Ahead of what's looking more and more like a U.S. Senate run for Florida Governor Rick Scott in 2018, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has launched a fierce, well-funded effort to highlight Scott's support of unpopular policies as well as his tendency to...be Rick Scott.
Its latest effort?
A six-figure Google Ads campaign to highlight his support of the deeply unpopular Trump-Ryan healthcare plan.
Floridians who use search terms such as "Rick Scott health care" will see a sponsored link at the top of the list of otherwise organic search results. Those who click on the link will be sent to a page featuring video of Scott talking about his support for the policy, an unlikeable bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Republicans failed to reach consensus on it and polls show the plan, which Trump may seek to rekindle when it's convenient, as incredibly unpopular on the left and the right — a rare thing at a time most people are so blindly polarized they'd rather blame some grand lizard people conspiracy than admit they're wrong.
By voicing his support for the Trump-Ryan plan, the DSCC reasons, Scott is saying he's cool with millions going uninsured, skyrocketing premiums for seniors and letting insurance companies deny coverage to women who are fucking pregnant — all likely outcomes of the bill.
“There is nowhere Gov. Scott can travel across the state to escape his support for a toxic Plan that makes older Floridians pay five times more for care, strips coverage from millions and raises costs for middle class families — all to give another tax break to big insurance companies,” said DSCC spokesman David Bergstein in a written statement. “The GOP’s Plan jeopardizes coverage for pre-existing conditions and makes working people pay more for less — and there will be nowhere Scott can hide from his support for this reckless agenda. If Scott decides he actually wants to run for anything besides dog-catcher after his Party’s humiliating healthcare defeat he’ll see these clips again.”
You might ask why the DSCC would spend all that money on links nobody clicks on.
After all, most people under 70 know that clicking on Google Ads is basically asking the programmatic advertising gods to make sure ads for whatever it is you clicked on are visible to you in every moment of your waking life.
But olds are the ones the DSCC probably want to target with these ads anyway.
There's the ones who actually vote in midterm elections, and even if they tend to be more conservative than most of us, they do vote for Democrats once in a while — especially incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, who Scott will probably try to unseat in 2018.
While polls have suggested Nelson would have a relatively easy time defending his seat, Scott's approval rating is somehow slightly higher than Nelson's, according to some surveys. Plus, the amount of GOP money that is going to pour into the race will be obnoxious, so it's no wonder the Dems are coming out swinging well before Scott has even announced any plans to run.
