AFN reported Thursday that DeSantis plans to veto a bill passed by the Republican-led state legislature for not going far enough in the fight against illegal immigration.
The new bill – dubbed the "TRUMP Act" – moves state-level immigration enforcement and coordination with federal immigration officials to the office of Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson. That change makes Simpson the state's chief immigration officer, which does not sit well with DeSantis who wants a separate post.
The bill also does not include DeSantis’ request that state law enforcement comply with federal officials or face heavy penalties.
Politically, there can be a difference between a Republican majority and a conservative majority. DeSantis says he sees weakening among Republicans in the state.
“What I've seen out of the leaders so far is that they're moving left and they're trying to more have a more liberal majority than what we've been accustomed to in Florida – and that's not going to fly. Why would you give the Democrats a lifeline? We've rendered them irrelevant in the state,” the governor told American Family Radio show host Jenna Ellis on Thursday.
There’s talk in the Florida Senate that if Republicans don’t have enough votes to override DeSantis’ promised veto, the bill would be watered down further in an effort to bring Democrats on to thwart DeSantis. After a failed GOP nomination run against Trump, the governor is term-limited and has two years remaining.
Florida Sen. Jay Collins told Ellis Friday that the pushback is blowing up against Florida Democrats. “They’re getting absolutely hammered for it. This is hurting them, it truly is. It looks like old school Tallahassee or even old school New York politics. Americans don’t want that,” he said.
Instead, he argued, Americans made clear what they wanted in the Nov. 5 election when they rejected the Democrats’ agenda of radical gender identity and unchecked borders.
“There is a clear push from the American people and from Florida, as there has been for years now to have the best conservative policy. They want a leader who is courageous, willing to do what’s right to solve critical problems, [to put] more money in their pockets, [to have] safe secure borders.”
That’s why the Florida legislature needs to present the strongest possible bill to assist Trump’s deportation plan, Collins added.
Circumventing the process
The legislature’s goal, DeSantis said, is to limit any communication with federal immigration authorities to Simpson, a bottleneck the governor warns would stop enforcement.
In elevating Simpson, the Ag commissioner, to a role as immigration chief would – according to DeSantis – create a conflict of interest between a leader who knows many Florida farms employ illegal immigrants and Trump who is trying to bring order to the chaos left by his predecessor.
That conflict notwithstanding, the bill is bad because it robs the governor of powers expressly intended for him by the state constitution, Collins says.
“Take the person out. Disregard all that. Let’s look exactly at the role [the Ag commissioner] is in: These are express executive powers from our constitution given to the governor of the state of Florida. It’s performative in nature to remove it. There is no basis where that’s correct, and I have no doubt that’s going to have to get fixed for this thing to move forward,” he said.
It’s possible a veto could be overridden in the Florida House but not the Senate, Collins said.
“This thing passed [the Senate] with only 21 votes. It was very close. We’re not going to override this. This thing’s going to have to have more work done to it. It’s going to come back for Round 2 whenever the governor vetoes this,” he said.
Following DeSantis
The secondary political issue in play here, for some, is positioning to become DeSantis’ successor.
“That’s really what a lot of this is about,” Collins offered. “I know many people are eyeballing it – some from Congress I’m told, some here in the state of Florida. We’ll give it a few more weeks for that to flush out, but what we unequivocally know is they’ve got big shoes to fill.”
The state lawmaker contends Florida would be best served by a continuation of conservative leadership.
“The governor is a difference-maker. He’s fearless. You have to follow up with the exact same capability, you have to lean in without fear, and you have to unequivocally do what’s right. We have to have that in the state of Florida.”
On Thursday, DeSantis issued a warning to any potential successor: "If you're not willing to come out now and oppose this swampy piece of legislation, you are not going to get elected governor in this state. I can guarantee it."
