Rick Scott Takes Credit For Solving Budget Crisis By Rejecting High-Speed Rail

• wewe

• Your #5 is a terrific idea. We are definitely going to have to conserve in the years ahead.

• I don't know how much of your income you spend on gas, but a lot of Americans shell out a third or more of their income each year on driving. That's a lot of money getting sucked up by a single industry - the oil industry, and many of the multinational oil companies don't pay much in taxes over here. If we could spend less on transportation, we could redirect that money back to other uses, which generate extra economic activity and increased tax revenue.

• What do other countries that have high speed rail do? Is this really a problem that is so confounding, Americans will never be able to figure it out? You are asking a legitimate question, but the tone in which you are asking it seems to imply the gig is up, no point in trying to figure out how we can make high speed rail work. I don't predict dollar a gallon gas ever again, and our roads are getting badly overstrained...so it would be very unwise to just walk away from the idea of mass transit.

• IF he had his hand in that cookie jar you could bet he'd have taken the money and ran with it. Lies, greed and collusion are the fuels of his fire.

• How can Rick Scott take the credit for DESTROYING a fuel efficient, mass transit system that is economic, environmentally friendly and would cure the traffic bottlenecks along the I-4 Corridor? Take a look at Europe, China and Japan where spending on high speed rail is increasing NOT decreasing because they understand the benefits that HS Rail provides.

• The only thing Dick Scott can really take credit for is BUYING the Governorship. Spending $70+ of his own money clearly shows he's not in it for the people, but his own agenda and the perks he's get down the road. This guy is scum...

• What an idiot, when gas hits 8 dollars a gallon and we serfs have no way to travel, we can thank King Rick Scott who likes to think he knows best for us poor citizens that are here to serve him and use his Health Care Store fronts Solantic......I WANT HIGH SPEED RAIL. it will create jobs and bring us into the next century, lowering our dependence on oil.........oops didnt he kiss BP last week

• That money didn't go back.. it went to other states!! You might also mention that he asked LaHood to KEEP that money but use it for other projects, like dredging ports.

• Really maybe he could balance the state budget by having companies pay their fair shar of taxes. Not on the backs of state workers who by the way have gone without pay raises for the past 6 years. You do know that Nestle Water pays no taxes & has only paid for a water permit which was under $300. .............

• Does Scott take credit for the million jobs lost by refusing the rail?

• The batch of ultra-conservative Republicans that have taken over various states in the US seem to be in competition with each other to see who can be the biggest corporate whore. Scott is close to the lead!

• A bullet train from Tampa to Orlando is a stupid idea, it really isnt that far. What someone needs to go from Busch Gardens to Disney in 15 minutes? Unlike other politicians, Rick Scott said he was going to work and he is. He also sold the State's company private jet which was paid for by Florida tax payers. GO RICK SCOTT KEEP DOING WHAT YOU PROMISED!

• As a bankruptcy attorney making great money off of stupid people that can't stop spending I love this kind of thinking. People like Lisa Rab that can't imagine reducing spending of any kind no matter how stupid are my target to a happy retirement. Keep it up you idiots... my office may have to expand hours. Stupid libs!!!

• The author has not concept of the facts and is truly a sycophant. The Orlando Tampa high speed was a viable privately funded option until the Government made the logistics impossible to create profit.....which by the way is the antithesis of anything the Government does. This blog is disingenuous and the author should look for another mode of expression.......like communicating with mullet.

• The problem is not the projects, its the spending. From local to federal. These guys need to stop worrying about how to slash budgets on infrastructure, and instead trim the fat and optimize. 1. Why cant we do our drivers license shit from home if we are born / raised in this country? 2. Why do school board members make so much money? 3. Why arent cops public servants anymore (protect the peace first, not revenue generation) 4. You want a light rail? I say no. What about a raised expressway over I-4 from tampa to orlando with a 90mph limit. Your car must pass an annual safety inspection (tires, brakes) that can be done at any registered auto shop. The express pass would monitor your pace and scold you if you are over pacing or under with lights or message boards. If you ran out of fuel or someone had a vehicle failure the traffic could be auto diverted to a different lane. 5. Offer local businesses incentives to offer employees 'work from home' opportunities.

• lol, rick Scott is a self rightous idiot thats WAY too full of himself. www.total-privacy.it.tc

• I'm from Los Angeles, and our city used to have the most developed network of street cars in the world. All the lines were paved over and highways were built that tore through neighborhoods. I know very well what happens when you create a car-centric city and don't allow for public transit options. It's called sitting completely idle on a 5 lane highway and commuting more than an 1 1/2 hours to and from work. Have fun Florida in 10 years living in what we do right now everyday, while we use the money your governor gave us to fix our transportation problems.

• Or you can start by putting a solid mass transit system in place at the local level FIRST and THEN working on an intercity / regional link

• What a douche move.

• Which of the three syllables of the word 'bankruptcy' don't people like Lisa understand?

• This would have laid the groundwork for getting more mass transit options off the ground in both cities as well as the long-term link to Jacksonville/Miami. At worst you would have a bus/shuttle depot with connections through the city. Do you actually prefer driving I-4 with all the crazy tourists and sitting in traffic when it turns into a parking lot due to wrecks/storms etc? Oh and don't forget about the gas. Eventually we won't be able to afford the gas to put in the car or maintain the interstates we drive on (already losing the battle on this), so I guess it doesn't matter anyway...

• the author of this is just another Dem wanting a handout - No one was going to use the tampa orlando link What are you going to do when you get off the choo choo? Rent a car? Taxi? Bus? Carriage? Wise up

• Can you one take credit for an accident? Ricky Boy can and does.

• Public transportation in Tampa and Orlando stinks. Makes no sense to link 2 places with horrible public transit. What were the estimated ridership numbers anyways?

• Ha! Florida's loos was the gain of others as the money Scott refused has, at least in part, been awarded to several other states. And the $1.5 billion that the recent Continuing Resolution cut from "high-speed rail" has no effect on this money. More . . . From the April 11, 2011, Gulf Coast Business Review: "The U.S. Department of Transportation reallocated $300 million of the $2.4 billion in high-speed rail funding rejected by Gov. Rick Scott for a wide number of railway projects across the nation — none nearly as ambitious what Florida officials had been considering. The largest portion of the investment — $145 million — will go to the state of Washington to pay for “rail corridor improvements and new equipment” for an existing route connecting the U.S. to Vancouver. Another $60 million will go to Maryland for a “preliminary engineering and environmental analysis,” which will create a plan for replacing an existing Amtrak service route. Connecticut received $40 million to add 10 miles of double rail to an existing line, and New Jersey received $38.5 million to replace a 100-year-old bridge, a DOT release shows. Other states receiving money were California ($22 million for the refurbishing of existing locomotives), Missouri ($3.8 million, mostly to fund studies), New York ($3.3 million to expand existing rail) and West Virginia ($1 million to create a state rail plan). In the recently completed deal to keep the federal government operating, both parties agreed to cut $1.5 billion from the high-speed rail budget in 2011."

• luthoooor!

TotalComments: 27