Peak politician: Florida Dems slam 'cruel and inhumane' migrant relocation policy they voted for



As Florida Democrats have attacked Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) for relocating illegal immigrants to Martha' Vineyard, the DeSantis reelection campaign has put them on blast for voting to approve the funding that allowed the governor to do it.

Eleven Democratic members of the state Senate voted in favor of the state's fiscal year 2022-23 budget, which appropriated $12 million to transport illegal immigrants to out-of-state sanctuary city jurisdictions. The funding came from interest earned on COVID-19 relief given to Florida by the Biden administration as part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, DeSantis campaign Rapid Response director Christina Pushaw said and the Washington Post confirmed.

Congress did not pass restrictions on the interest earned from coronavirus relief funds, freeing Florida lawmakers to use that funding however they wished. State senators approved the budget on March 14, 2022, in a vote of 33-0.

\u201c2 things CNN \u201cforgot\u201d to report:\n\n1. The money actually came from the interest our state has collected on BidenBucks. \n\n2. Almost every Democrat in the Florida Legislature voted for it, including those who are having public meltdowns today\u201d
— Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1663294484

Pushaw pointed out that many of the Democrats railing against the governor for sending migrants to Martha's Vineyard had voted in favor of the budget including the relocation program.

\u201cYes, you read that right. \n\nEvery single one of these Democrat legislators voted for exactly what they\u2019re feigning outrage at today.\u201d
— Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1663289421

DeSantis War Room, a Twitter account affiliated with the campaign, retweeted several of the Democratic lawmakers who expressed outrage over what they voted for.

"GOP politicians along with alt-right media outlets are using public money to traffic immigrants. It’s disgusting, un-American and shameful," tweeted Rep. Anna V. Eskamani (D), who voted for the budget. So did state Sen. Annette Taddeo (D), who said it was "cruel and inhumane" for Republicans to allegedly "use [migrants] as political pawns to score cheap points with their Fox News audience and the extreme fringes of their party."

\u201cFlorida Rep. Anna Eskamani voted for the FY 22-23 budget, which included $12 million to transport illegal aliens to sanctuary jurisdictions.\u201d
— DeSantis War Room (@DeSantis War Room) 1663275790

"Ron DeSantis' puzzling decision to spend money from our state budget to send migrants to Martha's Vineyard is lacking in compassion and it may even violate state law," claimed Sen. Laruen Book, who also voted for the budget.

\u201cFlorida Sen. Lauren Book voted for the FY 22-23 state budget, which included $12 million to transport illegal aliens to sanctuary jurisdictions -- like Martha's Vineyard.\u201d
— DeSantis War Room (@DeSantis War Room) 1663282594

Some lawmakers attempted to defend their votes. State Rep. Angie Nixon (D) said that the budget is "complex" and that Democrats "vote in favor of the good aspects of it," presumably holding their nose for the provisions they oppose.

\u201cThe budget is complex. And we don\u2019t want to risk even more harm to our communities because y\u2019all are vindictive so we vote in favor of the the good aspects of it. Don\u2019t get on here with your clown behavior. What y\u2019all did was cruel and inhumane. I hope your boss gets locked up!\u201d
— State Rep. Angie Nixon (@State Rep. Angie Nixon) 1663290481

DeSantis signed Florida's $109.9 billion state budget into law on June 2, 2022. In addition to the $12 million appropriated for the migrant relocation program, the budget included more than $1.24 billion in tax relief, increased funding for K-12 education and teacher salaries, increased pay for law enforcement officers, a 5.38% salary raise for state employees, $2.5 billion to protect Florida's water resources and the environment, and additional funding for health care, economic development, election integrity, and more.

At a press conference Thursday, the governor responded to his critics and slammed the Biden administration for failing to secure the southern border.

\u201cIn Florida, we take what is happening at the southern border seriously.\n \nWe are not a sanctuary state, and we will gladly facilitate the transport of illegal immigrants to sanctuary jurisdictions.\u201d
— Ron DeSantis (@Ron DeSantis) 1663259351

"If you have folks who are inclined to think Florida is a good place, our message to them is we are not a sanctuary state, it's better to be able to go to a sanctuary jurisdiction," DeSantis said. "We will help facilitate that transport for you, so you can go to greener pastures.

