Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis proposed on Friday a brand-new program that would allocate $8 million in federal funding to removing illegal immigrants from the Sunshine State.
In a press conference on Friday, DeSantis addressed the catastrophic immigration policies coming from Joe Biden, stating that Americans and Floridians were “dealing with the fallout from the reckless border policies of the Biden administration.”
DeSantis also addressed the aid that Florida gave to Texas this year, in light of the devastating flood of illegal migrants that rushed the southern border throughout the course of 2021, reported by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to be at 1.7 migrant encounters – an all-time record high that is expected to reach 2 million by the end of the year.
“Five months ago I was asked by the Governor of Texas to send some support,” DeSantis stated, “because of what was happening at the southern border…you’re having 200,000 people illegally enter every month. I mean, that’s a medium-sized American city every month coming in illegally. And so, we sent folks and state law enforcement and they were there for…probably about six weeks.”
DeSantis’ new immigration program would divert money accrued from interest on federal funding to transport illegal migrants out of Florida, Fox News reported.
In the press conference, DeSantis also slammed Biden for allowing illegal immigrants to pour into the states, adding that Florida would be fighting the Biden administration’s “ineptitude and inaction.”
He also pointed out the double standard of elitist politicians in Washington who have ignored the crisis at the U.S. border this year, adding, “It’s somewhat tongue in cheek, but it is true, if you sent them [illegal migrants] to Delaware or Martha’s Vineyard or some of these places, that border would be secure the next day.”
The Florida governor’s strong stance on border security, as well as his extremely popular policies that have combated tyrannical and unconstitutional vaccine mandates, have made him a major contender among potential GOP presidential picks, although President Trump is expected to announce a 2024 presidential bid in 2022. However, Trump has hinted at choosing DeSantis as a running mate, remarking in an appearance with former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly that “I think Ron [DeSantis] would be good.”
Regardless of DeSantis’ political future with President Trump, he is hitting all the right notes among Florida Republicans, who now outnumber Democrats for the first time in the state’s history. Concluding his thoughts on the Biden immigration crisis, DeSantis continued, “We have a responsibility to stand up against an administration that has just decided they don’t want a secure border.”