Floridians who will be engaged in deciding who should succeed Bill McCollum as Attorney General will have two stark choices in November, particularly on what do about one of the single biggest pieces of domestic legislation ever – the health care reform act that was passed earlier this year.
McCollum has led the way in fighting the law nationally, arguing (critics say grandstanding) about whether the federal government can require individuals to purchase health care insurance and fine those who don't.
Republican AG candidate Pam Bondi's assertion that she would follow up on McCollum's lawsuit was front and center of her successful primary campaign, while Democrat Dan Gelber passionately argued on the stump that he would not continue to spend resources on the case.
But it will be interesting to observe how much health care comes up in the gubernatorial race between Republican Rick Scott and Democrat Alex Sink. Sink has already said that she will not ignore Scott's issues with Columbia/HCA – nor should she – but one would hope that doesn't put it to top of her campaign agenda like McCollum did, since the majority of Republicans certainly weren't convinced that was a good enough reason not to vote for him.
But what about the so-called government run "public option" that was the center of so much of the heated rhetoric on health care in 2009? In his speeches, Scott boasted about his work with the group he created to fight the health care bill, Conservatives for Patients Rights, and how they were able to help kill the public-option from being part of the final legislation. Scott takes pride that he was criticized individually by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs for his efforts.
And Alex Sink? Well, as the St. Pete Times editorial page described it today, her stance on on the federal health care bill was "tacit approval." And we all remember Sink's position on the public option, right? Well, no actually we don't, because she never took one.
Let's face it, that was perhaps the worst moment that Sink has had in the public eye since she was a known candidate for Governor. But with the health care bill (and President Obama) upside down when it comes to public polling, will she want to change the subject when it comes to one of the most important public policy issues going, which is health care?
We look look forward to seeing how this plays out.
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2010.