1 year ago
124
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has officially entered the Republican Primary for the 2024 Presidential Election. The Republican politician filed paperwork to officially state his candidacy connected Wednesday, May 24, per Politico. He’s expected to marque a ceremonial announcement during a speech with Twitter CEO Elon Musk on the societal media platform’s Spaces diagnostic connected Wednesday evening.
DeSantis volition look disconnected against the different Republican nominees, including erstwhile President Donald Trump. DeSantis has served arsenic the politician of the Sunshine State since January 2019. Prior to that, helium represented Florida’s 6th territory successful the House of Representatives from 2013 to 2018. After his clip arsenic 1 of the members of Congress, helium ran successful the gubernatorial predetermination and won. As the Governor of Florida, DeSantis has been liable for immoderate precise arguable policies, and he’s faced overmuch scrutiny up of his statesmanlike campaign. As DeSantis formally steps into the ring, find retired much astir immoderate of his astir arguable stances implicit the years.
DeSantis officially made his bid for the 2024 statesmanlike election. (Michele Eve Sandberg/Shutterstock)
DeSantis’ Stance On Abortion: The 6-Week Ban
One of DeSantis’ astir caller arguable moves arsenic politician has been to enact a six-week termination prohibition successful Florida. He signed disconnected connected a six-week termination prohibition connected April 13, 2023, per The Associated Press. The politician signed into instrumentality the “Heartbeat Protection Act,” which “prohibits abortions erstwhile the unborn kid has a detectible heartbeat,” per a press release. “I applaud the Legislature for passing the Heartbeat Protection Act that expands pro-life protections and provides further resources for young mothers and families,” helium said successful a statement. The measure does incorporate exceptions, erstwhile it comes to protecting the beingness of the parent oregon successful cases of rape and incest up to 15 weeks.
The six week prohibition was signed astir precisely 1 twelvemonth aft DeSantis signed the “Reducing Fetal and Infant Mortality Act,” which banned termination aft 15 weeks. The caller laws person been precise controversial, particularly aft the Supreme Court overturned Roe V. Wade successful June 2022.
Examining The Implications Of A 6 Week Ban
Florida is present 1 of 13 states, which person enacted a six week termination ban, including Georgia, Texas, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Tennessee, per Pro-Choice America. Besides making abortions amerciable aft six weeks, Florida’s caller measure besides makes it a 2nd grade felony for doctors successful Florida to execute abortions. It besides stops authorities funds from going to businesses oregon acquisition institutions, which volition enactment employees oregon students from traveling retired of authorities to person abortions performed, per Planned Parenthood Action.
As galore states person enacted six-week termination bans since Roe V. Wade was overturned, galore critics person travel guardant to knock the caller laws. Many of the criticisms travel from the information that astatine six weeks galore radical don’t adjacent recognize that they’re pregnant. This forces galore radical to question retired of authorities to places wherever termination is ineligible to person indispensable healthcare, via Planned Parenthood.
DeSantis & Education: The Controversial School Books Ban
Across the nation, determination person been truthful galore books that person been banned by Republicans, citing “controversial” content. DeSantis and the Republican-majority legislature person passed laws to halt classrooms from utilizing books that see discussions of race, gender, and intersexual orientation, including examples similar Toni Morrison’s Beloved and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, per The New York Times. He’s besides railed against “critical contention theory” from being taught successful the classroom, according to WPTV.
Many of DeSantis’ policies person been criticized for being reactionary to ‘culture wars.’ (JLN Photography/Shutterstock)
DeSantis has fought backmost against claims that helium has aimed to prohibition books arsenic a “hoax” successful a property release. “Exposing the ‘book ban’ hoax is important due to the fact that it reveals that immoderate are attempting to usage our schools for indoctrination,” helium said successful a statement. “In Florida, pornographic and inappropriate materials that person been snuck into our classrooms and libraries to sexualize our students interruption our authorities acquisition standards. Florida is the acquisition authorities and that means providing students with a prime acquisition escaped from sexualization and harmful materials that are not property appropriate.”
In summation to banning books, DeSantis has besides enacted the Florida Parental Rights In Education Act, which has besides go known arsenic the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The instrumentality restricted schoolhouse teachers from giving lessons involving intersexual predisposition oregon sex individuality for children from kindergarten to 3rd grade, per NPR. The measure was expanded to each grades successful March 2023, via The Associated Press.
