Politics- Sen. Rick Scott downplayed the chances of a new lawsuit against Trump endangering the midterms.
- Scott said kitchen table issues like rising crime and shrinking incomes remain paramount.
Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said most GOP voters are more interested in economic issues than a new civil suit against Donald Trump alleging financial fraud. But some MAGA loyalists, Scott predicted, may be more motivated to march to the polls this fall because of the mushrooming government investigations into the embattled former president.
"Some people are mad over Mar-a-Lago. But I think most of it is going to be about how it impacts your family," Scott said of his read on the current midterms outlook, adding that he expects the November election will turn on concerns about inflation, parental rights in schools, domestic crime, and immigration.
Republicans need to pick up just one seat this November to reclaim control of the 50-50 Senate. And Scott, who is in charge of the Senate's reelection arm this cycle, has made Trump and his ideas integral parts of the 2022 campaign — much to the chagrin of disapproving Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
While noting that he hadn't yet seen it, Scott didn't put much stock in the lawsuit New York Attorney General Letitia James filed against Trump and three of his children on Wednesday.
James accused Trump of fudging financial information to "further enrich himself and cheat the system" and is pushing for $250 million in penalties. That case, or any corresponding criminal offshoot, is likely to take years to play out.
Scott said what matters more to diehard Trump fans is how the former president is being scrutinized by federal investigators right now.
"I think the FBI revved up the base — by doing the raid and not telling anyone why they did it," Scott said.
Trump has fueled the backlash against federal law enforcement by denouncing the various investigations into his political and personal dealings as partisan "witch hunts."