Sink & Scott Conduct Final Gubernatorial Debate

TAMPA, Fla (CBS4) - Florida gubernatorial candidates Rick Scott and Alex Sink met for the final time Monday night in a debate at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Both candidates are essentially tied in most polls and they spent the better part of the debate echoing their television ads.

Sink came out more aggressive and apparently someone in her campaign read CBS4's Jim DeFede's last column by attacking Scott saying it was his party that has been in control of Tallahassee, not the Democrats.

"You have spent this campaign, ever since the beginning, making up numbers, just like you made up Medicare fraud in your company," Sink said.

Scott immediately came back at Sink saying, "You want to talk about fraud? Let's talk about your job at Nation's Bank, your tellers were paid kickbacks."

Sink offered a simple retort, "You can't lecture me about fraud."

Scott, the 57-year-old Republican nominee, blasted Sink as a "Tallahassee insider" and repeatedly tried to link her to the policies of President Barack Obama.

"She's going to increase spending," Scott said. "That's Obama math."

Scott fought back against Sink's charges about his time at Columbia/HCA, saying he was proud of building a company that employed thousands and lowered health care costs.

"He says how proud he is of the company he built," Sink said. "He didn't build a company, he was a corporate raider and he left as disgraced chief executive officer."

Both criticized the administration of Gov. Charlie Crist for not doing enough to create new jobs during the past four years. Crist, once a Republican, is now running for the U.S. Senate as an independent.

Neither candidate apparently knew the state's minimum wage, which is $7.25 an hour. When asked directly, Scott said it was $7.55. Sink, asked if that was correct, agreed.

Seth McKee, a political science professor at the University of South Florida, said neither candidate looked comfortable or polished in front of the cameras. Scott, he said, was "extremely evasive," and Sink "didn't really deliver" when attempting to explain her economic plan.

"They don't like each other," McKee said. "It's tough to say that anyone won."

The debate was sponsored by CNN, the University of South Florida and the St. Petersburg Times.