Rick Scott bullish on GOP retaking Senate, says Pennsylvania race ‘hardest’ for Republicans
Rick Scott is confident that Republicans can regain the Senate, despite losing two of their top targets. The Florida governor, along with former President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, are the top three candidates for U.S. Senate in a new Marquette University Law School poll.
Scott, who is seeking re-election next year and is the latest Republican to weigh in on the election, said Obama is the Democratic presidential nominee, and that Clinton is his likely opponent.
“I’ve said and believed for a long time, Hillary’s the nominee now,” Scott told a group at the University of South Florida on Tuesday. “That’s what I have said and believed for a long time. It’s what I’m going to continue to say and believe.”
But he declined to say whether he would support Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination, which could prove challenging to his own re-election in November. The poll showed his Republican and Independent leanings are more likely than those of his Democratic opponent, Rep. Ron DeSantis, according to Marquette politics professor Mark Schauer.
“He remains on course for being Florida’s governor for the foreseeable future,” Scott told Marquette. “He’s now the nominee for the Democratic nomination. I know Florida politics. I know the dynamics of Florida politics. It’s hard to say who’s going to win the primary.”
He said Clinton is now running against him and he views the race as the “hardest” for Republicans.
“She’s attacking me on my taxes,” Scott told Marquette. “I’ve got the best economy in the world. I’ve got the highest quality jobs. We’ve had the highest employment. We’ve