The riot planners

Greg Sargent reports that Rick Scott, the disgraced hospital executive bankrolling the anti-health reform group Conservatives for Patients’ Rights, is now joining the effort to disrupt health care town halls. The for-profit health industry is contributing a great deal of resources to pressure lawmakers against reform. Last weekend, the health insurance lobby announced that they will be sending staff to “confront” lawmakers at town halls and will be transitioning to negative ads.

FLorida Gov. Rick Scott suggested disgruntled Donald Trump supporters might be justified in rioting if the Republican Party chooses another presidential nominee — but he refused to say whether those upheavals would be violent.

The GOP presidential frontrunner said Wednesday that his supporters could take to the streets if he’s passed over as the nominee at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

“I think we will win before getting to the convention,” Trump told CNN. “But I can tell you, if we didn’t and if we’re 20 votes short or if we’re 100 short and we’re at 1,100 and somebody else is at 500 or 400 because we’re way ahead of everybody, I don’t think you can say that we don’t get it automatically, I think you would have riots. I think you would have riots.”

Scott, who has come out in support of Trump following his win Tuesday in Florida’s primary, appeared Thursday on “Fox and Friends” to discuss his endorsement and the possibility of mob violence.

“Clearly the voters are frustrated with party leaders, they don’t trust party leaders right now, so Trump is either going to end up with a majority or pretty close to it, so if we go to the convention and he doesn’t get the nomination, I think the voters are going to be pretty frustrated, and I think it will impact our ability to win in November,” Scott said.