Beach Peanuts

Rick Scott Outsourcing Job Of Branding Organization That Brings Jobs To Florida

So Much "Talent," So Few Florida Jobs

Cruel irony alert.

Rick Scott, "The Jobs Governor" has just outsourced the job of branding Florida's public/private organization devoted to statewide economic development to a market research firm in......Tennessee.

You read that correctly. An agency that markets Florida to businesses and ergo, creates jobs, will give the jobs of marketing and researching Florida to another state instead of giving the job to those who live and therefore "know" Florida, and could probably use the work.

Eight Florida firms applied for the six-figure contract to brand Enterprise Florida, and four were selected among five finalists. In the end, contract went to Nashville-based North Star Destination Strategies. Only a small share of marketing will go to On Ideas Inc., a firm located in Jacksonville.

From The Tampa Bay Business Journal:

Nashville-based North Star Destination Strategies will “uncover Florida’s business brand” and “express the identity we want the world to see as it pertains to business,” Melissa Medley, chief marketing officer for Enterprise Florida, wrote in an Oct. 12 email.

North Star produced a tourism branding campaign called “Find Your True South” for the Mississippi Development Authority in February 2011.

Gray Swoope, head of Enterprise Florida, was running the Mississippi agency at the time. Gov. Rick Scott announced Swoope’s recruitment to Florida a few weeks later.

So Rick Scott "created" one job by recruiting Swoope, who is now sending the jobs of marketing Florida to another state entirely.

Because Tennessee is just like Florida, in that it's located in the south. Or because "someone knows someone?"

“We did consider Florida companies,” Doyle [Stuart Doyle, spokesman for Enterprise Florida] said. “We had to look at the needs and hire who we thought can best fulfill that. Because the scope was so large, we hired two companies.”

North Star was awarded a $205,000 contract in June.

On Ideas also was selected to develop a media plan to market the state. The Jacksonville firm proposed an $180,000 contract, but the amount hasn’t been finalized, Doyle said.

The contract was not advertised on Florida’s Vendor Bid System, an online repository of state contract opportunities. It also sends email notices to companies that sign up for the service.

“Enterprise Florida may want to consider using the state’s official procurement process,” said Dan Krassner, executive director of Integrity Florida, a nonpartisan government watchdog in Tallahassee. “There are many Florida-based companies that are qualified to do this work and our state leaders should be sure they have a fair opportunity to compete.”

Enterprise Florida receives state tax funding and private donations. Gov. Scott and a 62-member board of corporate investors, plus additional at-large, ex-officio and appointed members, oversee the organization.

Yes, the agency that receives taxpayer funding is now outsourcing jobs that should go to Floridians.

Nice work if you can get it. But you can't. So say Rick Scott and Gray Swoope, head of Enterprise Florida.

And while we're on the subject of outsourcing, Florida license plates are about to get a makeover, but Florida may be outsourcing distribution of those new tags through the Internet rather than through tax collectors as they do now, thanks to Scott's proposed Department of Motor Vehicles’s privatization plan, which Scott and his cabinet will be voting on that next week.

Another non-existent problem that may give way to creating plenty of new ones:

Palm Beach County Tax Collector Anne Gannon joined some of her colleagues in Tallahassee on Wednesday to voice their concerns about the Department of Motor Vehicles’s privatization plan, saying it could create problems for drivers who will then blame local officials.

Gannon said the counties do just fine mailing those out – and if something goes wrong they, as elected officials, are accountable to their local residents.

The tax collectors fear drivers may have trouble getting a live person at a private company to speak with them. And they point out problems the state has had with past privatization efforts.

“We don’t think this is broke,” Gannon said.

Here we go again: Taking a process that's working fine away from a government agency, creating the potential for complications down the road at the expense of taxpayers, all in the name of privatization.

Another reason why the Republican Party mantra of "running government like a business" is such a bad idea when it's actually implemented.

Romney Destroys Rick Scott's Rosy Unemployment Narrative

Mixed Messages

Last month Mitt Romney's campaign reportedly asked Rick Scott to zip his lip when it came to boasting about Florida job gains.

Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to tone down his statements heralding improvements in the state’s economy because they clash with the presumptive Republican nominee’s message that the nation is suffering under President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Scott, a Republican, was asked to say that the state’s jobless rate could improve faster under a Romney presidency, according to the people, who asked not to be named.

