As DeSantis readies 2024 presidential bid, Florida lawmakers hand him
fresh ammo
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[May 04, 2023]
By James Oliphant
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had
counted on a productive state legislative session this spring to
turbocharge his coming 2024 presidential bid.
Things haven't quite worked out that way.
As the two-month session draws to a close this week, DeSantis is
arguably in worse political shape than he was when it began, having
tumbled in public opinion polls, seen endorsements go to rival Donald
Trump and watched as key Republican donors expressed doubts about his
viability.
The Republican-dominated state legislature has indeed churned out bills
at DeSantis' behest, allowing him to crow that Florida is “the beating
heart of the conservative movement.” But a sweeping abortion ban,
permitless concealed carry for guns, and more anti-diversity and
anti-“woke” measures have been largely overshadowed by his ongoing feud
with Walt Disney Co.
And some of those legislative accomplishments, particularly the
so-called “heartbeat” law that bans abortions after six weeks, could
place DeSantis in political peril down the road, either in the
Republican state nominating contests or in the general election should
he become the party's nominee.
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Even so, DeSantis plans to launch his presidential run in some manner
later this month, followed by a more formal event in June, sources close
to the governor said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
He is expected to pitch himself to voters as more electable than
front-runner Trump, who has used DeSantis' absence from the race to
attempt to frame him as a second-rate politician who owes his success to
Trump's backing when he first ran for governor.
With the first presidential nominating contest still nine months away,
political analysts say DeSantis has plenty of time to turn his fortunes
around.
“Anybody who has raised over $100 million and won reelection as governor
of what used to be a swing state has a lot to sell,” said Whit Ayres, a
veteran Republican pollster. “He’s got to do a better job of selling
than he has done over the last six weeks.”
FAST AND FURIOUS
Friendly state lawmakers have moved at a relentless pace during the
session to equip DeSantis with tools to make the case that he stands as
his party's leading warrior pushing back against rampant crime, illegal
immigration and liberal polices favored by educators and investors.
“He got everything he wanted,” said Ron Book, a longtime Republican
lobbyist in Tallahassee, Florida’s capital.
A spokesperson for DeSantis provided a list of the governor's
legislative accomplishments and declined to comment further.
On Tuesday, DeSantis signed a bill that forbids asset managers in the
state from using environmental, social and governance (ESG)
considerations when making investment decisions and prohibits banks from
denying loans based on borrowers' political beliefs.
The legislature on Wednesday sent DeSantis a bill that includes a series
of reforms for Florida's higher-education system and eliminates funding
for diversity and inclusion programs at public universities.
Lawmakers also expanded last year's controversial law that prohibits
gender-identity instruction to include more grade levels and added a ban
on educators using pronouns different than the one a student was born
with.
Legislators are still wrangling over a bill that would ban
gender-affirming care for minors, and it remains unclear whether a
version will pass before the session ends Friday.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis leaves
Lloyds Bank building at the City of London financial district,
Britain April 28, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
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DeSantis has presided over a major expansion of the state's voucher
program that allows all students in kindergarten through 12th grade
to receive taxpayer-funded assistance to attend private schools -
long a goal of conservative activists.
The governor can trumpet a bill he signed on Monday that expands the
state’s death penalty law to include criminals found guilty of
raping a child under 12, in defiance of U.S. Supreme Court rulings
on the issue. Earlier, he signed a measure that scrapped the state
requirement that a jury must be unanimous to return a death
sentence.
Lawmakers on Tuesday passed an immigration measure that would
provide more money for DeSantis’ program for relocating undocumented
migrants. However, language that would have made it a crime for
Florida residents to transport or house migrants within the state
was stripped from the bill after fierce pushback.
On guns, DeSantis and the legislature didn’t go as far as some
gun-rights advocates wanted. But a new law that allows residents to
carry a concealed weapon without a permit or training could still
help give him traction with conservative voters.
“Nobody in the party can call him a squishy moderate," said David
Jolly, a former Republican U.S. representative from Florida.
POTENTIAL PERILS
The six-week abortion ban remains the thorniest outcome of the
session for DeSantis’ national aspirations. The governor did not
expressly advocate for the bill, and he signed it without fanfare to
replace the current 15-week ban.
The issue has turned radioactive for Republican candidates in
general elections. It was instrumental in helping Democrats ward off
heavy losses in last year’s midterms and was central to a liberal
judge's recent victory in a high-profile Wisconsin Supreme Court
race.
“It would have been helpful for DeSantis to not have to relitigate
the abortion issue right now,” said Chris Stirewalt, a political
analyst at the American Enterprise Institute.
But, Stirewalt said, the strict abortion ban may aid DeSantis in
early voting states such as Iowa and South Carolina that have large
blocs of evangelicals.
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DeSantis will need a boost to wrest the nomination from Trump, who
has maintained his grip on the Republican Party despite his 2020
election loss and his recent indictment on charges related to hush
money payments to a porn star.
When the legislative session began in March, the former president
held around a 15-percentage-point lead over DeSantis, according to
polling averages compiled by Real Clear Politics. Trump’s lead has
nearly doubled since then.
Even armed with a raft of new policy victories, Jolly said, DeSantis
has to be concerned that his poll numbers have slid as he has tried
to raise his national profile with a book tour, interviews and a
multi-country overseas trip.
“The more people see him and get to know him, the less they like
him,” Jolly said. “The question is how does he turn that around?
That’s his biggest struggle.”
(Reporting by James Oliphant; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and
Jonathan Oatis)
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