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Florida Is The Nation's Blueprint · Conversations: Special Guests with Preston Scott

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And we entered the third hour, last show of the week. Don't get
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your hopes up the week. I'm not leaving. Some of you would be
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rejoicing over that, but you listen. Yeah you do Tuesday on the Morning
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Show with Preston Scott. Great to be with you, Jared running the program
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over there, you better pull that closer. Doctor mccluy. Doctor Bob McClure
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joins us. He is president of the James Madison Institute. Friends of the
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radio program. Doctor McClure and I go back a number of years. We've
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covered an election or two over the years, and now talking about another election
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coming up, among other things. How you doing. I'm doing terrific.
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Thanks for having me. How are you? I'm good. I almost feel
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like I have to sometimes get an inoculation because of the things that are in
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the news. You know, I don't know where you are age wise,
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but I gotta believe we're sort of close to each other. I never would
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have imagined and the things that are in our wheelhouse today that we're talking about
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that you, as president of James Madison are kind of keeping an eye on
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it as well, I would imagine. Yeah, Yeah, just turned fifty
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nine, June thirteenth, So you know, even five years ago, it's
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just moved so fast with some of the issues that you and I and probably
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many of your listeners scratch your heads about that, like why are we even
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talking about this? How is this coming up? And so it's moved rapidly.
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I believe there's a I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I believe there
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is a movement afoot. Some of these things are being funded and that has
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been found. Unfortunately, under this national administration, nobody's willing to dig into
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it. The House is trying and has tried on a number of things,
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but it's just crazy some of the things you and I think about what our
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children and grandchildren may have to face at this rate. I asked our guest
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last hour, Scott Beakan, I've asked members of Congress broadly speaking, if
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the things that are going in the direction that they're going now aren't intentional,
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what are they right? Because you know, human nature would say, Okay,
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that's not working, let's do it differently, but they're continuing. This
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direction continues, and so it kind of feeds your thought process. Oh,
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there's no doubt about it. If we're talking about, you know, kind
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of some of the economic policies and some of the decisions made emanating from this
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White House. I believe it's purposeful to kind of change and tear at the
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fabric of the great civil society that is America that Tokville talked about. If
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it is this kind of all of a sudden pro gaza, anti Semitism on
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college campuses, some of the other things that we're seeing that's being I think
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also driven not by this White House. I'm not necessarily saying that, but
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by other folks call it Soros, call it China with funding to again tear
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at civil society because basic basic things that we have taken for granted for our
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entire lives, for all societies throughout history have taken for granted or being challenged,
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and we are supposed to be the crazies for responding in such a way
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saying, wait a second, what that's not That's not the way things work,
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and we're all of a sudden the crazy. So I believe at different
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levels, and again now I'm sounding like this crazy conspiracy conspiracy theorist. I
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really believe that, Uh, there's a push from Washington, d C.
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In the White House specifically to tear at the fabric of civil society in terms
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of many of the things that we believe. It just doesn't matter what party
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you're in, doesn't matter where you are politically. You may be a political
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it's just common sense. You know. This this um no consequences for any
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form of crime. Uh. This this idea that men and women should be
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in the same you know, compete in the same Olympics or same athletic competition.
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It's crazy. That's crazy stuff. And then you have this this idea
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of this whole pro gaza, anti Semitism, anti Israel. There's always been
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a strain of that around the world, of course. Yeah, but but
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there is a funding mechanism the fentanyl coming into this country that is killing so
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many people. There is a there is kind of a soft push, and
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Peter Schweizer talks about that quite a bit. He has a term for it.
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I don't know if he calls it the soft glove or something, but
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it's a drive funding by China to kind of weaken America from within without ever
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having to fire a shot. Welcome to m a D Radio Network. It's
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the Morning Show with President Scott, Doctor Bob McClure with me, president of
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the James Madison Institute. Would it be fair to describe JMI as an organization
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focused on Florida but with federalism running through its blood. Absolutely. You know,
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the James Madison Institute is really focused on ideas. We drive policy,
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We drive policy debates. We have a set of principles. We believe in
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free markets, limited government, allowing free enterprise to flourish. It's that Reagan
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ess again Toqueville view of it is civil society that can manage our problems far
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better than government. You know, what was it Reagan said, you know
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the worst words. You know, I'm here from the government, right,
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I'm here to help. I just butchered it. But that's our view free
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markets, limited government, and protection of private property. But given the fact
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that we are in Florida, I would argue Florida is the single most important
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state in the country Preston when it comes to policy and politics, one of
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the fastest growing. We have a governor who presidential ambitions notwithstanding, really kind
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of became America's governor during COVID, much like Rudy Giuliani after nine to eleven.