Scott's office quickly denied that such a request was made, and Scott went ahead and kept on bragging about his version of job numbers anyway.

Apparently that didn't sit well with Mitt Romney, nor fit his narrative, so today he's ignoring Rick Scott (much like the rest of the Republican Party) and sharing his own views on the unemployment situation in Florida. Today Romney's campaign sent an email to supporters titled Unemployment Still A Serious Problem In Florida, complete with a nice long list of news articles to back up his statement:

Unemployment data released late last week showed that Floridians are still struggling to find work. The statewide rate remained stagnant at 8.6 percent, but many areas in the state saw their unemployment rates rise. Nationally, unemployment stands at 8.2 percent, and has remained above 8 percent for 41 straight months. Here are a few headlines describing the middle class’s struggle to find work in Florida:

Associated Press, “Florida's June unemployment rate stalls,” 7/20/12

 

Fort Myers News-Press, “Unemployment rate goes up in Lee and Collier counties,” 7/20/12

 

Fort Myers News-Press, “Lee County jobless rate jumps to 9.3 percent thanks to layoffs,” 7/20/12

 

Naples Daily News, “Florida's unemployment rate unchanged in June at 8.6 percent; Collier's rises,” 7/20/12

 

Florida Times-Union, “June figures show flat First Coast economy,” 7/20/12

 

Pensacola News Journal, “Pensacola area jobless numbers rise,” 7/20/12

 

South Florida Sun-Sentinel, “Florida unemployment unchanged at 8.6 percent, but South Florida rate rises,” 7/20/12

South Florida Sun-Sentinel, “Ever more Floridians rely on food stamps,” 7/21/12

 

Gainesville Sun, “Gainesville-area jobless rate rises to 7.3 percent,” 7/20/12

 

Ocala Star Banner, “Unemployment numbers tick up,” 7/20/12

 

Palm Beach Post, “Florida employment picture stalls, Palm Beach County loses jobs during slow summer months,” 7/20/12

 

Highlands Today, “County's jobless rate rises in June,” 7/21/12

 

Florida Today, “Brevard's unemployment rate up in June,” 7/20/12

 

Sarasota Herald-Tribune, “Unemployment climbs in Southwest Florida,” 7/20/12

 

Northwest Florida Daily News, “Local counties see hikes in unemployment,” 7/20/12

 

Tampa Bay Times, “State report: Florida unemployment rate drop overstated,” 7/18/12

Your move Rick.... 

Mitt Romney Asks Rick Scott To Zip His Lip On Jobs Numbers

"Shh! I'm Running For Office For Pete's Sake!"

Mitt Romney is rooting for economic failure because he thinks it will bolster his campaign. After all Republicans in Congress have been trying to sabotage the economy under President Obama from day one. So this probably shouldn't be much of a surprise:

Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to tone down his statements heralding improvements in the state’s economy because they clash with the presumptive Republican nominee’s message that the nation is suffering under President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Scott, a Republican, was asked to say that the state’s jobless rate could improve faster under a Romney presidency, according to the people, who asked not to be named.

It certainly wouldn't be a stretch to hear Rick Scott attempt to mislead the public for political gain in the state where he and Republicans have made similar efforts almost an art form. But then Romney is asking a governor who has bottom of the barrel approval ratings to keep quiet about one tiny sliver of good news he's had, and Scott loves to toot his own horn regardless of who the credit belongs to.

Unfortunately for Romney, Scott still did plenty of crowing on his Facebook page, and since he hasn't taken it down, apparently he has no intention of falling on the unemployment numbers sword for Mitt Romney.

Today when Romney came to Orlando to give a speech pandering to Hispanic voters, he ignored reality, and Rick Scott once again and painted his misleading economic speech of doom in spite of the widespread reports of his request that Gov. Scott zip his lip on the numbers. As usual, Romney thinks voters are stupid and will believe anything he says.

Speaking of that, he danced around the entire immigration issue again today without going into specifics, instead blaming President Obama for immigration policies that were repeatedly blocked by Republicans in Congress. Instead, Romney said "when I make promises, I keep them." Not sure exactly which promises he was referring to on immigration. The one where he said he would veto the DREAM Act? The one about self-deportation? 

Well, voters are in for another long wait because Romney still isn't being very clear on what he would do on immigration, (much less anything else) he just wants Hispanics to vote for him and wait to find out if he wins.

Yes, the man who asks others to toe the line and basically lie about the economy is asking voters once again to "just trust me."

