Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., is firing back against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo for claiming New York has bailed out Florida on a yearly basis.
Scott, the former governor of the Sunshine State, said on Thursday: “Yesterday, Governor Cuomo used his daily briefing as an opportunity to attack me to distract from the fact that he wants his state bailed out by Florida taxpayers. He also claimed that those of us who care about how American taxpayer dollars are spent are somehow attacking states with significant cases of Coronavirus.
“That’s a lie and simply meant to distract from the woeful fiscal policies of Governor Cuomo and other liberal governors around the country. Florida has made the tough choices that New York has refused to make for decades and can get through this crisis without a bailout.”
Scott said that “the federal government should continue to reimburse state and local governments for expenses related to Coronavirus response.”
But he called it “irresponsible and reckless” to use taxpayers’ money “to save liberal politicians like Cuomo from the consequences of their poor choices.”
He said Florida has made responsible budgetary decisions for years.
“It’s time for New York to do the same,” Scott said.
Cuomo on Monday was critical of Scott for asking why the federal government should provide funding to states facing budget shortfalls, noting that New York bails Florida out every year.
Cuomo was referring to a Scott column in The Wall Street Journal headlined: “Don’t Reward States’ Bad Decisions.”
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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