In an early showing of dirty, rotten things to come during the next handful of years, Sen.-elect Marco Rubio and Gov.-elect Rick Scott were quick to criticize President Barack Obama for extending the ban on oil drilling in federal waters off Florida’s coast.
Calling it a job-killer, many prominent Florida Republicans failed to recognize what the massive explosion of Deepwater Horizon did to jobs. By failing to recognize the oil rig’s disastrous consequences to Florida tourism, ecology and jobs across the Gulf Coast, Scott, Rubio and Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos leave little room for debate. These lawmakers value little more than money-hungry, oil-coated special interests.
And when money talks this loud, why would they?
But the Editorial Board is, perhaps, more disappointed with their simultaneous refusal to acknowledge what an enormous opportunity this presents to expand renewable energy, which would provide a more sustainable Florida while also creating thousands of jobs in developing and operating the infrastructure.
Such short-sighted and dirty politics is not what Florida nor any state needs.
The Editorial Board was pleasantly surprised, however, to hear Republican Attorney General-elect Pam Bondi outright oppose any “near-shore drilling,” saying we need to “protect our state.”
Clearly setting an example that shows environmental protection is not a partisan issue. We hope our future Florida leaders will eventually follow Bondi’s example.
