Gov. Scott’s Approval Rating Slips

April 6, 2011

With nearly half of respondents saying budget cuts sought by the governor go too far, Gov. Rick Scott’s disapproval rating among Florida voters has ballooned, a new poll released this morning has found.

The number of voters who say they disapprove of the job Scott is doing three months into his term has doubled, the Quinnipiac University poll showed, although those who have said they approve generally still do.

More than half of respondents also said state budget cutting proposals are unfair to them.

“While his approval rating is unchanged, Gov. Rick Scott’s disapproval rating has jumped from 22 percent to 48 percent, perhaps not surprising given the magnitude of the changes he is proposing,” Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a statement accompanying the poll. “Today, Scott is a four-letter word to many Florida voters, but political popularity can change with time. The experience of Scott’s predecessor, Charlie Crist, who had 70 percent approval ratings at this point in his tenure, shows how fickle public opinion can be.”

There were two good things for Scott about the poll. It found that 65 percent of respondents agree with Scott that the state shouldn’t raise taxes but balance the budget only through spending cuts. And nearly 8 in 10 voters say Scott’s order that newly-hired state government workers undergo drug testing and that those already on the job be spot-checked is a good idea. The state may be less anti-union than some think, though, the poll found.

A proposal in the Legislature that would prohibit government offices from allowing automatic union dues paycheck deductions is a bad idea according to 47 percent of respondents, while 43 percent say it’s a good idea. Three out of four, however, say the unions should have to get members’ approval before the dues can be used for political purposes.

The poll also asked about the teacher merit pay bill Scott signed into law.Voters disapprove 57-39 percent of linking teachers’ pay to students’ performance, but are evenly split on ending teacher tenure, the poll found.

Comments

11 Responses to “Gov. Scott’s Approval Rating Slips”

  1. Klondike Kid on April 8th, 2011 4:41 pm

    I am concerned that this guy will wreck a lot of things before we can get him out of office. It is one thing to reduce expenditures and balance budgets but another to go at it like a bull in a china shop, with no thought of long term effects. He has a penchant for importing people from other areas, like the Indiana prison guy who wrecked the prison system there. I wonder if Florida has a mechanism in place for a recall election, like California did a few years ago with Gray Davis when he was a short term governor there.

  2. Kay on April 8th, 2011 1:08 pm

    I agree Art but how you going to stop the ………politicians and the spending?

  3. art on April 7th, 2011 4:25 pm

    kay,

    he is just another……politician. besides that, he is a man, an imperfect human, just like the rest of us. looking to these politicians as if they are rock stars is nuts. we, the people, collectively as neighbors and friends and business associates, it is up to us to change and shape our future and our grandchildren’s futures. we cannot afford to look to these people any longer as if they all hold some kind of magic power to change our destiny. that is horse hockey. we have to look to our own selves for these answers. not some imperfect man.

  4. Kay on April 7th, 2011 12:15 pm

    Art I’m with you buddy. I have even thought about the fact this guy when he
    opened his first business brought in his mother to work for him. His
    mother thinks it was so nice of him. HA! who would have your back at
    your business when you were away like your mother? HA! Who would
    work harder for less money like your mother? That was the smartest thing
    I ever heard. If his mother liked it, Good for her. If she could use the money,
    good for her. I still think old scott was looking out for #1.

    I still feel he is just another ………!

  5. art on April 7th, 2011 5:36 am

    he wants to privatize everything, fine…he wants to make cuts, fine……he wants to drug test state employees and make them pay for it, fine…….but let’s not fool ourselves into thinking he has “the courage to do the right thing” and he somehow has florida’s best interests at heart. his plans are a major boon not for the hard working folks like you and me….for crying out loud, they benefit his cronies and his own health care company!!! that’s why he spent so much money getting elected. it was his own private business plan. this is a classic example of robbing the poor to make the rich richer…just disgusts me. not surprised, not shocked, politics as usual.

