Latest / Conversations: Special Guests with Preston Scott / JMI's Dr. Bob McClure Talks About Dunn & DeSantis

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JMI's Dr. Bob McClure Talks About Dunn & DeSantis · Conversations: Special Guests with Preston Scott

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Here we go.
• 0:05
  Speaker 2: It's the third and final hour at least for today,
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: of the Morning Show with Preston Scott. He's jose it
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: might be cold outside, but man one look at that
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: man's shirt and it's like you just feel like you
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: ought to have a Penia Colada or something. And joining
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  Speaker 2: me in studio is the president of the James Madison Institute,
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: doctor Bob McClure. Yeah, you came in Christmas. Happy New Year.
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: How are you? I'm doing terrific, my friend, how are you?
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: Do you have a good holiday? I did. I had
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: a great holiday. Kids were home, sons in laws were home,
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: and we ate well, we hunted a little bit. Good dogs, children.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: It was chaos, but it was fun.
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  Speaker 2: Fun chaos, yes, but there's no rest for the weary
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: because we get right at it here now, before we
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  Speaker 2: get to the session and your expectations, what you think,
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: what you see, what you sense needs to happen, will happen.
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: I want to get your thoughts on the decision of
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: doctor Neil Done to step down from District two. This
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  Speaker 2: will be his last term in Congress. What do you
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  Speaker 2: think happens? You think the GOP is able to hold
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  Speaker 2: serve here even with the potential of the mid terms
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  Speaker 2: being not so friendly.
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  Speaker 1: I think this district, yes, what is it. I think
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  Speaker 1: we've talked about it. It's plus seven plus eight something
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  Speaker 1: like that. Probably more than that now, the way people
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  Speaker 1: are moving to the state of Florida. Congressman done, good man,
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  Speaker 1: honorable man, did a great job. You know. It's his choice,
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  Speaker 1: obviously to step down when he wants to step down.
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  Speaker 1: But I've known Neil for a very long time, and
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  Speaker 1: he has served the people of that district incredibly well.
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  Speaker 1: I think it's going to be a pretty popular place
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  Speaker 1: for people to pop into. I think the Republican primary
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  Speaker 1: could get crowded pretty quickly.
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  Speaker 2: But I think Power, the chair of the party, has
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  Speaker 2: already announced he's going to run. Yeah, what are your
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  Speaker 2: thoughts on somebody that has been in party leadership deciding
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  Speaker 2: to jump into the actual realm of being in Congress.
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  Speaker 1: You know, I think that's I think it's an interesting idea.
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  Speaker 1: Clearly Evan will have the relationships and the connections in
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  Speaker 1: the district, sure, but I also think, and this is
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  Speaker 1: not about Evan, this is about the district. I think
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  Speaker 1: it's very hard for someone in that district from Tallahassee
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  Speaker 1: to win. I think it's very hard to win because
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  Speaker 1: the outlying counties kind of see Tallahassee the way the
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  Speaker 1: rest of the world we see Washington, d C. Right,
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  Speaker 1: So if you're from Tallahasse, I mean, name the last
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  Speaker 1: person who want a statewide race from Tallahassee. I can
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  Speaker 1: tell you who it was. Jim Smith nineteen eighty eight. Okay, okay,
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  Speaker 1: Scott Maddox tried, Louren Osley tried, and Andrew Gillam tried.
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  Speaker 1: It's really hard because people outside of Tallahassee see Tallahassee
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  Speaker 1: like the rest of the world's he's Washington, d C.
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  Speaker 1: So I think there are a lot of people in
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  Speaker 1: Bay County. I think maybe some people in Walton County
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  Speaker 1: who are eyeing this seat in the district. I think
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  Speaker 1: there'll be I think there'll be other people who jump
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  Speaker 1: in with some money. And does he even be interesting?
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  Speaker 2: Does he mitigate any of that by having been now
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  Speaker 2: for a couple of years the chair of the state
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  Speaker 2: wide party and overseeing and he can take credit for
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  Speaker 2: some of the growth of the GOP and the registration
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  Speaker 2: that the Republicans have now enjoyed.
