The real culprit was a poorly executed voter intimidation/suppression plan
marcus
January 20, 2013 at 12:38 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
You don’t have to be an arrogant asshole to be a successful Republican, but it helps!
Area Man
January 20, 2013 at 1:29 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
The best part of the article is this:
Finally, we’ve discovered the ultimate tool for fighting crime.
Zinc Avenger (Sarcasm Tags 3.0 Compliant)
January 20, 2013 at 2:14 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
@marcus, #7:
You don’t have to be an arrogant asshole to be a successful Republican, but if you’re not they’ll primary you and replace you with a mouth-breathing troglodyte who thinks being taxed should be a valid reason to “stand your ground”.
d.c.wilson
January 20, 2013 at 4:25 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Okay, so he’s admitted that the law created a lot of problems for Florida voters. The real question is, what is he and his party going to do to fix it?
Probably nothing. Or if they do try to “fix” it, it will only be to further suppress the vote.
jameshanley
January 20, 2013 at 6:35 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Democracy does reward cowardice, doesn’t it?
SnowyBiscuit
January 20, 2013 at 7:32 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
That sounds like his excuse when he was CEO of HCA hospitals, and the hospital chain was deeply investigated and found to have stolen tens of millions from Medicare. “I did not approve this and besides that, I didn’t have a clue. Not one. And I wouldn’t approve of it if I did.”
He’s a greedy, underhanded bastard.
eric
January 21, 2013 at 10:01 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
@1:
Its nothing but pandering. To this audience, that’s his message, because he wants their legislative support. Put him in front of a conservative audience and he’ll probably change his tune.