Rick Scott targets Florida Democrats over ‘silence’ on $33 trillion national debt

TAMPA, Fla. – Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott’s 2024 reelection campaign scathed Florida Democrats for being “silent” on the U.S. national debt reaching $33 trillion this week.

“How much debt do we have to owe before Democrats stop spending Americans’ tax dollars so recklessly? $40 trillion? $50 trillion?” Scott’s campaign said in a press release.

The senator’s campaign warned that Florida must not send “any of the Failed Florida Democrats” to the Senate in his place.

“The last thing Floridians need in Washington is a rubber stamp for Biden and Schumer’s tax-and-spend agenda that’s leaving Americans in crippling debt,” the campaign said.

Former Florida Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell is running for Scott’s seat as a Democrat.

Mucarsel-Powell is a former one-term congresswoman from Florida’s 26th Congressional District in 2020.

“As Governor of Florida, he balanced Florida’s budget and cut taxes,” Scott campaign press secretary Jonathan Turcotte said. “In Washington, he’s fighting to shrink the federal government’s massive budget while trying to make it harder for politicians to raise taxes and fees on Americans.”

“Meanwhile, Florida’s Failed Democrats are silent as Joe Biden and Chuck Schumer plunge our country deeper and deeper into debt,” he said.

Scott announced his 2024 reelection bid earlier this year while Mucarsel-Powell jumped into the race over the summer.

Mucarsel-Powell made headlines during Hurricane Idalia when a fundraising email was sent out to Floridians as they prepared for the major storm.

The message was sent around three hours after Hurricane Idalia made landfall as a Category 3 storm. Idalia packed maximum sustained winds of 125 mph just before its landfall on Florida’s coast.

“I’ve set an ambitious goal to raise $50,000 by midnight to defeat Rick Scott, and I need your help to reach it,” the email said.