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  Speaker 1: He's absolutely done a terrific job. Look at where we
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  Speaker 1: are in terms of registration, look at where we are
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  Speaker 1: in terms of winning elections. Not only there's not a
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  Speaker 1: single statewide elected Democrat right since NICKI freed, which was
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  Speaker 1: what six years ago? Now I've lost track, the legislature
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  Speaker 1: super majorities in both the House and the Senate. I
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  Speaker 1: can tell you ten or fifteen years ago, pressed and
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  Speaker 1: very respected, very close friend of mine, political scientists from
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  Speaker 1: University of South Florida named Susan McManus. Yeah, great, lady,
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  Speaker 1: I can tell you fifteen years ago we sat at
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  Speaker 1: an event in Sarasota and she said that the Republican
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  Speaker 1: Party was in danger of becoming a third party in
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  Speaker 1: the state of Florida behind no party affiliation. So the
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  Speaker 1: Democratic Party NPAs and the Republican Party in actuality, it's
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  Speaker 1: a Democratic Party today that is in danger of becoming
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  Speaker 1: a third party in this state. So that is a
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  Speaker 1: credit to Evan, that is a credit to Governor Scott,
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  Speaker 1: Governor DeSantis, the work of the people who have come before,
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  Speaker 1: and there's no denying that. And that gets you points.
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  Speaker 1: When you're running for Congress in a district that is
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  Speaker 1: plus seven Republican.
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  Speaker 2: Do you think it helps him with name recognition in
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  Speaker 2: that area where others may not have had it that
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  Speaker 2: are based in Tallent.
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  Speaker 1: I think it helps with name recognition with the worker bees.
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  Speaker 1: People don't know who the republic Party chair is in
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  Speaker 1: the state of Florida outside of the politicos. You talk
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  Speaker 1: about worker bees knocking on doors and going and building
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  Speaker 1: relationships and hey, you need to join me, to come
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  Speaker 1: listen to this guy. It absolutely helps one.
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  Speaker 2: Well, we're here with doctor Bob McLaurin. We're here the
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  Speaker 2: final legislative session of a guy that you and I
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  Speaker 2: have talked about quite a bit over the years. Who
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  Speaker 2: may be the most successful governing governor in not just
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  Speaker 2: Florida's history, but in our nation's history as it relates
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  Speaker 2: to advancing good policy that benefits people and businesses.
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  Speaker 1: There's no doubt about it. If you think about what
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  Speaker 1: this governor has accomplished, He's accomplished things that we have
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  Speaker 1: been trying to have accomplished since Jeb.
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  Speaker 2: You know, why do you think it's worked him? Is
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  Speaker 2: it his ability to articulate the policy in lay terms.
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  Speaker 2: That doesn't sound wonky, right he?
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  Speaker 1: I mean, it's it's it's a confluence of different things.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, obviously the ascension of the Republican Party, which
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  Speaker 1: we talked about, but he also articulates what he stands for,
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  Speaker 1: and he's very clear on the issues that he believes in.
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  Speaker 1: And then he he puts all of his chips in
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  Speaker 1: the middle of the table. I mean, you think about
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  Speaker 1: what we've gotten done in the last you know, eight
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  Speaker 1: years while he's been here. We've gotten major tort reform,
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  Speaker 1: universal school choice, tax reduction, UH higher ed reform, getting
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  Speaker 1: rid of DEI, getting rid of you know, the social
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  Speaker 1: credit scoring system in our pension fund, which is the
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  Speaker 1: third largest pension fund in the country. And now he's
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  Speaker 1: focused on property taxes, right, and the governor is relentless
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  Speaker 1: in his belief whatever you think about, for example, the
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  Speaker 1: two amendments, the Weed Amendment in the abortion of amendment
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  Speaker 1: from a couple of years ago, wherever you stand on that,
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  Speaker 1: the Governor said, I oppose them, and then he went
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  Speaker 1: all out and defeated those two against hundreds of millions
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  Speaker 1: of dollars from the Weed lobby.