"Biden would fly people in the middle of the night, dump them all across this country. There was no warning on any of this," he continued. "And all those people in D.C. and New York were beating their chests when Trump was president saying they were so proud to be sanctuary jurisdictions. Saying how bad it was to have a secure border. The minute even a small fraction of what those border towns deal with everyday is brought to their front door they all [of a] sudden go berserk."

"It just shows you their virtue signaling is a fraud," DeSantis said.

Florida Democrats to stage protest outside of Dave Rubin event with Ron DeSantis



Florida Democrats are planning to protest an event featuring BlazeTV host Dave Rubin of "The Rubin Report" and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday evening in Orlando.

Democratic state lawmaker Rep. Anna Eskamani said Thursday that protesters will "hold the Governor accountable for his extreme agenda" in a tweet sharing details about the demonstration, including a meetup time and place of 6:45 p.m. ET at the public sidewalk outside of the event venue.

\u201cREMINDER: Protesting details from @OrangeDemsFL for DeSantis\u2019s Orlando event taking place TODAY are below. \n\nWhen: Meetup at 6:45pm \nWhere: Public Sidewalk outside The Plaza Live\nWhat: Peacefully protest, hold the Governor accountable for his extreme agenda\n\nMore below \ud83d\udc47\u201d
— Rep. Anna V. Eskamani \ud83d\udd28 (@Rep. Anna V. Eskamani \ud83d\udd28) 1654182856

An event description for the protest on Facebook reads, "Once again Governor Ron DeSantis and his alt-right Bully Brigade are coming to Orlando. And we want to make sure he knows who we are in Orlando and that we oppose his extreme agenda."

"Join us outside The Plaza Live as we let him know: We’re WOKE, We Say Gay, Trans, Bi, Lesbian, and Queer, we believe Black Lives Matter, we support reproductive freedom and a person’s right to have an abortion, we demand sensible gun safety reforms, economic justice, and that he is not welcome in our community," the Orange County (FL) Democrats wrote.

"Bring your best signs and be ready to cause a little good trouble," the group added.

In a statement to TheBlaze, Rubin welcomed peaceful protesters but suggested their time might be better spent listening instead of demonstrating.

“Peacefully protesting is the cornerstone of living in a free society. I welcome protesters to exercise their free-speech rights as long as it doesn’t interfere with the event," Rubin said.

"Perhaps a better use of their time would be to actually attend the event and listen to what we had to say. They’d hear nothing close to hatred or bigotry, but would hear an awful lot about freedom and liberty here in the great state of Florida,” he added.

DeSantis, one of the most conservative Republican governors in the nation, has come under fire from the left for his support of Florida's Parental Rights in Education law. The statute prohibits classroom discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, restricting lessons on those topics to age and developmentally appropriate settings in higher grades.

Critics inaccurately called it the "Don't Say Gay" bill, and the mainstream media adopted that name for it, which led many to mistakenly believe the law sought to make it illegal to recognize the "existence" of LGBT people. This led to accusations that DeSantis is anti-gay, hateful, or otherwise bigoted against LGBT people.

During Thursday's event, the governor will be interviewed by Rubin, host of "The Rubin Report" on BlazeTV, as part of Rubin's book tour for "Don't Burn This Country," a book criticizing "woke" leftwing politics and calling for "Americans to live the freest life possible."

\u201c\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\n\nCatch me and @GovRonDeSantis at The Plaza Live in Orlando on June 2nd.\n\nTickets already going fast. Snag em while you can!\n\nhttps://t.co/ZcKOyUhzpX\n\n\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc0a\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\u201d
— Dave Rubin (@Dave Rubin) 1651508909

Eskamani criticized The Plaza Live for hosting the event last week, complaining that DeSantis is visiting "one of the most #LGBTQ+ friendly parts of Orlando and during Pride Month too."

"Orlandoans deserve better than this culture war B.S.," she wrote on Twitter.

\u201cHi Representative Eskamani, my husband and I would like to invite you to the event as our guest. First row seats, let me know\u2026\u201d
— Dave Rubin (@Dave Rubin) 1653693028

Rubin, a married gay man, responded to Eskamani on Twitter, inviting her to the event as his guest. She replied that she would accept the invitation only if she "can be on stage and debate both you and DeSantis," but Rubin declined her request.

