GOP Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis traveled to California on Sunday — and took the opportunity to knock off Gov. Gavin Newsom on the Democrat’s home turf.
DeSantis, who is reportedly eyeing a run for the White House, ripped Newsom for his state’s recent population decline as the Sunshine State continues to gain residents.
“I knew you had a lot of problems here, but your governor is very concerned about what we’re doing in Florida, so I thought I had to come here,” DeSantis joked as he began his speech at the Ronald killed Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley to promote his new book, According to Fox News.
Gopar said that the last four years have served as a litmus test for various political ideologies in the country.
“And if you look over the last four years, we’ve seen a great American exodus from states governed by left-wing politicians who have implemented left-wing ideology and produced bad results, and you’ve seen big gains in states like Florida, which are governing according to the tried and true principles that President Reagan held dear,” said DeSantis.
The Florida government said times are changing for California, which has historically seen people move to the state from across the country. Now, he said, the opposite is true.
“From the beginning of the history of this state, until the last four or five years, people beat the road to California,” he said. “You haven’t beaten a path far from California. And yet, you see the blood loss of the state’s population.
From April 2020 to July 2022, California’s population declined by more than 500,000 people, with many residents moving to other states. According to US Census data.
The state’s lack of affordable housing is partly responsible for the mass exodus. According to experts and statistics.
DeSantis blamed Democrats like Newsom and their administration for the decline. Democratic states such as New York, Illinois, and Louisiana have also experienced population declines.
The Florida poll called California a “biomedical safety state” because of its strict coronavirus pandemic restrictions, while Florida was much more lax in requiring measures to be used to protect against the contagious virus.
DeSantis claimed that people moved from the West Coast to Florida for the freedom it afforded residents during the pandemic.
“I can tell you, our families moved from the Pacific coast for the fact that we had schools open in Florida when you didn’t open them in other states,” he said.
Florida has also banned vaccine passports that require proof of vaccination to patronize various businesses.
“We said it is none of their business. Everyone has the right to participate in society,” DeSantis said. “It’s a personal choice you make whether to take it or not, and we’re not going to leave you out.”
As a result, the Republican said, Florida experienced an increase in visitors from other states.
“Now, what’s happening is because we did that, one of the things that’s happening is, in 2021, Florida sets a record for domestic tourism,” he said. “If you compare the change in tourism in California from 2019 to 2021, California tourism is down 22%.”
DeSantis has repeatedly pointed to Florida as a blueprint for the rest of America, arguing that his governing style has led the state to great success. He makes this argument in his recently released book, “The Courage to Be Free,” which he was promoting at a California library.
But not all Americans believe DeSantis will lead the country in the right direction.
Before his speech, critics of the Florida governor graffitied “Ron DeFascist” on signs at the library’s entrance, police said. told local station KTLA.
Library staff were able to remove the message prior to the event.
