Spring Hill man for president? He'd pay for healthcare by taxing recreational pot and vaping

SPRING HILL — Jeff Stabins, a local politico with a sometimes eccentric approach to governing, announced on Thursday that he's running to be the next president of the United States.Stabins live-streamed his announcement from the Italian-American Civic Club in his hometown of Watertown, New York, after filing with the Federal Elections Commission on Dec. 21 in Washington, D.C. "I believe that this nation should commit itself, before the decade of the '20s is out, to ensuring the health of every American from cradle to grave and paying for it with a federal consumption tax on recreational marijuana and those newfangled vaping machines,'' Stabins told his audience, asking if any of them had vaped.Stabins would replace the federal income tax with a "fairer and more fun federal lottery," he said.And his thoughts on President Donald Trump?"I run for president, not to oppose one man, but to propose new policies,'' Stabins said Thursday.The Spring Hill Republican served three terms in the Florida House of Representatives and two terms on the Hernando County Commission. He gave two reasons for joining a 2020 presidential race with more than 400 declared candidates, including Trump.The first is "to save the two-party system, because I believe the Republican Party is in grave danger of going out of business," Stabins said. The second came when he was visiting his parents in Watertown last summer."One day my father said to me, 'You're 58, and you need to get a job.''' The former teacher is unemployed.Thursday's was one in a long list of quirky moves by Stabins.As commissioner, he published a blog he said was written by his dog Rusty, mimicking the local political scene. At the Hernando County Fair, he performed the Johnny Cash song I've been Everywhere Man, substituting local place names into the lyrics.Stabins chose not to run for a third commission term in 2012 after he sent an email to fellow commissioners explaining his absence from a meeting that some believed was a suicide note.Stabins has since announced he was running for Congress from a district in New York and running for another term in the state House against Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill. He didn't follow through with either. Previous coverage: Political foe takes aim at State House seat held by Republican Party chief At Thursday's announcement before dozens of family members and friends, Stabins spoke of his allegiance to the Republican Party. But he criticized Republicans, he said, for opposing the League of Nations, promoting prohibition, embracing isolationism and standing against Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.Hernando County Commissioner Jeff Holcomb, newly elected chairman of the local Republican Executive Committee, was unaware of Stabins' plans until informed by the Tampa Bay Times. Stabins does not participate with party leaders in the county, Holcomb said.Stabins said he knows getting elected is unlikely. He plans to stay in the race "as long as I can afford it, because I'm not a wealthy man.''Stabins is limiting campaign donations to $20.20 per individual. Contact Barbara Behrendt at bbehrendt@tampabay.com or (352) 848-1434.

Spring Hill man for president? He'd pay for healthcare by taxing recreational pot and vaping

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