Fighting Rick Scott's Mo'

One of the things that has frustrated me to no end in this supposed "anti-incumbent" environment is the way the narrative has so thoroughly turned pro-Republican. This is especially frustrating in Florida races, where the state government has been so dominated by the GOP so that Democratic legislators were lucky to get office space in Tallahassee, but certainly haven't held influence in some time.

Rick Scott, of course, rode the anti-incumbent wave to victory in the gubernatorial primary against Bill McCollum. To run against Alex Sink as some kind of Tallahassee insider is disingenuous, and if the Democrats can't successfully point that out, it will be a travesty.

A couple new polls, most notably Quinnipiac and Voter Survey Service, are showing Sink behind Scott right now by narrow margins. Of course, polls not so long ago were showing Sink with a commanding lead, but the mo' is clearly with Rick right now. A good candidate always runs like they are 10 points down, and there is no reason to panic yet. Among other things, the polls in Florida have blipped up and down more often than most nursing home heart monitors.

But there is no question Sink needs to seize the narrative and remind voters that she is no heir to any political dynasty. Until four years ago, she had never run for office. Four years before than that, her husband Bill McBride was the outsider running for governor, but unfortunately did so at a time when Florida was less receptive to a "throw the bums out message."

As the only Democrat on the Florida Cabinet, and most prominent political leader for a party with virtually so significance in Tallahassee, Sink always has been an outsider. It is true that Washington today is run by Democrats, though it certainly hasn't been true for long. But putting a Democrat in the governor's mansion here for the first time in 12 years would be a much bigger change than Scott could possibly provide.

So how can Scott get away with playing the little guy to Sink's big government insider? He's a gazillionaire with all too much experience turning the wheels of government to his own advantage. He isn't some working class hero. He is Ken Ley with better access to physicians. Enough of this crack.

Sink is the candidate who will shake up the Capital. She is the one who will provide much-needed oversight to a Legislature working under one-party rule, while Scott would conspire for more of the deregulatory, pro-rich anti-government which helped put Florida among the hardest states hit by the recession.

But she has less than a month to make sure voters know that. Better get started.