Florida Sen. Rick Scott released a GOP 2022 agenda, and Democrats seem quite pleased

If you don't tell voters what you plan to do once they elect you, there are no campaign promises to fulfill and your opponents can't attack you on your agenda during the campaign. That's why Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) long-held philosophy is that silence is the best policy. Asked about the GOP's 2022 midterms agenda in January, McConnell told reporters, "I'll let you know when we take it back."
"McConnell may be irked, then, that a member of his leadership team released an agenda of his own on Tuesday morning," Jim Newell suggests at Slate. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) published his 31-page, 11-point GOP governing blueprint because, he told Politico, it's "important to tell people what we're gonna do."
Scott chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Senate GOP's campaign arm, but he said this is his own plan, not the NRSC's.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Scott's agenda would bar the federal government from asking citizens about their race or ethnicity — even on the Census — or their sexual preference or "gender identity." He would have all school kids learn patriotism and recite the Pledge of Allegiance, ban indoctrinating kids with "political ideology," and eliminate the Department of Education.
"The document is largely a compilation of culture war grievances," Newell writes. "But wedged between the cultural huffing and snorting, there are some policy prescriptions that you might hear about for the rest of the campaign cycle — in attacks from Democrats."
Scott is effectively "rekindling the same issue that led Mitt Romney to stumble into his '47 percent' gaffe," Aaron Blake explains at The Washington Post. Romney was covertly filmed in 2012 telling donors he would tackle the 47 percent of "takers" who don't pay federal income tax, he adds, but in 2020 "that number climbed as high as 61 percent," meaning that by the GOP's own criteria, Scott is proposing to raise taxes on between 75 million and 100 million Americans.
"You begin to see the potential political problem here," Blake writes. "The political ads almost write themselves."
Scott may get points for frankness. But really, "McConnell's strategy of not previewing an agenda is more honest, because the agenda is to deprive Democrats of the ability to do what they want" until at least 2024, Newell argues. "Scott's agenda isn't a preview of what Republican congressional majorities would do after the midterms. It's a preview of the Republican presidential primary."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Judge threatens Trump team with criminal contempt
Speed Read James Boasberg attempts to hold the White House accountable for disregarding court orders over El Salvador deportation flights
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Why the GOP is nervous about Ken Paxton's Senate run
Today's Big Question A MAGA-establishment battle with John Cornyn will be costly
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
13 potential 2028 presidential candidates for both major parties
In Depth A rare open primary for both parties has a large number of people considering a run for president
By David Faris
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador refuses to return US deportee
Speed Read President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador said he would not send back the unlawfully deported Kilmar Ábrego García
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
DOGE: Have we passed 'peak Musk'?
Feature The tech billionaire suffered a costly week after a $25 million election loss in Wisconsin and Tesla's largest sale drop on record
By The Week US
-
Trump says electronics tariff break won't last
Speed Read The tariff exemptions on smartphones, laptops and other electronic devices are temporary, the administration says
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Man charged in arson attack on Pennsylvania's Shapiro
Speed Read Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were sleeping when someone set fire to his Harrisburg mansion
By Peter Weber, The Week US