McCollum for governor in GOP primary

Rick Scott stresses government should operate more like a business, and voters should take that advice to heart in making their choice in the Republican primary for governor.

No company would hire an executive who had no knowledge of that enterprise, had a suspicious background and was elusive or confounded when pressed on the key decisions facing the company.

Voters should similarly recognize Scott doesn't have the credentials or the credibility to be entrusted with Florida's welfare.

In contrast, Attorney General Bill McCollum has proved himself to be an informed, trustworthy and committed leader. He can be counted on to execute his conservative agenda thoughtfully.

The winner of the primary will face Democrat Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink in November. Bud Chiles, son of former Gov. Lawton Chiles, is running with no party affiliation.

Scott may be a success at business and he's great at making commercials, but McCollum knows how to get things done in government. And make no mistake - executing change is no easy task in a state in which the governor's authority is limited and actions are rightly subjected to intense public scrutiny.

Scott, who has avoided media interviews and has been secretive about his checkered career, would not be able to carefully control events as he has during the campaign.

McCollum lacks Scott's charisma and wealth - the health-care executive has already spent more than $22 million of his own money on his campaign. But the former congressman does have a history of effective service and personal integrity.

He is an admitted "policy wonk" who can speak knowledgeably about key issues, from Medicaid fraud to teacher training, while Scott has been stumped by questions about such issues, including the state's growth management laws, which prevent poorly planned development from creating huge costs for taxpayers.

McCollum had the insight and independence to understand the dangers of near-shore drilling even as other members of his party, including Scott, recklessly embraced it.

Scott's "Let's Get to Work" campaign has been based on his effective, if vague, TV commercials that underscore his outsider status. The message plays well during a year when many are fed up with the status quo.

But there is no reason for Republicans to be fed up with McCollum. He has been an able attorney general who initiated programs against gangs and Internet predators. He is leading the attempt to have President Obama's health care law declared unconstitutional.

Voters can evaluate what McCollum has done, while Scott essentially says, "Trust me."

Floridians have no reason to do so.

The federal government found Scott's health care company systematically defrauded taxpayers. Among other schemes, it billed for lab tests that were not needed, added diagnosis codes to patients' records to increase hospital reimbursements and even claimed marketing and advertising costs as community education so it could be reimbursed by taxpayers.

The fraud led to Columbia/HCA paying a record-setting $1.7 billion in fines.

Scott, who left the company in 1997 as the investigation became public, artfully says he accepts responsibility but denies knowing about the offenses.

But Scott, known in the business world for being shrewd and ruthless, can't have it both ways.

If he was not involved in the scam, he was clueless, which does not suggest he will tend to the details of managing the state.

Scott has already demonstrated an unsteady grasp of the state's finances. He proposes cutting $1 billion from a Corrections Department budget that is now only $2.4 billion. That kind of savings won't be achieved unless prisoners are released in mass.

Yes, privatization can often reduce costs - but not by half. Moreover, if care is not taken, privatization can increase costs and encourage fraud. When the state moved too fast in outsourcing services for state prisons a few years ago, abuses occurred that led to the prosecution of more than 20 employees.

McCollum is no less committed to private sector solutions but understands care must be taken whenever tax dollars are spent. He knows that public safety should not be compromised in a mad scramble to dismantle government.

While Scott is making grandiose promises, McCollum offers a realistic plan to cut taxes, create jobs and improve the state's economic prospects.

We may quibble with provisions - particularly mandating controls on local budgets - but it offers a sensible blueprint, including cutting the corporate income tax, improving transportation links among the state's ports and curtailing trivial lawsuits that drive up costs for small business.

Voters should see that McCollum has, by far, the superior background and character for the job.

In the GOP primary for governor, the Tribune endorses Bill McCollum.