Scott to tell Obama to foot the bill for port upgrades

Florida Governor Rick Scott is using President Barack Obama’s visit to the state to deliver a simple message: pay up.

The president will appear at the port of Miami today to discuss infrastructure improvements and the economy, the Miami Herald reported. Scott will be in attendance and told the paper he will use the occasion to ask the president to fund the $188 million overhaul of the port, which was largely funded by the state. Since the improvements should improve international trade with Latin America and Asia and help prepare the port for the expansion of the Panama Canal, Scott thinks the federal government should step in and foot the bill.

“We’re certainly glad President Obama is coming to the port of Miami tomorrow, but he’s late to the party,” Scott told reporters yesterday, per the Herald. He said taxpayers have spend $425 million on port upgrades already and it’s time for the government to kick in some funds.

“We could not wait for the federal government to come to the table with their share,” Scott said, of the choice to proceed with the projects with the state’s funding. [Miami Herald] –Guelda Voien