\u201c@ChristinaPushaw @RonDeSantisFL lol how ridiculous @AnnaForFlorida. 1K people bought tickets to see me and the governor. I\u2019m not giving you a second of that time. I invited you to see what freedom, liberty and Florida are truly all about. I\u2019ll gladly debate you at another venue in the future.\u201d
— Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Christina Pushaw \ud83d\udc0a \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1653700376

"I’m not giving you a second of that time," Rubin said. " I invited you to see what freedom, liberty and Florida are truly all about. I’ll gladly debate you at another venue in the future."

Eskamani instead will be protesting outside as Rubin interviews the governor.

Florida Democrats stage protest against GOP redistricting plan, then get steamrolled



Florida Democrats disrupted proceedings during a special session of the state legislature Thursday to protest the new congressional redistricting map drawn by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and being considered by the state House. After a few hours, Republicans then canceled debate and passed the bill over loud objections from the minority party.

A group of black lawmakers staged a sit-in and a pray-in protest in the middle of debate on the map, objecting to how it would reduce the number of Democratic members of Congress and halve the number of majority-black districts in Florida.

According to the Miami Herald, at 11:47 a.m. Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon walked onto the House floor wearing a T-shirt that proclaimed, "Stop the Black Attack" and held a sign in protest. She was joined by other members of the Democratic conference, who started to chant as stunned Republican lawmakers exited the chamber. House Speaker Chris Sprowls (R) then ordered the House into recess.

The protesting Democrats read excerpts of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and sang "We Shall Overcome," demanding that the legislature reject the governor's map.

Florida House Democrats, opposed to the GOP-led Legislature\u2019s rubber stamping of Gov DeSantis congressional map that diminishes a Democratic minority-heavy seat\u2014 stop the session with a sit-in & a prayer-in\n\nGOP lawmakers left the floor. @RepDotieJoseph preachespic.twitter.com/0XKH20EBZv
— Marc Caputo (@Marc Caputo) 1650557084

“Our demands are clear. The legislature needs to draw maps,’’ Nixon said. “The Republicans in leadership need to come to the Democratic leadership, and we’re going to draw some constitutional maps. Those are our demands, and we will not be moved.”

Another Democrat, Rep. Dotie Joseph, made a prayer suggesting that Republicans were in league with Satan to divide Floridians.

“Right now, we've lined up all of the works of the Adversary — all of the works of the Adversary — seeking to divide us, seeking to distract us with a culture war," she said. "We refocused us on your two highest and greatest commandments: that we would love you and that we would love each other, and that people would know you by our works and how we treat one another."

Florida lawmakers have battled with DeSantis over plans to redraw the state's 28 congressional districts before the midterm elections in November. The governor vetoed a map passed by both chambers of the legislature before calling a special session to consider his own map, which he insisted removed certain districts that were "racially gerrymandered." DeSantis' map decreases the number of black districts from four to two and eliminates Florida's 5th Congressional District, which is represented by Rep. Al Lawson, a black Democrat.

At a press conference last week, DeSantis defended getting rid of Lawson's district, saying his map is "race-neutral."

"We are not going to have a 200-mile gerrymander that divvies up people based on the color of their skin. That is wrong," DeSantis said. "That is not the way we've governed in the state of Florida, and so that will be that. And obviously, that will be litigated."

Under DeSantis' proposal, there would be 20 Republican-leaning and eight Democratic-leaning congressional districts, according to the New York Times, which would neutralize the Democratic Party's national redistricting advantage and jeopardize their majority in the House of Representatives this November.

Democrats were understandably furious when the Republican-controlled state Senate passed the DeSantis map 24-15 along party lines Wednesday. They accused Republicans of silencing black voices and of violating the constitution.

At 12:55 p.m., Speaker Sprowls called the House back into session, canceled debate on the redistricting map, and held a vote, according to the Herald.

“It is my belief that no members of this chamber should have the opportunity to shut down our process and shut down a job that members of the public and people of Florida have asked us to do,’’ he said, though his voice was drowned out by shouts from the opposition.

Democrats continued to chant "Stop the black attacks" as the House voted 68-38 in favor of DeSantis' map.

Republicans then passed another bill that stripped the Walt Disney World Resort of its special district, removing the ability of the theme park to essentially run its own government on its property.

