Rick Scott on ‘Frustrating’ #Fangate and Jeb Bush’s 2016 Prospects - East Idaho News
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Rick Scott on ‘Frustrating’ #Fangate and Jeb Bush’s 2016 Prospects

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GettyI 022515 rickscott?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1424886982014Robert Sullivan/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — It was one of the most unforgettable debate moments of 2014.

Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist took his place on stage for a televised debate against Gov. Rick Scott. And for the first seven minutes of the live debate, Crist was the only candidate on the stage — accompanied only by a small electric fan whirling cool air behind his podium.

In an interview with Top Line, Scott revealed what was going through his mind during the “fangate” incident and said he was told the debate was being held up by Crist.

“It was pretty frustrating,” the recently reelected Republican governor told Top Line, explaining that he was in a trailer away from the main building when his Democratic challenger took the stage at the debate’s start. “We were told he was not going to come out.”

Prior to the debate’s start, the Scott campaign had protested Crist’s use of the fan as a violation of debate rules, which forbade the use of electronic devices at the podium.

“We were waiting, and then he goes out, and so that was pretty frustrating,” he continued. “But we had a good debate and fortunately we won.”

With another term as Florida governor now ahead of him, Scott said he’s not considering a White House bid in 2016. And though he declined to pick any early favorites in the presidential contest, he outlined the qualities he wants the next Republican presidential nominee to possess.

“I think the biggest issue in Florida and every state is going to be jobs,” Scott said. “So, we need to have a president that’s going to have a plan that’s gonna limit the growth of government. We’re gonna cut taxes. We’re going to reduce the regulation. We’re going to actually go out and compete. …[And] second, we expect our president to defend our country. …We need to have a president that brags about our country — that we are an exceptional country.”

On former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, a likely Republican 2016 contender, Scott said that Bush’s championing of the controversial Common Core education standards “is an issue.”

“We all want high standards…but I don’t think they have to be federal standards,” Scott said. “The federal government doesn’t need to be involved in data mining; they don’t need to be involved in our curriculum decisions. We should be able to make those decisions, and let us compete globally.”

Scott has long been an outspoken critic of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act and, since it went into effect, has declined to set up a Florida health care exchange under the law.

Still, nearly a million low-income people in Florida have benefited from new health care subsidies created under the law. But a case before the Supreme Court may change that, making people in states without an exchange ineligible for those subsidies.

No matter how the court rules, Scott said he will not set up a state-run health care exchange in Florida.

“My expectation is the federal government caused this problem, they need to solve the problem,” Scott said. “I can’t solve all of the federal government’s problems.”

“We don’t need a federal government prescriptive health care system. We need a free market system that we have good competition,” he said. “If we had that system, the cost of health care would not be what it is today, and more citizens would be able to afford health insurance. “

For more of the interview with Scott, including a discussion on how he has modeled aspects of his governorship on Texas Gov. Rick Perry, check out this episode of Top Line.


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