Gov. Rick Scott hosted over half a dozen GOP Presidential hopefuls, including former Govs. Jeb Bush, Rick Perry, and Mike Huckabee, during his first “Economic Growth” summit Tuesday in Orlando, Florida.
The invitation-only event, which according to Bloomberg was attended by a wide array of Republicans and Rick Scott supporters, covered a range subjects – including immigration.
Prior to the start of the summit, Gov. Scott sat down with Univision to answer a couple of questions regarding immigration and the impact of the Latino vote:
[TRANSLATED TRANSCRIPT]
I think President Obama has failed us. We know we need Comprehensive Immigration Reform, we know need to make sure we secure the border, and his approach has not worked. In six and a half years, everything he has done is being questioned in the courts. We need a plan to secure the border, we need to make sure that the poeple that want to come to this country have a process — if somebody wants to come into this country there is a process.
I think President Obama has failed us on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, and I look forward to having a new President that can focus on that subject. It is not an easy subject, but this is a country of legal immigration.
Wow. Is this the same Rick Scott that refuses to comment on his administration’s efforts to derail the DACA+ and DAPA programs? The same Rick Scott that signed the Florida Dream Act? Or the same Rick Scott that remained quiet on SB 300, a proposal that would allow undocumented Floridians to obtain driver’s licenses, as it died during the last legislative session?
Who knows! The troubling part about Scott’s comments is his willingness to turn a blind eye on what is really happening in his state, and across the nation for that matter.
Currently, Pam Bondi, Florida’s Attorney General and part of the Rick Scott Administration, is suing the federal government to try and dismantle DACA+ and DAPA — two programs that would bring relief from deportation to many undocumented immigrants across the Sunshine State.
Both program were launched by President Obama last year, ironically, as a response to Republicans’ lack of will to fix our broken immigration system. And yet, he has allowed his state help stall the only meaningful progress on the issue.
If Rick Scott is so concerned about the issue of immigration, perhaps he should start by taking a look at his own state.
Already Miami-Dade County passed a resolution calling on the Governor to drop Florida from the DACA+ and DAPA lawsuit. And that follows the actions taken by the City Commission of Kissimmee — who also voted to support the DACA+ and DAPA programs.
Scott’s willingness to call out President Obama is just a cheap way of passing blame on the issue. It is no secret that President Obama did not pass comprehensive immigration reform at the beginning of his presidency, but trying to stop the programs that seek to build a foundation towards a meaningful solution is no sign of leadership either.