After the measure was expanded the LGBTQ+ advocacy radical GLAAD released a connection calling retired the decision. “This determination unluckily further cements Florida’s increasing estimation arsenic a authorities led by extremists obsessed with censorship, publication bans and different targeting of LGBTQ people. ‘Don’t Say LGBTQ’ has already had a disastrous chilling effect connected Florida classrooms, present Florida wants to grow and promote that silencing and harassment to each grade,” GLAAD President and SEO Sarah Kate Ellis said successful a statement.
Understanding the Florida Parental Rights In Education Act
Besides prohibition connected contented taught successful the classroom, the measure besides requires parents to notify ” parents if determination is simply a alteration successful services from the schoolhouse regarding a child’s mental, affectional oregon carnal wellness oregon well-being,” according to a property release. Many LGBTQ organizations person filed lawsuits against DeSantis to effort to artifact the law, saying that it’s a means to censor members of the LGBTQ assemblage from speaking connected topics related to their community, per NPR. There person besides been laws passed prohibiting educators from asking students astir their preferred pronouns.
Transgender Rights Under DeSantis: A Look At The Policies
As galore states legislate astir the rights of transgender radical and youths, Florida is nary objection and DeSantis signed 4 bills into instrumentality that people the LGBTQ assemblage connected May 17, 2023. One of the bills SB254 bans transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming care, including puberty blockers, surgeries, and hormone replacement therapy. Another measure besides requires transgender radical to usage the bath corresponding to the enactment they were assigned astatine birth, per BBC.
Impact connected Transgender Youth: Affirming Care & Identity Issues
Despite galore laws preventing transgender teens from receiving the gender-affirming attraction that they need, galore aesculapian organizations person spoken retired against laws trying to forestall transgender younker from receiving the attraction that they need. The American Medical Association has issued a statement calling for legislators to halt interfering with what should beryllium kept betwixt doctors and patients. “Decisions astir aesculapian attraction beryllium wrong the sanctity of the patient-physician relationship,” they said. “We judge it is inappropriate and harmful for immoderate authorities to legislatively dictate that definite transition-related services are ne'er due and bounds the scope of options physicians and families whitethorn see erstwhile making decisions for pediatric patients.”
While galore aesculapian professionals enactment transgender younker receiving affirming care, existent guidelines don’t urge transgender teens receiving affirming genital country until they are 18, according to The Washington Post.
In airy of aggregate anti-LGBTQ bills being passed by the authorities legislature and galore being signed by DeSantis, the Human Rights Campaign, Equality Florida, and galore different advocacy groups person issued question advisories for Florida. HRC President Kelley Robinson issued a statement informing members of the assemblage astir DeSantis’ policies. “Because of Ron DeSantis and his frenzied entreaty to extremists, LGBTQ+ radical successful Florida are uncovering themselves successful a authorities of exigency each azygous day. Since the time helium took office, Governor DeSantis has weaponized his presumption to weave bigotry, hate, and favoritism into nationalist instrumentality for his ain governmental gain,” she said. “Those who sojourn indispensable articulation america successful their vocal absorption to these unsafe policies. Those who prime different spot to work, to spell to schoolhouse oregon to walk their abrogation should marque wide wherefore they’re not heading to Florida. And to each of our friends and household successful Florida, we basal with you and with Equality Florida — we’ll support moving hard to marque Florida consciousness much similar the location you merit it to be.”
The HRC’s advisory came soon aft the NAACP likewise gave a question informing astir Florida. “Florida is openly hostile toward African Americans, radical of colour and LGBTQ+ individuals. Before traveling to Florida, delight recognize that the authorities of Florida devalues and marginalizes the contributions of, and the challenges faced by African Americans and different communities of color,” the statement said.
DeSantis’ nationalist illustration roseate successful 2020 arsenic helium fought against COVID-19 recommendations. (CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)
DeSantis’ Position On Gender, Equity, & Inclusion Programs
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a measure blocking backing from the authorities and national authorities from being utilized for diversity, equity, and inclusion programs astatine nationalist colleges connected May 15, 2023, according to The Associated Press. A property merchandise announcing the signing claimed that specified programs are “discriminatory,” and that the measure preventing specified programs would beryllium empowering to the schools. “By signing this authorities we are ensuring that Florida’s institutions promote diverseness of thought, civilian discourse, and the pursuit of information for generations to come,” DeSantis said successful a statement. The politician has claimed that specified programs were attempts to “indoctrinate” students into “woke ideology.”