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And so Florida really is kind of first among equals. Hashtag free state
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of Florida is a real thing on social media. You don't say hashtag free
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state of even Texas, you don't even do that anymore. It used to
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be kind of Texas was, you know, Texas proud. Florida has really
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come into its own nationally and historically. We're a younger state, had no
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population really before nineteen sixty and now third largest state in the country, a
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thousand people moving here a day. We cleaned up Bush v. Gore,
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We have two time zones, we have every demographic that you can think about,
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and yet we know by midnight now who wins every election. We cleaned
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up that Bush v. Gore were the free state. We weren't no vaccine
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mandates, we reopened schools. I mean, we really are kind of the
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vanguard nationally. What you what we see at JMI Preston is Yes, our
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bread and butter is policy in Florida always. But we have so many people
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saying, how did you do that in Florida. Come to Wyoming, or
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come to Arizona, or come to Missouri, or come to Alaska, which
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we have met with the governor of Alaska and help US become more like Florida.
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Well, I was just going to ask before we get to the specifics
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of the legislative session, the budget and a few things Florida centric, is
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there is there energy to putting James Madison institutes in other states? There are
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versions of the James Madison institut in other states. They're not called by our
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name. Every state has a state think tank. Some are to varying degrees
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of influence in size. Sometimes it's just called by the state. The South
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Carolina Policy Council. In Michigan, it's the Mackinaw Center after the island,
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the Mackinaw Island. In Washington State, it's the Evergreen Freedom Foundation after kind
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of the Evergreen We talk about Pilgrims in an unholy lank doing that stuff over
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there, can you imagine? But then in Texas it's just the Texas Policy
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Foundation. So there are state think tanks in every state. JMI is unique
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because we're in again. I would argue the single most important state in the
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country when it comes to set it used to be California, right, you
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know that set all the trends. It's now Florida that sets all the trends.
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And so we have people, well, the positive trends California are still
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set in the other kind, right, right, right, So we have
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a whole aspect of what we do at JMI, which is just nothing but
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helping the rest of the states around the country. You talk about federalism become
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more like Florida, and that is one of the that is a whole area
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of what we do at JMI. How often you get a call from those
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other states saying talk to us every week? We get a call every week.
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What about lawmakers from other states? Every week? Really every week?
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Yes, Or we'll have a Florida the legislator say, hey, I met
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so and so from you know, I don't know Michigan who's trying to do
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this that or the other. Could you connect with him or her in Michigan
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and help them? You know, Michigan's a perfect example. When Whitmer got
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rid of right to work. Right now it's back to being a union pro
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union state. We knew we were gonna lose, but we were called in
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to help fight that fight on behalf because Florida is the right to work state,
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sure, and so we worked with dozens of groups. We put billboards
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up in Michigan talking about moved to the Pleasant Peninsula as opposed to this peninsula,
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meaning Michigan. Because we have right to work. We get those calls
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every week. Back with doctor Bob McClure, another segment with the James Madison
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Institute. He's the president, Doctor McClure. I mentioned the checkbook reflecting values.
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Your thoughts on the budget, I mean we can always. I mean,
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at the end of the day, regardless, even the best politician you
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know, you know, they they have their wants and desires, right,
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I mean, we all have clay feet, we get that. But big
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picture, this is great a budget. I mean you look at what the
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governor did. We're a billion dollars less less than appreciating that. Who does
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that? Right in a in a state like Florida again where we have a
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thousand people moving here today, we have every demographic it's a very complicated population.
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It's not a static population like some of the states in the Midwest.
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And you have the governor you were going to come in roughly in round numbers,
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about one hundred and sixteen billion dollars. It's a billion, one hundred
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and fifteen, it's a billion dollars. Less than last year. That means
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a billion dollars more back into our pockets. They're going to continue to cut
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taxes. They're going to continue. He's continued to cut taxes in a number
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of different ways, whether it's rolling back fees on your property, insurance,
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toll roads, the sales tax, weeks, all of those different things.