  6. huh on April 7th, 2011 1:45 am

    Florida is getting what they voted for, enjoy your job cut backs and new taxes for online shopping, and a huge loss of high speed rail jobs.

    Please dont complain about the deficit, Under Bush it was Republican controlled and the out of control spending was never brought up, the trillion dollar war was not a problem. So no need to complain now

  7. molino jim on April 6th, 2011 9:24 pm

    THE BAD PART IS AS SEVERAL PEOPLE HAVE SAID—HE IS DOING WHAT HE SAID HE WAS GOING TO DO. “TEA PARTY”, HOPE YOU ARE HAPPY WITH HIM—GOP VOTERS, HOPE YOU ARE HAPPY WITH HIM, AND ON AND ON. THE ONLY HOPE IS THE LEGISLATORS CAN REPLACE SOME OF THE FUNDS. ONE OF HIS OTHER BIG KICKS IS THE STATE RETIREMENT—MOST OF US PAID INTO IT AND IT IS NOT A HAND OUT FROM THE STATE AS MANY HAVE BEEN LED TO BELIEVE. I WONDER IF SOME ONE ASKS HIM A QUESTION NOW IF HE STILL TAKES THE 5th.

  8. eab on April 6th, 2011 7:34 pm

    Cheated Tax Payer said “Wow, what a great humanitarian Rick Scott is! He spent 70 million to get elected and just cut the budget for the Association for Retarded Citizens by 500,000 dollars.”

    I said…Actually, I read it was 740,000 dollars. Veteran’s homes are on the list to be whacked as well. I guess it’s like The Nameless One said,” I am glad that Gov. Scott has the courage to do the right thing and not be ruled by the polls.”

    Yeah, right.

  9. Cheated Tax Payer on April 6th, 2011 7:03 pm

    Wow, what a great humanitarian Rick Scott is! He spent 70 million to get elected and just cut the budget for the Association for Retarded Citizens by 500,000 dollars.

  10. Name (required) on April 6th, 2011 2:21 pm

    I am glad that Gov. Scott has the courage to do the right thing and not be ruled by the polls. If only the president would do the same thing instead of fighting making the tough choices.

    It is not popular to do the right thing, but it is absolutely necessary. Spending money we do not have can not go on forever…

    The media is doing a great job of hyping up the pain involved in the cuts… but says little of the reality that we simply can not afford to continue to spend money like we have.

    Many of the popular programs being cut could be funded if not for obligations made for political gain…

  11. Budget Bill on April 6th, 2011 2:10 pm

    It is never very popular to cut money and programs,but states can’t print money like the Fed. does. Most everyone realizes that the state has to cut back, but no one wants any program cut back that effects them.

    As for holding teachers accountable for their students performance, this is a joke ,the teachers hands are tied behind their backs when it comes to discipline.
    There are untold regulations and rules mandated by both the state and federal government that prohibit any “harsh disclipine” ,little Jr. knows that the teacher and administration can’t do anything for his inapropriate behavior. When a student does not care about learning they can inhibit the learning process for the rest of the class.
    Now the state is going back to inclusion, where students with learning disabilities are to be mixed with regular Ed studentes, this will be unfair to both the ESE and regular Ed students. If this is supposed to make education better, then why do we have advanced classes and IBF programs, why not put them in with the regular classes, for there is a far bigger gap between ESE and regular Ed than there is between regular Ed and the advanced students.
    The idea that all students must meet certain achievement levels is like saying that every student will run the 100 meter dash under a given time,some will be able to, but some will never be able to with any amount of conditioning.
    Not every student needs to learn algebra, some need to be preparing for jobs where they cam earn a living. It has been reported that the George Stone Training Center has several students enrolled that have college degrees, but now they are learning marketable skills that will enable them to get jobs.
    Some trades and jobs will never be out sourced to the Pacific rim, and many of these jobs and skills can be learned by our “slow learners” who oftern have more common sense and hands on skills than our little “regular Ed darlings”