Florida Governor Rick Scott has become the latest prominent Republican in America to be booed out of a restaurant.
Mr Scott encountered the protesters during a stop at a Cuban restaurant in Venice, Florida, where hundreds of protesters had gathered to voice their anger at the state’s ongoing red tide algae problems. Mr Scott left after about 10 minutes, slipping out through the back of the establishment.
The ongoing algae issues forced Mr Scott — who is running for US Senate against Democrat Senator Bill Nelson — to issue a state of emergency in seven counties along the Florida gulf coast. Those counties stretch from Tampa Bay to the fringe of the Everglades, and Mr Scott’s government has promised $1.5 million in emergency funding to try and fix the issue.
Mr Scott, after being booed out of the restaurant, then was asked by a reporter if he would have done anything differently in his approach to Florida water quality.
He responded: “We did the right thing”.
During his time working as governor, Mr Scott has overseen nearly $700 million in cuts to Florida’s environmental agencies. That includes departments and agencies that oversee algae outbreaks, and are tasked with responding to the incidents.
This year’s algae blooms have already created grotesque scenes along the beaches in the red tide path.
Those include the sights of popular beaches littered with the corpses of dead fish, porpoises, eels, turtles, manatees, and even a 26-foot whale shark.
At the same time, local populations have been feeling the impact as well, with an increase in reports of respiratory illnesses. Generally speaking, hospitals in areas impacted by algae blooms can clock in as much as a 50 per cent increase in hospital visits during the events.
The existence of an energizing issue like algae blooms could play an important role in the upcoming Senate race, where Mr Scot and Mr Nelson are in a statistical dead heat in their quests to represent Florida in Washington.
Mr Nelson he'd a lead until around July, according to averages of polls compiled by Real Clear Politics, but the governor has pulled ahead — and currently leads by roughly 1.6 points.
But Mr Scott's experience in the restaurant is not an isolated incident for Republicans in modern America. Other high level officials have also seen protests while out dining, including White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristjen Nielsen.
