BUSTED: Rick Scott's Chief of Staff Caught Lying About His Education

#78 of the MY STUPID STATE series

The Miami Hearld busted Adam Hollingsworth, the latest Rick Scott top aide to be embroiled in scandal, for lying about his academic credentials.

Hollingsworth didn’t just verbally deceive people. He twice explicitly allowed his former employer, CSX Corporation, to issue press releases in 1998 and 2002 saying he graduated from the University of Alabama with a degree.

"I am not proud of this and I deeply apologize for this misrepresentation. I have learned from this failure in judgment and know that, over the last several years, my life and character have and will continue to grow from this."

This is a character issue. He has shown he has no trouble deceiving people if he can get away with it. (I guess that's a prerequisite for working for Scott.) Hollingsworth left CSX abrutly and the article quotes a source who said his lying was part of the reason he left.

Considering his boss was involved with the largest Medicare fraud in US history, I suppose he wasn't worried about his ethical issues being a problem in Rick Scott's regime. He was right.

Rick Scott said in a statement he had "confidence in Adam as my chief of staff, and my friend … I know him to be a man of tremendous integrity and character."

Which is fine for someone who has no freaking clue what those qualities are.

It is typical in the trend of the top aides Rick Scott surrounds himself with. Consider just this past year:

Tony Bennett, Commissioner of Education, resigned in Aujust for changing grades to help his charter schools.

Hunting Dewutch, Department of Economic Opportunity Director, quit in when he was discovered collecting unemployment beneftits while going on aspending spree in Europe before he was hired.

Jennifer Carroll, Lt. Gov., had numerous scandals. (This is even more remarkable since this position literally has no responsibilities whatsoever.) However, she was finally done in earlier this year after she was investigated for PR work she did for an illegal gambling outfit that pretended to be a nonprofit Veteran's charity.

Ever since Carroll resigned in March in disgrace, the position has remained vacant. Scott wanted to take his time and promote someone that he thinks has "integrity and character". Wonder who that is?

You. Guessed. It!