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They continue to cut taxes. And so this leadership in the House of Speaker
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Renter, Senate President Pacedomo, and Governor DeSantis are to your point, if
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you look at their checkbook, they are make they are prioritizing Florida taxpayers.
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And so we've seen this this move over the last year, and look at
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it this way. In the state of New York that has probably two million
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fewer people than we do, their state budget is twice hours. It is
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twice hours. It's two hundred and thirty two hundred and forty two and fifty
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million dollars. It's insane. And so what we're seeing is that this governor
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in this legislature has decided to prioritize the Florida tax payer. And oh,
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by the way, Florida's economy is booming, Okay, it continues to grow.
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People continue to move here, and it's that light hand of government that
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we talk about. It is the role of free enterprise that allows for people
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to kind of chase their version of the American dream. And that's what we're
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seeing from that state legislature. It's incredibly refreshing. If you were to estimate
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the importance of Florida as it relates to November, how would you quantify it?
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You know, it's interesting. Usually it's absolutely critical. It's critical.
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I mean, Donald Trump can't win the presidency without it, but he's gonna
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win Florida, and he's gonna win it relatively handily. Can I ask this
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with and this is this might be you decide if you want to go here.
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It has been suggested that Donald Trump will have to win by a almost
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landslide margin to overcome, shall we say politely, irregularities that may exist in
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votes around the country. Fair statement. I think it's a fair concern.
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Okay, I think it's a fair concern because what you see in the media,
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and they they started this and Senator Rubio had a great response. They're
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saying, will you accept the results of the election, Well, what what
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results are we talking about? Right? Do you feel we've ever answered twenty
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twenty. I don't. I don't think we ever have. Yeah, I
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don't know. I don't. I don't think and I don't think. I
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don't think we ever have. I think that well, we could say what
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happened in twenty twenty or nine, I don't think we had have answered it.
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I think the the secret key, though, is to look at what
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happened with Glenn Youngkin in Virginia. Okay, nobody thought, well, not
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many people thought he was gonna win, even Terry mccauliffe, the buffoon that
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he is. And yet Younkin won Virginia. And they had poll watchers,
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they had lawyers, they had tons of people at the ready, particularly in
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northern Virginia, particularly in Richmond, areas of concern, shall we say,
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And so Youngkin was able to win that election because he had folks at the
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ready. In twenty twenty, nobody was paying attention to what might happen.
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It was COVID. It was chaos, both personally and professionally in all of
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our lives. Who wants to deny anyone the right to vote? We wouldn't
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want to do that, right, And so what happened was we just kind
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of let it happen. And then post election, we said wait a second
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and started, you know all of these court cases, well, all judges
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are loathed to get involved in elections unless they absolutely have to. And most
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well okay, fairpoint, yeah, fairpoint right, Pennsylvania Supreme Court, your
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excuse from this discussion, right, But the simple answer to what happened to
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twenty twenty is that a number of states simply violated, in the name of
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COVID their own state constitutions. That's all. That's all. If you had
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simply followed your own state constitution in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, then
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let's see how the vote turns out. That's it. Just follow your state
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constitution. And yet they were violated. They were allowed to be violated in
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the name of not denying anybody's right to vote, those kinds of things.
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So, having said that Trump wins every state he won last time, which
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I believe you will, He's way ahead in Georgia, they're about to take
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it off the board. We'll see this is today. Now, you can't
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hold me to this tomorrow. He's wayhead in Arizona. They're going to take
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that off the board. In terms of toss up, and then he's just
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got to find one more Midwestern state Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, or he's
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got a cobble together a New Hampshire with a Nevada. Sure it's over.
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He's ahead in Minnesota, he's tied in Virginia. His map, I'll say
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this, his map is expanding and the current president's map is not. And
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so you're seeing, i mean, whether it's the Bronx or California, now
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that he's gonna win those two states, but that's where Donald Trump is going,
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Joe Biden is not. Can't wait to sort of flesh this out over
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the next couple months as you come back and visit. Thanks for the time,
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Thanks for having me my friend doctor Bob McClure with us a monthly visitor
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here on The Morning Show with Preston Scott with the James Madison Institute