RSS

What jerk sues to make masked kids sit next to unmasked kids?

The governor of Florida, that’s who.

His name is Ron DeSantis, he’s a Republican, and he wants to be president. A lot of Republicans support him.

DeSantis, as you may know, issued an executive order banning mask mandates in Florida. At first, a couple of school districts defied that order; but as more and more sick kids began showing up at hospitals and filling up beds in ICUs, the defiance snowballed and now a lot of school administrators are imposing mask mandates in their schools — to protect the kids.

DeSantis responded to that by threatening and sanctioning school districts and school administrators who make kids wear masks in classrooms, whether they want to or not. Then a Florida judge stepped in, and ruled that DeSantis exceeded his authority, his order was illegal, and cleared the way for schools to require masks in classrooms — to keep the kids safe.

Now, CNN says, “Lawyers for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have filed an emergency appeal with the First District Court of Appeals in Florida in hopes of halting school mask mandates while the case goes through the court system.” Good f****** grief. Read story here. (Update: The First District Court of Appeals stayed the judge’s order on Friday, September 10, 2021; while the story here lacks details, this appears to be a procedural stay, not a ruling on the merits.) Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Education is opening an investigation into whether DeSantis’s order violates the civil rights of students with disabilities (story here).

This governor is waging war against children’s health. He’s the same governor who sent an armed SWAT team to a state employee’s home because she blew the whistle on his administration’s tampering with Covid-19 case statistics (read about that here). Somebody like him shouldn’t be in public office. He shouldn’t be a major party candidate for dogcatcher, let alone president. And polls suggest DeSantis might not be re-elected governor in 2022, although that remains to be seen.

The fact is, Republican voters have embraced this guy whole hog. The Republican Party is full of anti-maskers, anti-vaxxers, insurrectionists, QAnon loons, and other assorted freaks and anti-social types. It’s not a functioning major political party anymore.

America needs political competition. While I personally lean more toward Democratic policies than Republican policies, because I care about ordinary people and my sympathies like with the working people of this country — whose labor is responsible for all of its wealth — I’m not dismissive of traditional Republican Party values such as opposing intrusive government, high taxes, and supporting free markets and small businesses. We prosper best, and do best, by finding a balance. And the best way to do that is by letting healthy political debate sort through ideas, policy proposals, and let the people ultimately decide.

But that Republican Party doesn’t exist anymore. What we have now is a group of crazy, sometimes violent, people who want to do away with elections and force rape victims to have rapists’ babies. DeSantis personifies the reckless irresponsibility of today’s GOP as a political entity. He panders to people who are now attacking kids. His policies endanger kids, and now he’s suing to enforce those dangerous policies.

We need a better Republican Party. We don’t need a jerk in the White House. And, for the sake of Florida’s school children, we all should hope the court swats away this ridiculous appeal.

Return to The-Ave.US Home Page


0 Comments Add Yours ↓

  1. Mark Adams #
    1

    This is a classic issue of who has the power. Does the governor? Does the school board? The Judge ruled the school board does, a pretty popular position in Florida. The appeals court may find the gov does have the authority or the Florida Supremes might. [Edited comment.]

  2. Roger Rabbit #
    2

    No, this is a classic case of a jerk putting kids in jeopardy in order to score cheap political points with an intellectually challenged voter bloc.