(Photo: Pink Slip Mitt)

Unemployment Applications Drop To Lowest Numbers In Four Years

The number of people seeking unemployment benefits has reached the lowest point in four years, and the job market is improving despite unprecedented Republican obstruction.

So naturally Republicans are feigning outrage over birth control hoping you won't notice.

From the AP:

Weekly applications for unemployment benefits dropped 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 348,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. It was the fourth drop in five weeks and the fewest number of claims since March 2008 - six months before Lehman Brothers collapsed and only a few months into the Great Recession.

The four-week average, which smooths out fluctuations in the weekly data, fell for the fifth straight week to 365,250. The average has fallen nearly 13 percent in the past year.

The consistent decline indicates that companies are laying off fewer workers, and hiring is likely picking up further. When applications drop consistently below 375,000, it usually signals that hiring is strong enough to lower the unemployment rate.

Florida Republicans Vote To Reject Payroll Tax Cuts

Remember how Republicans have been telling you they're against raising taxes for Americans? Raising taxes of any kind? Even for corporations, millionaires and billionaires?

Well, funny thing about that. They've decided there IS at least one group who don't deserve a tax cut:

You.

The House Republicans today rejected a payroll tax cut for the average American. 

What that means for the average Floridian is that you'll have to pay about $1,000 more in payroll taxes. 

It also means that 277,640 people in Florida will be losing their unemployment benefits.

Except for the two Republicans who just didn't bother to vote at all: Vern Buchanan and Mario Diaz-Balart, every Florida Republican in the U. S. House voted to raise your taxes and cut unemployment benefits.

Happy Holidays from these members of the GOP:

	Miller, Jeff	R
	Southerland, Steve	R
	Crenshaw, Ander	R
	Nugent, Richard	R
	Stearns, Cliff	R
	Mica, John	R
	Webster, Daniel	R
	Bilirakis, Gus M.	R
	Young, C.W. Bill	R
	Ross, Dennis	R
	Mack, Connie	R
	Posey, Bill	R
	Rooney, Tom	R
	Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana	R
	West, Allen	R
	Adams, Sandy	R
	Rivera, David	R

The Job Killing Republican Party

Employed (With Benefits!) Job Killer Marco Rubio

Yesterday the Republicans in the Senate voted to block President Obama's $447 billion jobs bill from moving forward. Among them was Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who also recently announced that he would cosponsor another bill that would kill one out of every 10 federal jobs.

Two Democrats joined the Republicans to block the bill, Sens. Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Jon Tester (D-MT). 

Never mind that the bill not only would create jobs, but it would cut payroll taxes, extend badly needed unemployment benefits, and fund infrastructure and road repairs, and would be paid for by an increase in taxes from the wealthy who would barely notice the difference.

The proposed jobs bill is also extremely popular among Americans according to a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. The poll shows that when given the details of what's in the bill, 63 percent of Americans favor the bill, only 32 percent oppose it, and 64 percent agree that it's a good idea to raise taxes for the wealthiest among us in order to pay their fair share.

Here's a little bit of what Marco Rubio and his Republican job killer colleagues snatched away from Floridians with their "no" votes:

Taxes:

The President’s plan will cut the payroll tax in half to 3.1% for employers on the first $5 million in wages, providing broad tax relief to all businesses but targeting it to the 98 percent of firms with wages below this level. In Florida, 410,000 firms will receive a payroll tax cut under the American Jobs Act. 

Infrastructure:

The President’s plan includes $50 billion in immediate investments for highways, transit, rail and aviation, helping to modernize an infrastructure that now receives a grade of “D” from the American Society of Civil Engineers and putting hundreds of thousands of construction workers back on the job. Of the investments for highway and transit modernization projects, the President’s plan will make immediate investments of at least $1,578,600,000 in Florida that could support a minimum of approximately 20,500 local jobs. 

Jobs:

The President is proposing to invest $35 billion to prevent layoffs of up to 280,000 teachers, while supporting the hiring of tens of thousands more and keeping cops and firefighters on the job. These funds would help states and localities avoid and reverse layoffs now, and will provide $1,669,500,000 in funds to Florida to support up to 25,900 educator and first responder jobs.  

School Funding:

The President is proposing a $25 billion investment in school infrastructure that will modernize at least 35,000 public schools – investments that will create jobs, while improving classrooms and upgrading our schools to meet 21st century needs.  Florida will receive $1,280,300,000 in funding to support as many as 16,600 jobs. 

