Rick Scott Used Office to Rake in Billions!

How bad can it get? At least we are finally seeing the REAL reason he wanted to be governor.

First, let me bring you up to speed with 5 things you need to know:

1. Rick Scott made millions as CEO of Columbia/HCA. Well, technically, he made it through Medicare fraud, but Columbia was the vehicle.

2. After he was kicked out, he used his stolen money to found an urgent-care chain called Solantic. Shocking...Solantic also engaged in multiple, multiple forms of fraud.

3. Scott absolutely hated the health care reform bill. In 2009, he founded a national front group to run ads to tell people just how bad it would be for them. He spend 5 million of his own money just to let us know this...with no ulterior motive whatsoever.

4. He had a COMPLETE lack of interest in anything about Florida--until he suddenly decided to run for office last year. He spent 70 million of his own funds to win it.

5. In case I forgot to mention it. HE. IS. A. F%^&ING. CRIMINAL.




All caught up? Good.

So you may be wondering, as us Floridians are, what was Rick Scott's REAL motive for running? No one, not even his teabag supporters who put him in office say that Scott is interested at all in helping average citizens. His latest budget proves that.

So why? Is he delusional enough to think he can be president? Maybe. Is there another grand scheme I'm still missing? Perhaps.

But one thing several of us have already figured out is that he is hell-bent on recouping the money he spent. Yet look closer. From his budget proposal to policies he pushed just last week, we have one BIG reason he is now our governor.

In just four short years in office, Scottie is poised to make such a massive fortune that he could hire a Koch brother to plunge his toilet!

Wait. Isn't he rich already? He listed his net worth at $219 million When submitting the election forms. That would be plenty for most, but for people like Scott, it is abject poverty when you look at multi-billionaires like the Koch brothers. And for people like that, it is never enough. Its the same reason they fight tooth and nail for extra tax cuts and don't care if we have to cut every social service, kick every poor, disabled kid, and spit on every teacher to get it.

Right now, it is generous to say that Scott has a "questionable" relationship with Solantic. His co-founder at Solantic vehemenently denies that Scott is involved in day-to-day business. In fact, she said that he no longer takes business calls after he was elected. (I would really f%^#ing hope a governor of a major state wouldn't also try to run a business, but she thought it was a big concession.)

But us libral critics, never satisfied, selfishly insisted he do more to sever the financial relationship with Solantic in order to avoid an obvious conflict of interest.

And in January, our ethical governor FINALLY did. He transfered every bit of his Solantic stock.

Case closed.

I should be happy. But for some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling that he is somehow still invested in Solantic.

Maybe it has to do with the fact that the person he transferred all of the stock to WAS HIS WIFE!

Now, Florida does have an Ethics Commmission. But this underfunded, toothless agency did nothing after three visits from Scott's legal team. Want a transcript of the meetings under our Sunshine Laws? Too bad. There weren't any! Whoops. They must have forgot... three times in a row.

Moving on.

Bottom line... Solantic makes money, Rick Scott's wife makes money, and I'm sure somehow, someway, Rick Scott will get a piece of that.

But our governor wouldn't be so blatant as to make any policy to funnel money to Solantic? My God, we would have to be some kind of stupid state to overlook something like that.

You be the judge:

1. Solantic primarily deals with people who have high premiums or no insurance. The main competitor for Solantic are publically-funded state clinics run by the FL Dept. of Health. Scott's budget proposal cuts ALL funding to these clinics!

(Yes, more than one person has pointed out the irony of him wanting pill mills to stay open while completely eliminating clinics that help the poorest Floridians.)

With the elimination of its biggest competitor, SOLANTIC profits will explode.


2. Gov. Scott wants to require ALL RECIPIENTS OF MEDICAID TO JOIN PRIVATE HMOs.

By pure coincidence, Rick Scott's wife's company doesn't accept Medicaid, but SOLANTIC does accept private Medicaid HMO reimbursments! (ca-ching)

No conflict of interest there.


3. As you learned if you watched Jon Stewart's hilarious take on Ric Scott last Thursday, the man signed an executive order requiring random drug testing of state employees at least once a quarter along with all applicants for state jobs. He is also pushing the right-wing legislature to use drug test harrassment for another group the GOP hates...welfare recipients.

We are talking hundreds of thousands of Floridians here going to clinics several times a year at least to get these tests. Hey, guess what clinic offers drug testing as a primary service?? Rhymes with MOLE-ANTIC!


4. Biggest one so far. The Palm Beach Post did a great article on this. Although Gov. Mr. Burns hates "Obamacare", he is gladly lobbying like hell for a massive federal block grant from a state waiver that the Act allows. The article says this type of grant is worth BEEEEELL-IONS.

Slick Rick's health policy adviser, Michael Cannon, said it would be in the form of health vouchers that consumers can use as cash for direct-pay medical care. This benefits particular clinics where patients like to pay cash.

Clinics like, (wait for it)....SOL..... (OK, I think you get the point now.)


Thankfully, our Florida Commission on Ethics has to decide whether that last one is a conflict of interest. Yes, that commission.

By the way, the commission has 9 members... 5 of which are picked by the governor. So... ya know. Just count on him to do the right thing.

Like his mama said, he's a good boy: