Senator Rick Scott endorsed by building industry

Reporter: Claire Galt
Published: Updated:
Rick Scott

At a campaign event in Fort Myers on Monday, Senator Rick Scott announced his plan to lower taxes and cut unnecessary regulations so builders can prosper in the Sunshine State.

Scott wants to represent those construction jobs not only in Florida but in Washington as well.

While he was in Fort Myers, Senator Scott got big endorsements from the building industry, but for people struggling to rebuild after Hurricane Ian, it’s been a long road.

Congress is dragging its feet on getting it classified as a qualified disaster.

We are 18 months after Hurricane Ian, and people are still waiting for relief.

Making it a qualified disaster would have a direct impact on how storm victim prepares their taxes by allowing them to deduct expenses for repairs without the current limits.

For a bit, things looked promising. The bill passed in the house, but now, Congressman Byron Donalds said it’s on life support in the Senate, so we asked Senator Scott about it at his event on Monday.

“It’s frustrating,” he said. “We pass legislation like this with other disasters. Why didn’t it happen yet? Well, I guess because it didn’t impact Chuck Schumer‘s state. If it impacted New York, it would’ve happened like that, so I’m gonna keep working on it, but right now, Chuck Schumer doesn’t care, and so, as a result, it’s been tough to get it done.”

Across the aisle from Senator Schumer is minority leader Mitch McConnell, who is stepping down from leadership after the November election.

Scott tried to unseat McConnell once before, so we asked the senator if he go for the chamber’s top job again.

“I’m seriously considering it. I think the first step is to make sure we have a conference that actually wants to change. I don’t want to go down the same path. I want to secure the border. I want to stand for what Republicans stand for around the country.”

WINK News anchor Claire Galt went to the southern border last week to see the crisis firsthand, she asked Scott and Donalds about what she saw.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.