Construction, Jobs:

The President is proposing to invest $15 billion in a national effort to put construction workers on the job rehabilitating and refurbishing hundreds of thousands of vacant and foreclosed homes and businesses. Florida could receive about $2,701,800,000 to revitalize and refurbish local communities, in addition to funds that would be available through a competitive application.  

The President’s plan proposes $5 billion of investments for facilities modernization needs at community colleges. Investment in modernizing community colleges fills a key resource gap, and ensures these local, bedrock education institutions have the facilities and equipment to address current workforce demands in today’s highly technical and growing fields. Florida could receive $288,400,000 in funding in the next fiscal year for its community colleges.  

Unemployment Benefits:

Alongside these reforms, the President is reiterating his call to extend unemployment insurance, preventing 148,500 people looking for work in Florida from losing their benefits in just the first 6 weeks.  And, across the country, the number saved from losing benefits would triple by the end of the year.  

Payroll Tax Cuts:

The President’s plan will expand the payroll tax cut passed last December by cutting workers payroll taxes in half next year. A typical household in Florida, with a median income of around $46,000, will receive a tax cut of around $1,430. 

You can see more of the plan here.

Basically, if you're out of work thanks to the economic policies the Republicans put in place over the years, you can now thank them for killing your chances of getting back to work anytime soon. 

If you watched last night's GOP "Debate" you know that the Republicans have no jobs plan, and don't seem to be in a hurry to find one anytime soon. The only jobs Republicans may have inadvertently created last night would be those of a few additional fact checkers. 

No, there's a good jobs plan out there, but it was proposed by President Obama. The Republican's only immediate mission in life is to make him a one term President, so those jobs must be blocked at all costs.

The only job the Republicans are interested in is their own. You pay their salary so that they can come to work for a couple weeks, obstruct anything the Democrats and the President try to put forward, then take a couple weeks off, do fundraisers, and then start the entire cycle all over again, as unemployment lines grow in their districts.

Nice work if you can get it, huh?

It's pretty clear who the real job killers are: The Republican Party, and of course, Florida's own Marco Rubio.

"Where Are The Jobs?" GOP Says: In Your Dreams!

Jobs Are Dead To Eric Cantor

You, the American public and voters asked for them.

In 2010 Republicans made a promise, and ran on them:

Jobs, jobs, jobs!

How'd that work out?

Well golly, who knew that when you asked for jobs, what you really wanted (besides more restrictive election and abortion laws) was to make life just a little easier for all those corporations that aren't hiring people like you? After all, being a "corporations are people my friend" is hard! 

How on earth can a corporation survive, much less pay people, if they're forced to comply with silly regulations (job killers in themselves!)? Worse still, if the CEO of your company looked over his shoulder at the first of the summer and didn't see a yacht, chances are you're in for a long bout of winter layoffs just in time for Christmas unless Republicans get even more tax cuts!

Yes, these are indeed tough times for those poor corporations! They're also a tough times for cooperation. Not only did Republicans turn right when they met the fork in the road between Prosperity and Austerity after the 2010 elections, they're building a roadblock before arriving at their intended destination. Why? Because the black Democratic President had the nerve to introduce a jobs bill!

TPMDC:

Hours after President Obama insisted both the House and Senate vote on his entire jobs bill, a top Republican says that's not gonna happen.

Asked by a reporter for a yes or no answer, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) says the jobs bill, taken as a whole, is kaput.

"The $447 billion jobs package as a package: dead?" the reporter asked.

"Yes," Cantor replied.

Got that? A $447 billion jobs bill. DOA says Eric No-We-Cant-or. 

President Obama plans to ask for an up or down vote on the package. I'd say the chances of that happening are about a high as the chance that Michael Moore will ring the opening bell on Wall Street tomorrow morning.

[I]f there are aspects of the bill that they don't like, they should tell us what it is that they're not willing to go for; they should tell us what it is that they're prepared to see move forward."

What aspects of the President's Jobs Act don't the Republicans like, and what won't they go for? I would venture to guess jobs........and jobs, basically. 

What would they like to see move forward?

That's a joke question, right? Next?

Cantor listed a very small number of measures Republicans and Democrats agree on -- some part of Obama's jobs bill, some separate. But he says there's no point in fighting any longer over getting something big done.