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  Speaker 2: What does that say about what canon cannot be done
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  Speaker 2: on his laundry list in his final year? Given that, well,
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  Speaker 2: both he and the Senate President and the House Speaker
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  Speaker 2: are on their way out, right.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I mean he's still the governor, and he still
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  Speaker 1: has the line item veto, and he still has the
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  Speaker 1: bully pulpit. And so what you're seeing him do around
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  Speaker 1: the state and on TV and around the country is
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  Speaker 1: he continues a to always tout Florida. I mean, the
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  Speaker 1: free state of Florida. You know, whether it's Gavin Newsom
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  Speaker 1: in the wealth tax, he's contrasting the state of California
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  Speaker 1: with the state of Florida, or whether it's fraud or
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  Speaker 1: ice in Minnesota, he's contrasting that with the free state
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  Speaker 1: of Florida. And he's constantly using the bully pulpit to
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  Speaker 1: tout the great state of Florida when there's so many
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  Speaker 1: great things. And then he is courageous in his in
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  Speaker 1: his policy views, and he's not sitting around wringing his
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  Speaker 1: hands or worrying about a legacy or focused on you know,
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  Speaker 1: things that you know other governors as they're going out
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  Speaker 1: focus on, right, and he's focused on this property tax issue.
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  Speaker 1: He's already said, you know, we're going to have a
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  Speaker 1: special special session. He's focused on redistricting. I mean, you know,
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  Speaker 1: There's an old line preston that you know, no risk it,
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  Speaker 1: no biscuit, and that's what we have here with this governor.
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  Speaker 1: He is willing to risk and run through the tape
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  Speaker 1: to get meaningful, consequential legislation done. And he's done it
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  Speaker 1: for eight years. How important is it for whoever the
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  Speaker 1: Republican nominee is for governor to maybe not be best
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  Speaker 1: buds with Ryan DeSantis, but to take a good hard
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  Speaker 1: look at what he's done, what he wants to do now,
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  Speaker 1: and kind of pick up where he left off. I
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  Speaker 1: think it's very important. I also think it's important to
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  Speaker 1: think through kind of where we started. So the man
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: or woman who occupies the governor's mansion will be defined
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  Speaker 1: by the times. So when Jeb came to office, the
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: old media was still incredibly powerful. The Saint Pete Times now,
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  Speaker 1: the Tampa Bay Times, the Palm Beach Post. They hated
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: Governor Bush. He was a Republican who had bold ideas,
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  Speaker 1: who was really trying hard to get those ideas implemented,
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  Speaker 1: even on the smallest scale. And he was able to
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  Speaker 1: do that and also bring a Republican House and Senate
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  Speaker 1: that did not have supermajorities had very small majorities. Then
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  Speaker 1: the economy goes into the tank, into the ditch. Well,
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  Speaker 1: we had Charlie crist Okay as a blip, and then
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  Speaker 1: the economy goes into the tank. And Rick Scott has
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  Speaker 1: to focus on rebuilding an economy. He can't be a
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  Speaker 1: movement governor. He's got to rebuild an economy. Jobs, job, jobs,
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  Speaker 1: foundation work, as opposed to getting the glory of building
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  Speaker 1: the building. He didn't ask for that, but that's what
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  Speaker 1: he got because of the eight meltdown, because Florida was
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  Speaker 1: probably one of the three worst states in the country
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  Speaker 1: in terms of our economy, because our economy was built
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: on housing and tourism and agricultures, kind of that three
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  Speaker 1: legged stool, but two of those three were eviscerated because
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  Speaker 1: of the eight meltdown. So he served for eight years,
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  Speaker 1: rebuilt the economy, and then you have Governor DeSantis come
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  Speaker 1: in and along with his hard work, the things we've
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  Speaker 1: talked about, his courage, his ability to articulate policy, he
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  Speaker 1: also has supermajorities and he is able to get massive
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  Speaker 1: policy wins. For those who believe in freedom, who believe
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  Speaker 1: in liberty, we are now the free state of Florida.
