Senator Mike Bennett speaks with USF Sarasota-Manatee students

Senator Michael S. "Mike" Bennett and Dr. Peter French

address USF Sarasota-Manatee students

SARASOTA, FL, (December 8, 2005) –  On a cool autumn afternoon late last week, Senator Mike Bennett received a warm welcome from a group of USF Sarasota-Manatee students. Bennett discussed a variety of topics with the students, including his legislative service, civic responsibility, the Terry Schiavo case, oil drilling off the coast of Florida, and managing Florida’s growth.

Moderated by Dr. Peter French, Associate Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs at USF Sarasota-Manatee, the engaging and informal two-hour discussion gave insight into Bennett’s personal history and ideology.

Bennett good humouredly recollected his mischievous youth and ranking in the class of 1962 at Sarasota High School, his naval service that included four tours of duty in Vietnam flying air rescue, and his founding of an electrical contracting company.

Bennett’s legislative service began in 2000 upon his election to the Florida House of Representatives. “It’s an unbelievable learning process. Every 15 minutes, I talk to an expert,” said Bennett.

Bennett is concerned about the reluctance of people to accept civic responsibility as part of being a member of the local community.  To counter this decline, Bennett strongly encouraged his contracting company’s employees to register to vote, an initiative that drew the interest of the ACLU.

Bennett challenged the campus community to get involved by becoming mentors to children and voting. “Your vote does make a difference. Six of the last 11 elections were decided by a vote difference less than your campus student population,” noted Bennett.

Bennett encouraged voters to look past a candidate’s party affiliation and instead assess the candidate by his or her heart and voting record. The District 21 Republican employs this policy personally, noting that he made a contribution to Democratic Senator Les Miller’s campaign because “his heart is right.” Such non-partisan thinking has made the second term senator’s ideology hard to label. “I’m not Republican enough for the Republicans nor Democrat enough for the Democrats,” said Bennett.

The Terry Schiavo case presented a moral dilemma for Bennett. “Do you vote your conscience or the way your constituents want you to vote?,” mused Bennett. In the end, Bennett was one of only nine Republicans to vote against “Terry’s Law,” a vote which compelled the Christian Coalition to put out wanted posters on the nine Republican dissenters.

Bennett is also critical of the federal government’s current and former energy policies. The Transportation Committee member voted against drilling for oil off Florida’s coast because we have not sought alternative energy sources. Bennett suggested that, had President Kennedy implemented an energy program instead of the space program, the U.S. would now be free from dependence on foreign oil.

Students asked the senator about his thoughts on how to offer affordable student housing. The former builder noted that affordable housing can be achieved by inclusionary zoning, repurposing government surplus lands, and statewide growth management.

As French noted, the afternoon offered a thoughtful and lively discussion among its participants. “Where else could you receive such a comprehensive civics lesson from a senator?,” queried French.

USF Sarasota-Manatee is an upper-level campus – serving people with an associate’s or bachelor’s degree seeking a baccalaureate or master’s degree, professional certification, or continuing education credit. The regional campus offers the prestige of a national Research I university with the convenience of a hometown campus, including classes in south Sarasota County at the Manatee Community College Venice site.