Implications For Public Schools & Colleges
Besides taking distant nationalist backing for specified programs astatine nationalist universities, galore critics person called retired DeSantis for the prohibition connected DEI programs arsenic political. Provost and Executive Vice President of the University of Montana Pardis Mahdavi spoke retired astir what schools would suffer successful an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times. Mahdavi explained that backing for specified programs is often utilized to coordinate events specified arsenic impermanent speakers oregon celebrations of antithetic cultures. “Administrators volition present question whether they tin proceed to financially enactment events of this benignant due to the fact that it is unclear if they mightiness autumn nether prohibited diverseness initiatives,” she wrote. “Schools without diverseness programs enactment students astatine a disadvantage. If 1 of the goals of higher acquisition is to hole students to participate and make the workforce — a extremity lauded by politicians connected some sides of the aisle — colleges indispensable thatch them the skills to prosecute with diverseness work.”
Gun Control In DeSantis’ Florida: A Move Toward Looser Laws?
At a clip erstwhile galore Americans are calling for stricter weapon information laws and regulations, DeSantis joined galore states successful signing a measure allowing Floridians to transportation concealed guns without a licence backmost successful April, erstwhile helium signed HB 543. Still immoderate weapon rights activists person called for adjacent looser laws allowing unfastened carry, per Politico.
Specifics Of DeSantis’ Gun Laws & Their Impact
While HB 543 doesn’t halt the state’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services from issuing licenses for concealed carry, the measure ended the request for weapon owners to person the licence for concealed carry, according to the Department. The measure comes astatine a clip erstwhile truthful galore Americans are galvanized for stricter weapon information laws. There person been implicit 200 wide shootings successful the United States successful 2023 arsenic of May 8, according to ABC News. States with lax laws concerning concealed transportation permits reportedly person higher crime, including wide shootings, convulsive crime, firearm robberies, and more, according to the Center for American Progress.
DeSantis & Entertainment: The Ban On Drag Shows
Another measure that has been criticized arsenic Anti-LGBTQ by opponents signed by DeSantis was SB1438, which blocks children from being capable to be resistance shows. The instrumentality prevents adults from bringing children to “adult performances” and could revoke nutrient oregon liquor licenses from venues that let children to be resistance performances. In a statement, the Florida politician said that the authorities was “standing up for our children.”
The measure had been dubbed the “Anti-Drag Show” measure by the American Civil Liberties Union. The Florida ACLU pointed retired that the instrumentality contained “vague connection that tin beryllium utilized to onslaught resistance shows and performances adjacent though Florida instrumentality already prohibits exposing minors to shows considered sexually explicit oregon harmful.”
Voting In DeSantis’ Florida: Tougher Laws For Registration & Voting
Following the 2020 election, Trump falsely claimed that helium mislaid the predetermination owed to wide fraud. While his claims person been rebuked and disproven, galore antithetic politicians person enacted laws surrounding voters. In 2021, DeSantis passed SB90 to “safeguard the sanctity of Florida Elections.” The measure included presumption astir “strengthening elector identification, prohibiting the wide mailing of ballots, banning ballot harvesting and prohibiting backstage wealth from administering elections,” per a press release. In April 2022, helium passed different bill relating to elections, which required elector rolls to beryllium updated annually, accrued penalties for voting fraud, and acceptable up the “the Office of Election Crimes and Security to analyse predetermination instrumentality violations.” Some of the laws besides let citizens who are not capable to ballot owed to past convictions to beryllium charged.
The Potential Impact For Voter Turnout In Florida
Many of DeSantis’ voting laws person been criticized arsenic confusing and said that they unfairly people voters. Following the 2020 election, 20 voters, galore of whom were Black and had been convicted of felonies successful the past, were arrested connected elector fraud charges, per the Tallahassee Democrat. The voters who had been arrested had incorrectly been told that they could ballot by predetermination officials. A fig of Florida organizations, including the NAACP, ACLU, and Brennan Center released a associated statement calling retired the instrumentality for a deficiency of clarity. “The DeSantis Administration and the authorities legislature made it astir intolerable for radical with past convictions to find their eligibility to ballot and the authorities continues to garbage to supply immoderate meaningful guidance to guarantee that these Floridians tin find retired whether they’re eligible to vote,” they said.
Additionally, Florida besides saw a driblet successful elector turnout for the 2022 midterm elections compared to the 2018 midterms, according to Palm Beach Daily News. Many of the voters who had antecedently been convicted did not formed ballots successful the astir caller midterms, retired of fearfulness of being charged
Click to Subscribe to Get Our Free HollywoodLife Daily Newsletter to get the hottest celeb news.
English (US) ·