"I think at this point Washington has become so dysfunctional that we've got to start focusing on the incremental progress we can make," he said. "Both sides have their desires to do the big bold things. The problem is they're just vastly different.... We should certainly focus on trying to put some wins on the board."

How many times will we hear a similar, if not word for word excuse? If I may, allow me to translate (in bold):

"I think at this point Washington the Republican-Tea Party has become so dysfunctional that we've got to start focusing on the incremental progress we can make  continuing to go backwards" he said. "Both sides have their desires to do the big bold things." Most Democrats have a bold interest in jobs. Republicans are intersted in bigger, bolder tax cuts for both the corporations and the wealthiest among us. Including those very same Repulicans, and in some cases, their spouses. Like Rep. Cantor. "The problem is they're just vastly different.... We should certainly focus on trying to put some wins on the board." Those differences being that Democrats want to fix the country. Republicans want to fix elections. As long as Republicans block those jobs, and Democrats, Republicans think they can get those wins on the board.

As if they haven't said as much before, it's lound and clear now. You heard it here folks, from Eric Cantor himself, on behalf of all Republicans. If you're hoping for jobs and job creation, dream on!

The only thing Republicans are interested in is enriching themselves and their puppet masters,  at yours, and the country's expense, and they want to keep it that way by gaming the elections. Permanently.

Any questions?

Obama's Jobs Bill Would Create Jobs, Rebuild Infrastructure In Florida

With Rick Scott and Republican legislators already threatening to turn down any funds from President Obama's proposed jobs bill, here is a breakdown on what it would do for Florida in terms of jobs and infrastructure, and payroll tax cuts for workers, among other benefits.

The bill would benefit Floridians and create actual jobs, unlike the "phantom" jobs Rick Scott promises, which never materialize. So it's no wonder he would refuse to take funding from the proposed American Jobs Act simply for purely political reasons. 

"ObamaJobs" I presume?

THE AMERICAN JOBS ACT: IMPACT FOR FLORIDA  

The American people understand that the economic crisis and the deep recession weren’t created overnight and won’t be solved overnight. The economic security of the middle class has been under attack for decades. That’s why President Obama believes we need to do more than just recover from this economic crisis – we need to rebuild the economy the American way, based on balance, fairness, and the same set of rules for everyone from Wall Street to Main Street.  We can work together to create the jobs of the future by helping small business entrepreneurs, by investing in education, and by making things the world buys. The President understands that to restore an American economy that’s built to last we cannot afford to outsource American jobs and encourage reckless financial deals that put middle class security at risk.  

To create jobs, the President unveiled the American Jobs Act – nearly all of which is made up of ideas that have been supported by both Democrats and Republicans, and that Congress should pass right away to get the economy moving now. The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple: put more people back to work and put more money in the pockets of working Americans. And it would do so without adding a dime to the deficit. The American Jobs Act has five components: 

1. Tax Cuts to Help America’s Small Businesses Hire and Grow 

• The President’s plan will cut the payroll tax in half to 3.1% for employers on the first $5 million in wages, providing broad tax relief to all businesses but targeting it to the 98 percent of firms with wages below this level. In Florida, 410,000 firms will receive a payroll tax cut under the American Jobs Act. 

2. Putting Workers Back on the Job While Rebuilding and Modernizing America 

• The President’s plan includes $50 billion in immediate investments for highways, transit, rail and aviation, helping to modernize an infrastructure that now receives a grade of “D” from the American Society of Civil Engineers and putting hundreds of thousands of construction workers back on the job. Of the investments for highway and transit modernization projects, the President’s plan will make immediate investments of at least $1,578,600,000 in Florida that could support a minimum of approximately 20,500 local jobs. 
• The President is proposing to invest $35 billion to prevent layoffs of up to 280,000 teachers, while supporting the hiring of tens of thousands more and keeping cops and firefighters on the job. These funds would help states and localities avoid and reverse layoffs now, and will provide $1,669,500,000 in funds to Florida to support up to 25,900 educator and first responder jobs.  
• The President is proposing a $25 billion investment in school infrastructure that will modernize at least 35,000 public schools – investments that will create jobs, while improving classrooms and upgrading our schools to meet 21st century needs.  Florida will receive $1,280,300,000 in funding to support as many as 16,600 jobs. 
• The President is proposing to invest $15 billion in a national effort to put construction workers on the job rehabilitating and refurbishing hundreds of thousands of vacant and foreclosed homes and businesses. Florida could receive about $2,701,800,000 to revitalize and refurbish local communities, in addition to funds that would be available through a competitive application.  
• The President’s plan proposes $5 billion of investments for facilities modernization needs at community colleges. Investment in modernizing community colleges fills a key resource gap, and ensures these local, bedrock education institutions have the facilities and equipment to address current workforce demands in today’s highly technical and growing fields. Florida could receive $288,400,000 in funding in the next fiscal year for its community colleges.  

