Florida is sinking along with the Governor Ron DeSantis
Freedom is under assault in Ron DeSantis’s Florida. While Florida sinks under the deluge of drowning rains and dangerous hurricanes, Governor Ron DeSantis is signing draconian laws.
Echo opinion published by the Editorial Board in The Washington Post:
Moreover, in his State of the State address last month, he said: “We find ourselves in Florida on the front lines in the battle for freedom.”
The ongoing 60-day state legislative session in Tallahassee, which Mr. DeSantis is treating as a springboard to announce a presidential bid, shows the hollowness of his rhetoric.
All of this should give pause to those looking to DeSantis as an alternative to the toxicity of Trumpism. Let’s look at some of DeSantis’s efforts to undercut freedom:
Freedom of the press: DeSantis wants to make it easy to successfully sue journalists who quote anonymous sources. The governor has set his sights on overturning a 59-year-old Supreme Court precedent in Times v. Sullivan, which requires plaintiffs suing for defamation to prove an outlet acted with “actual malice” when publishing erroneous information about a public figure. The governor is pushing a bill that would create the presumption under the law that any information attributed to an unnamed source is false.This would have a chilling effect on whistleblowers and make it harder to hold corrupt government officials accountable. It would discourage newspapers, especially those without deep pockets, from tackling tough topics and reporting on litigious people. The measure would encourage venue shopping by trial lawyers whose clients want to harass journalists. It could also expose small newspapers, local TV stations, bloggers, talk-radio hosts, YouTubers and even online commenters to crippling liability. Even DeSantis admirers in right-wing media have mobilized against the measure.
Freedom to choose: Last year, DeSantis signed a ban on abortion after 15 weeks without exceptions for rape or incest. Apparently, that wasn’t extreme enough. He has since signaled support for (and since this was written-he has signed❗) legislation outlawing abortion after six weeks, a gestational point when many women don’t even know they’re pregnant. It passed the Senate. The House is expected to follow soon.
Last summer, Mr. DeSantis removed an elected prosecutor in Tampa, Andrew Warren, who said he wouldn’t enforce the state’s 15-week ban. A federal judge ruled that the governor violated Florida’s constitution and the prosecutor’s First Amendment rights but said he didn’t have the power to reinstall him.
Free enterprise: DeSantis tried to build a better mousetrap. After Disney — the employer of 75,000 Floridians — publicly opposed one of his education policies, the governor retaliated by removing the company’s power to self-govern the land around Walt Disney World in the Orlando area. He dissolved a special tax zone that existed since 1967 and named a new board to oversee the land.
But before DeSantis’s handpicked appointees took over this year, the outgoing board passed a series of covenants to tie their hands. DeSantis ordered an inspector general to investigate the former board, and his attorney general is trying to find ways to invalidate the covenants.
The ongoing 60-day state legislative session in Tallahassee, which Mr. DeSantis is treating as a springboard to announce a presidential bid, shows the hollowness of his rhetoric.
Backed by GOP supermajorities in both chambers, DeSantis is waging frontal assaults on press freedom, reproductive freedom, free enterprise and academic freedom. Meanwhile, in the name of protecting gun rights, he has scaled back commonsense safety rules. And now he’s poised to target undocumented immigrants, including “dreamers," with what will be some of the cruelest policies in America.
Freedom of the press: DeSantis wants to make it easy to successfully sue journalists who quote anonymous sources. The governor has set his sights on overturning a 59-year-old Supreme Court precedent in Times v. Sullivan, which requires plaintiffs suing for defamation to prove an outlet acted with “actual malice” when publishing erroneous information about a public figure. The governor is pushing a bill that would create the presumption under the law that any information attributed to an unnamed source is false.This would have a chilling effect on whistleblowers and make it harder to hold corrupt government officials accountable. It would discourage newspapers, especially those without deep pockets, from tackling tough topics and reporting on litigious people. The measure would encourage venue shopping by trial lawyers whose clients want to harass journalists. It could also expose small newspapers, local TV stations, bloggers, talk-radio hosts, YouTubers and even online commenters to crippling liability. Even DeSantis admirers in right-wing media have mobilized against the measure.
Freedom to choose: Last year, DeSantis signed a ban on abortion after 15 weeks without exceptions for rape or incest. Apparently, that wasn’t extreme enough. He has since signaled support for (and since this was written-he has signed❗) legislation outlawing abortion after six weeks, a gestational point when many women don’t even know they’re pregnant. It passed the Senate. The House is expected to follow soon.
Last summer, Mr. DeSantis removed an elected prosecutor in Tampa, Andrew Warren, who said he wouldn’t enforce the state’s 15-week ban. A federal judge ruled that the governor violated Florida’s constitution and the prosecutor’s First Amendment rights but said he didn’t have the power to reinstall him.
Free enterprise: DeSantis tried to build a better mousetrap. After Disney — the employer of 75,000 Floridians — publicly opposed one of his education policies, the governor retaliated by removing the company’s power to self-govern the land around Walt Disney World in the Orlando area. He dissolved a special tax zone that existed since 1967 and named a new board to oversee the land.
But before DeSantis’s handpicked appointees took over this year, the outgoing board passed a series of covenants to tie their hands. DeSantis ordered an inspector general to investigate the former board, and his attorney general is trying to find ways to invalidate the covenants.
In fact, the governor floated hiking taxes on Disney-owned hotels, imposing tolls on roads into its theme parks and exploring other pressure points. “Ultimately, we’re going to win on every single issue involving Disney,” said DeSantis.
Labels: Esquire, Free Speech, Orlando, The Washington Post, Walt Disney World
posted by Juliana L'Heureux | 4:36 AM
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