According to a new report from The American Independent, Florida governor Ron DeSantis has “used his power to veto $12 million in grants for local law enforcement” and “the state budget for public safety and corrections actually decreased, when adjusted for inflation” — despite the Republican presidential candidate pro-law enforcement messaging on the campaign trail.
By Josh Israel | June 12, 2023
Key Points:
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“Ron DeSantis is touting his law-and-order bona fides as he runs for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. But his record as governor of Florida does not match his rhetoric.”
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“DeSantis, who kicked off his campaign on May 24, warns on his website, ‘Our cities are being hollowed out by spiking crime — the result of weak, ideologically-driven policies.’ Borrowing a phrase from President Warren Harding’s 1920 campaign, he promises to ‘return normalcy to our communities.’”
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“On his campaign website and on social media, DeSantis claims to support law enforcement.”
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“After signing a bill in April 2021 aimed at combating public disorder, he tweeted, ‘HB 1 protects Floridians against attempts by local govts to defund law enforcement, provides the means to hold local govt. accountable for failing to protect people & property from rioting, & enacts strong penalties against those engaged in rioting, looting & violent assemblies.’”
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“But after he became governor in 2019 with full Republican control of the state Legislature, the state budget for public safety and corrections actually decreased, when adjusted for inflation.”
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“In the budget year 2019-2020, the state of Florida spent $4.86 billion on those programs; in 2022-2023, the amount of funding is $5.39 billion. To keep pace with inflation between 2019 and 2022, it would have needed to spend $5.56 billion on corrections and public safety.”
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“After the Legislature approved its spending legislation, DeSantis used his power to veto $12 million in grants for local law enforcement.”
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“The vetoed line items included $4.8 million for the Pinellas County sheriff’s driver pursuit training facility, $3.5 million for a new police stationfor South Miami, and $750,000 for the Broward County sheriff’s office to reduce its crime backlog and expand its real-time crime center.”
Read the full report here.
Published: Jun 13, 2023 | Last Modified: Jun 14, 2023