 

3. Pathways Back to Work for Americans Looking for Jobs. 

• Drawing on the best ideas of both parties and the most innovative states, the President is proposing the most sweeping reforms to the unemployment insurance (UI) system in 40 years help those without jobs transition to the workplace. This could help put the 498,000 long-term unemployed workers in Florida back to work.  
• Alongside these reforms, the President is reiterating his call to extend unemployment insurance, preventing 148,500 people looking for work in Florida from losing their benefits in just the first 6 weeks.  And, across the country, the number saved from losing benefits would triple by the end of the year.  
• The President is proposing a new Pathways Back to Work Fund to provide hundreds of thousands of low-income youth and adults with opportunities to work and to achieve needed training in growth industries. Pathways Back to Work could place 8,800 adults and 35,600 youths in jobs in Florida. 

 

4. Tax Relief for Every American Worker and Family 

• The President’s plan will expand the payroll tax cut passed last December by cutting workers payroll taxes in half next year. A typical household in Florida, with a median income of around $46,000, will receive a tax cut of around $1,430. 

 

5. Fully Paid for as Part of the President’s Long-Term Deficit Reduction Plan.  

• To ensure that the American Jobs Act is fully paid for, the President will call on the Joint Committee to come up with additional deficit reduction necessary to pay for the Act and still meet its deficit target. The President will, in the coming days, release a detailed plan that will show how we can do that while achieving the additional deficit reduction necessary to meet the President’s broader goal of stabilizing our debt as a share of the economy. 

Here is a breakdown of benefits on a state by state basis.

Rick Scott, GOP: "Pay No Attention To The Stimulus Behind The Curtain"

Hey, remember the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act? (You know, the Republican "four letter word" also known as the "stimulus?")

Well guess what?

A new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report estimates that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) increased the number of people employed by between 1.0 million and 2.9 million jobs as of June.

In other words, between 1.0 million and 2.9 million people employed in June owed their jobs to the Recovery Act. This estimate, by Congress' non-partisan economic and budget analysts, is more comprehensive than the 550,000 jobs that ARRA recipients reported in July, CBO explains.

While the report focuses primarily on the second quarter of 2011, CBO also includes new projections of the Recovery Act's jobs impact through 2012. It finds that in the current quarter (the third quarter of 2011), there are 0.8 million to 2.5 million more people employed because of ARRA.

The CBO report indicates that ARRA succeeded in its primary goal of protecting the economy during the worst of the recession. As the economy recovers, ARRA's effects will continue to decrease. CBO estimates that ARRA's impact on employment peaked in the third quarter of 2010, when between 1.4 million and 3.6 million people owed their jobs to the Recovery Act.

Not included of course, all those jobs in Florida that would have been, had Governor Rick Scott not thumbed his nose at stimulus dollars for high-speed rail. Luckily people who have smarter leaders in other states are the beneficiaries of Ricky's "genius" business model. Maybe Scott can dazzle the folks in the unemployment line with his "Seven Steps" speech during his next "Let's Get To Work Day?"

As for the rest of the Republican party, tell us about those tax cuts for the "job creators" again?

How's that working out?

Rick Scott Now Tweeting "Help Wanted" Ads?

When Gov. Rick Scott spouts his famous campaign slogan "Let's Get To Work" the only reaction he gets these days are a lot of eye-rolls. He's killed more jobs than he's created, unless you count the lawyers filing suits against him, of course. That, along with just about everything else he's done since getting into office has earned him a well deserved spot at the bottom of the approval ratings barrel.

He keeps saying Florida is open for business, and yet jobs are scarce. People keep asking "where are the jobs?" since he vowed to create 700,000 of them when he won the Governor's race.

Well, it looks like he may have found at least two job openings in the state. That's great, but you would think he could do a little more about the unemployment problem than Tweeting the help wanted ads from the classified sections:

Wow, so that means when those jobs are filled, Gov. Scott will only have 699,998 jobs to go! 

And he says he doesn't read newspapers....