Richard Lynn 'Rick' Scott (born December 1, 1952, in Bloomington, Illinois) is an American attorney, businessman, politician, and Navy veteran who currently serves as the U.S. Senator from Florida. He grew up in a working-class family with a truck driver father, moving frequently during childhood through Missouri and Kansas. After serving in the U.S. Navy from 1970 to 1974 during the Vietnam War era, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Missouri (1974) and a Juris Doctor from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law (1977). Scott practiced law in Texas before co-founding Columbia Hospital Corporation in 1987, which grew into Columbia/HCA, the largest for-profit healthcare corporation in the U.S. He served as CEO until 1997, when he resigned amid a major Medicare fraud scandal; the company later pleaded guilty and paid a record $1.7 billion fine in 2003, though Scott was not personally charged. Transitioning to politics as a Republican, Scott was elected the 45th Governor of Florida in 2010, serving two terms from 2011 to 2019, focusing on economic development, job creation, and tax cuts while facing criticism for environmental policies and disaster responses. In 2018, he won election to the U.S. Senate, defeating incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson, and assumed office in 2019, becoming Florida's senior senator in 2021. As a senator, he has been a vocal supporter of pro-Israel causes, aligning with Republican foreign policy hawks, and chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee. His legislative priorities reflect his business background in healthcare, including efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and promote market-based reforms, while emphasizing fiscal conservatism, opposition to socialism, and strong national security.