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Scott Set To Sign New Budget

MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – Florida Governor Rick Scott is set to sign the new Florida budget Thursday afternoon in the Villages. While Scott is touting it as a jobs budget, the public is not buying what he's selling.

Scott is appearing in The Villages, which has traditionally been very friendly to the Governor. But as a new Quinnipiac poll reported earlier, the areas where Scott is popular are few and far between.

In Governor Scott's announcement on the budget signing, he said he was "delivering on his promise to lower taxes, grow private-sector jobs and hold government accountable."

The key point there was private-sector jobs. Scott and leading Republicans are more than willing to sacrifice public sector jobs to achieve their goals, even if it means higher unemployment overall in the state of Florida.

Poll results show that a majority of voters disapprove of the new state budget that will cut billions from education and other social service areas. The budget had a plurality of support from Republicans, but that was the only group polled that signaled support for the budget.

And more troubling for Scott and the GOP, 54 percent of those surveyed said the new state budget is unfair to people like them. This included 68 percent of Democrats, 38 percent of Republicans, and 52 percent of independents.

Forty-seven percent of Floridians said the state budget cuts go too far. This is especially true in South Florida where 52 percent said the budget cuts go too far.

In addition, 69 percent of voters said the new spending cuts touted by the GOP and the tea party will hurt or make no difference in the state's economy.

So while Scott is touting his new budget as a victory for himself, voters aren't buying it and are having serious buyer's remorse about having Rick Scott as their governor.

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