The bills now head to DeSantis' desk for his signature.

Poll finds a majority of DEMOCRATIC primary voters support Florida's Parental Rights bill



Even Democrats agree that children in kindergarten through third grade are too young to learn about sexual orientation or gender identity, according to a new poll.

A majority of likely Democratic primary voters in the state of Florida support controversial parental rights legislation that LGBTQ+ activists, the Democratic Party, and the national media have inaccurately called the "Don't Say Gay" bill.

These results come from a poll conducted by Floridians for Economic Advancement, a political action committee that supports candidates from both major parties. The group's survey asked 701 likely Democratic primary voters about language from the Parental Rights in Education bill that was recently passed by the Republican-controlled legislature and is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The survey asked, "Should students in Kindergarten through 3rd Grade be taught about sexual orientation in the classroom by their teachers?"

By a margin of 52-36%, a majority of the most politically active Democrats in Florida said "definitely no" or "somewhat no" in response to that question.

Poll shows FL DEMOCRATIC primary voters support the GOP Legislature\u2019s \u201cParental Rights\u201d/LGBT education bill by 52-36%\n\nFL Capitol Dems opposed it & made it a top messaging priority\n\n(This is unmentioned for some reason in the story I QTd. This poll jibes w/others I\u2019ve seen) https://twitter.com/iapolls2022/status/1506811871411769344\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/bfS9ulp58A
— Marc Caputo (@Marc Caputo) 1648129966

The language used in the survey's question closely resembles the actual language of HB 1557, which says that "classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through third grade or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards."

Florida Democrats and LGBTQ+ activists have waged war on this legislation, making it a top priority in their messaging. They inaccurately characterized it as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, a name adopted by local and national media, a name that falsely suggested that Republicans were attempting to make it illegal to talk about gay people in school.

The DeSantis administration has vigorously defended the bill, accusing Democrats and the media of waging a disinformation campaign against it.

The MAJORITY of Democratic primary voters (politically active Democrats) in Florida SUPPORT the Parental Rights in Education bill, despite the weeks-long legacy media disinformation campaign. \n\nThis should be a MUCH bigger story.
— Christina Pushaw \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Christina Pushaw \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1648132443

“Most Floridians, no matter their orientation, agree that instruction on sexuality and gender theory is inappropriate in grades K-3,” said DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw, after the Daily Wire published the results of another poll that found bipartisan support for the Parental Rights bill.

NBC News reporter Marc Caputo, who shared the Floridians for Economic Advancement on Twitter, recently criticized the news media for inaccurately covering HB 1557.

“While legislative intent does matter, what does also matter, when you challenge legislation, is you first have to look at the four corners of the document, and see what it actually says,” Caputo told WFLA-TV in an interview Sunday.

“The bill does not say, ‘don’t say gay,'” he said. “It says, don’t teach about these issues, in general. So, you know, the reality is, ‘don’t say gay’ is technically not an accurate description.”

“We made a big deal during Trump years, and rightfully so, and critics did, that the news media needs to start calling lies lies, and be very clear if something was baseless, was without fact, was supported or not supported by evidence or without evidence, and if something was false, we’d say he falsely stated it,” Caputo continued.

“Well, to say this actually says ‘don’t say gay’ is false,” the NBC reporter asserted.

“For us to say, ‘oh, the “don’t say gay” bill,’ that would be a similar thing — similar, not exactly the same — of us during Obamacare saying, ‘Oh, well the Obamacare bill is the “death panel bill,” because that’s what the opponents call it.’ Well, it wasn’t the ‘death panel bill,'” Caputo said.

'Wannabe dictator': Dems aghast after Gov. Ron DeSantis proposes Florida State Guard, even though 22 other states already have such forces



Democratic politicians in Florida are decrying Republican Gov. Ron Desantis' recent proposal for a state guard force as something of a dictatorial power-grab, despite the fact that 22 other states currently operate one.

What are the details?

During a military budget announcement on Thursday, DeSantis proposed allocating $3.5 million in state funds toward re-establishing the Florida State Guard, a volunteer civilian force originally launched during World War II but disbanded in 1947, that would be under his control.

