Ron’s report card: DeSantis nears end of Florida legislative session with multiple wins
Emily Jacobs
Video Embed
All eyes are on the Florida state legislature as Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) attempts to get the Republican supermajority behind his remaining agenda items in the final weeks of this legislative session ahead of an anticipated 2024 presidential run.
The Florida governor, who is not expected to make a 2024 announcement before the state’s legislative session ends in May, has used the supermajority he gained through the GOP’s dominant performance in the 2022 midterm elections to push a series of policy priorities through the legislature. There are a number of blue district Republicans in Tallahassee who have voted against DeSantis’s more controversial proposals though nowhere near enough to kill those agenda items.
DESANTIS HEADS OVERSEAS AMID 2024 PRESIDENTIAL SPECULATION
DeSantis has had an objectively successful legislative session despite those defections, with state lawmakers passing a host of bills at his urging that establish a six-week abortion ban, lift the permit requirement for concealed carry, lower the capital punishment standards, and implement universal school choice vouchers, among other things.
Republicans in the state Capitol have also largely stood by DeSantis as he wages his political proxy war against Disney, which houses Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando. The battle between the two, which stems from the “House of Mouse” denouncing DeSantis’s Parental Rights in Education Act last year, led to Disney’s central Florida district being restructured as part of an attempted state takeover of the area. Disney had maintained full autonomy over the district since its creation in 1967.
Disney made a deal with the former Reedy Creek Improvement District board ahead of the restructuring to undercut the state’s takeover, though DeSantis allies in the state legislature are working to pass a bill revoking that agreement.
DeSantis built on the parents’ rights bill this year, pushing the State Board of Education to approve a new rule prohibiting classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity for all grades unless the state curriculum standards expressly require it.
The Florida governor hopes to pass a series of anti-immigration measures in the remaining three weeks of the session, including a provision that would eliminate a series of in-state tuition rates for undocumented college students who attended a Florida high school. It is unclear if those proposals will be able to make it through both chambers.
The fate of another DeSantis-backed bill that would alter the state’s defamation laws, expanding the ability to sue media companies, is also unclear.
The governor has yet to sign an anti-ESG bill that the state legislature sent to his desk this week. ESG investing, or considering environmental, social, or governance factors when making investment decisions, has become a point of political contention in recent years as a result of growing Republican opposition. The Florida bill prohibits state and local governments from using ESG considerations in investment decisions.
DeSantis, the second-highest polling Republican for the party’s 2024 nomination, faces an uphill climb to knock former President Donald Trump from the top spot among Republican primary voters.
He has used the premise of promoting his new book as a reason to visit several early-voting states, a common tactic for presidential hopefuls. The book, The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival, was released in late February.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
His rise to the top of the presidential field has enraged the former president, who has begun publicly lambasting his former ally on several fronts. DeSantis, meanwhile, has refrained from responding to Trump’s new nicknames and attacks on his loyalty, House of Representatives voting record, and overall performance as governor.
He instead reportedly plans to focus his campaign messaging on his most recent legislative wins, avoiding the Trump squabbles if possible.