Florida Governor Rick Scott, already extremely unpopular in public opinion polls, with a terrible public reputation, has now worsened his image further by an attempted power grab over the state university system!
A tragic event took place at Florida A & M, a leading historically black university, with great academic results. A student in the marching band for the university was murdered in a hazing incident, and this tragic event was made worse by the intervention of Governor Scott into the situation, attempting to fire the university president over the issue.
This was a shocking intervention, as hazing, as bad as it is, occurs at many universities all over the country, and we don’t see the firing of university or college presidents over that tragic set of events, particularly without an investigation and due process!
Interesting development, which makes one wonder IF this event had occurred at a university such as the University of Florida, Florida State University, University of South Florida, University of Central Florida, or any other branch of the state university system, would Governor Scott have been so quick to intervene, as he does at a black university campus?
This incident can only be seen as racist, and undermines the whole state of Florida and its university system, as the old South seems to be arising again, the era where racism and lynchings occurred regularly!
What Scott attempted to do was a “lynching” of the university President in a different form, and must be condemned as an abuse of power! If there is a problem with any branch of the state university system, there is a Board of Trustees and a whole administrative network that can deal with any issue that arises!
It is NOT the business of the Governor of Florida or ANY state to interfere with educational matters, even those that are legal problems! That is up to the judicial system, not a governor out of control and overly egotistical and narcissistic as Rick Scott is!