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  Speaker 1: I mean that wasn't the case ten years ago, fifteen
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  Speaker 1: years ago, right, I mean we're we're We're Texas, proud
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  Speaker 1: of our state and we should be right and so,
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  Speaker 1: and it's always all the indicies or you know that
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: you look at best place to live, best place, all
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  Speaker 1: all of those kinds of things, Texas and Florida vying
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: for the top spot, particularly among large states, right, I mean, yes,
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  Speaker 1: do we have an affordability issue, yes, but so does
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  Speaker 1: the entire country. Do we have a now housing issue, yes,
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: but so does the entire country. And everything that happens
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: here has national implications. Everybody watches the state of Florida
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  Speaker 1: the way you and I watched the state of California
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  Speaker 1: when we were growing up, right, And so what emanates
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  Speaker 1: from here? So the next person who knows how the
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: times are going to be defined because we don't know.
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  Speaker 1: But but the next person is going to have to
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  Speaker 1: pick up the mantle, assuming they're a Republican, and stay
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  Speaker 1: true to their principles a la Jeb Bush, a la
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  Speaker 1: Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis, and build on that legacy,
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  Speaker 1: those legacies to advance the the the view of why
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: people move to the state of Florida. We still have
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: almost a thousand people a day moving to Florida for
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: various reasons. It's their version of the American dream. Yes,
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: it may be a retirement, but it may be entrepreneurship
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: on Brickell Avenue in Miami, or it might be you know,
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  Speaker 1: farming in the center of the state south of Orlando.
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  Speaker 1: Or it might be you know, investments in Palm Beach
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: or what have you, or a slower life in North Florida. Right,
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  Speaker 1: So the next person is going to have to have
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  Speaker 1: the movement attitude of of of of leading this state
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  Speaker 1: that is watched by the other forty nine states. And
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  Speaker 1: I just want that person to understand the size of
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  Speaker 1: this job. It's not what it was even ten years ago,
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  Speaker 1: but it's certainly not what it was twenty five years ago.
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  Speaker 1: And I would argue, I'll say this, Jeb Bush was
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  Speaker 1: the og. Okay, he was the og to get Florida
• 13:21
  Speaker 1: moving in the right direction. And it has been continued
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  Speaker 1: wonderfully by Rick Scott who barely won, Ron DeSantis, who
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: in his first term barely won. Who can divine the future? Right,
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  Speaker 1: But the next person needs to take that mantle continue
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: focused on the principles, articulate those principles, and have the
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: courage to follow up and govern that way.
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  Speaker 2: It might be oversimplified, but to me, the one thing
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: that all of those guys have in common, along with
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: any other great lawmaker that I've met and interviewed over
• 13:54
  Speaker 2: the years, is they don't need a single note card, right.
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  Speaker 2: They own it comes from deep within their convictions and
• 14:01
  Speaker 2: their heart. And those are the people that stand out
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  Speaker 2: to me. Yeah, do you think we will have a
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  Speaker 2: candidate or candidates to choose from in that light?
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  Speaker 1: I do, Okay, I really do. Yeah, I really do.
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  Speaker 1: The so far, the folks, the men who have been
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: who have declared right or I don't know Fishback, but
• 14:22
  Speaker 1: I know the other three Paul Renner, Jay Collins, Byron
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: Donald's you know, full disclosure, I know all three of
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: them very well. Are great, great men. But you have
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: you have to understand the the size of the chair
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: you're running for, okay, and you need to run understanding
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: that and articulating your policies for the people, for the
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: people of the state of Here's what we're going to
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: do for you. Here's where we come we've we've come from.
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: But here's what we're going to do for you. Stick
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  Speaker 1: to the principles of limited government and free markets that
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: have made this state the single greatest state and most
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: important state in the country. Thanks for coming in, Thank you, buddy,
• 15:07
  Speaker 1: Thanks for having me.
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: We will talk again next month with doctor Bob McClure,
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: president of the James Madison Institute. Twenty eight past the
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  Speaker 2: hour