Governor Rick Scott was sworn in for his second term Tuesday on the old steps of the Florida Capitol in Tallahassee. After the swearing in of the Cabinet members and his Lieutenant Governor, Governor Scott took his oath of office for the second time.
Throughout his Inaugural address, Scott touched on education and the environment. But, at the center of his speech was the cornerstone of both of his gubernatorial campaigns: jobs.
And, he took a playful jab at one of his guests, Texas Governor Rick Perry.
“Today, Texas is our number one competitor for jobs – but we will unseat Texas,” said Scott to a cheering crowd.
“Well, you know Texas needs to be put on notice that we’re coming after them,” said Jesse Panuccio.
Panuccio is Scott's Director for Department of Economic Opportunity—the state’s job agency. He says the Governor’s jobs message has been a success.
“Look, the two states are very similar in terms of their policies, they both have low tax environments and really promote job creation and getting government out of the way so that families and businesses can do what they do best, which is create a robust economy and we want to compete on that stage and we want to be known global and we want to be right up there with Texas. And, competition is a good thing…friendly competition is a good thing. I think we will all rise to the top if we all pursue the same type of agenda,” he added.
While there were many Republicans in the Inaugural Crowd, some Democrats paid their respects as well, including Tallahassee Democratic Representative Alan Williams. He says Democrats hope to sit down with the Governor soon and talk about more job creation in the state.
“We want job creation, just like the Governor wants,” said Williams. “I think that’s a very bipartisan goal to really be the number one job producer because everyone gets jobs. We just want to make sure those jobs are equally distributed throughout our communities that we represent as well. And, so, for the Governor to come out and talk about putting the campaign behind us and starting to govern, we’re with it. As he says, let’s get to work. We’re willing to work together, if he’s ready to work.”
In addition to a prayer breakfast held earlier in the day and a reception the day before, Scott ended the festivities with an Inauguration Celebration Reception at the Governor’s Mansion.
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