Gov. Rick Scott is not a professional politician, so the idea of horse-trading with state legislators is awkward for him, especially when it involves groveling for votes from fellow Republicans.

So Scott hired a skilled horse-trader, Steve MacNamara, as his chief of staff. But when MacNamara tried a game of give-and-take with the Senate on prison privatization, it failed miserably with the dean of the Legislature, Republican Sen. Dennis Jones of Seminole. The result left MacNamara angry at Jones, a politician he has known for decades.

"Apparently it's a one-way street. I was disappointed," MacNamara says. "Horse-trading is part of the process. He was not willing to listen and not willing to trade."

Column here.