Standing behind a placard that read "Florida State Guard" followed by the motto "Let Us Alone," the governor explained that the funding would go toward training, equipment, and support for up to 200 volunteer guardsmen.

BREAKING: @GovRonDeSantis to recommend Re-Establishing the Florida State Guardpic.twitter.com/UMghfk7Gas
— Benny (@Benny) 1638462557

DeSantis noted that the volunteer service would primarily support the state's National Guard in emergency response efforts following hurricanes, natural disasters, and other state emergencies.

But in a passing shot at President Biden, he added that the force would "not be encumbered by the federal government" and would allow him "the flexibility and the ability needed to respond to events in our state in the most effective way possible," Axios reported.

The outlet noted that state law permits DeSantis to deploy a force "to assist the civil authorities in maintaining law and order," including during protests.

In a press release, DeSantis' office noted that if successful, Florida would become the 23rd state in the country to have a state guard recognized by the federal government.

What else?

Political opponents of DeSantis, however, quickly took to social media to slam the move without any mention of the federal government's long history of embracing and recognizing state guard forces.

DeSantis' gubernatorial challenger, Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.) tweeted that "no governor should have his own handpicked secret police."

No Governor should have his own handpicked secret police.https://twitter.com/byJasonDelgado/status/1466440915292233730\u00a0\u2026
— Charlie Crist (@Charlie Crist) 1638464416

Democratic state Sen. Annette Taddeo, who also happens to be running for governor, piled on, claiming that DeSantis is a "wannabe dictator trying to make his move for his own vigilante militia like we've seen in Cuba."

Wannabe dictator trying to make his move for his own vigilante militia like we\u2019ve seen in Cuba. Florida is not and will never be Ronnie\u2019s regime.https://twitter.com/byJasonDelgado/status/1466440915292233730\u00a0\u2026
— Annette Taddeo (She/Her/Ella) (@Annette Taddeo (She/Her/Ella)) 1638466092

CNN contributor Dean Obeidallah tweeted, "Wake up America: GOP Gov. 'DeSantis proposes civilian Florida State Guard military force HE would control.' This is a new 'Red Army.' The GOP wants to be ready for the next Jan 6 with an army!!"

‘He’s Forfeiting Responsibility’: Florida Democrats Criticize DeSantis For Not Setting Special Election Date

'He's forfeiting responsibility and denying representation'

Florida Dems are angry at Biden campaign over pandemic restrictions on canvassing, and the GOP is closing the voter registration gap



Democratic Party members in Florida are grumbling over restrictions on door-to-door canvassing that have been instituted due to the coronavirus pandemic, and that Republican efforts are closing the gap in the key swing state.

Disgruntled Democrats told Politico that they're losing the battle because of the Biden campaign's insistence on restricting personal interactions.

"It's late in the game now," said state Sen. Jason Pizzo, a Democrat from Miami.

"There's been no pushback from us, meaning that for every 100 doors that Republicans have proverbially knocked on, it's not like they pissed people off to the point where they've run to the Democratic Party because they're pissed at the GOP," he explained. "It's shown to be effective."

"Democrats aren't meeting people at their doors"

Republican efforts have whittled away the traditional voter registration lead held by Democrats to just 185,000, or 1.3%, according to the latest data from the Florida Division of Elections.

Florida Trump campaign director Susie Wiles told Politico that going to door-to-door when Democrats couldn't has given them the chance to reduce the Democrats'` advantage.

"We've turned our focus to voter registration in a more meaningful way than before. Everyone said you can't do it — get the gap between Republicans and Democrats to such a small number. Well, you can do it," said Wiles.

"We did it through the mail, but the main way we had success was at the doors," she added. "And because the Democrats aren't meeting people at their doors like our campaign is doing, we are having great success."

Record numbers of new voters

The Republicans were able to add 58,000 new voters for the month of August, a record number. By comparison, that figure is a whopping 91% greater than the same figure in 2016 for the Republicans.

That slim margin between Republican and Florida voters is very important. In 2016 Trump won the state with only 1% more of the votes. At the time, Democrats had an advantage of 327,000 voters over the Republicans. Unless voter patterns have changed drastically, the stats point to a Trump victory in the key state.

Here's a video explaining why Florida is a key swing state:

Why is Florida important to 2020 election? Historically, presidents don't win without the Sunshi...www.youtube.com