Gov. Ron DeSantis, who wants to be president, isn’t keeping Florida residents safe.
Florida’s pandemic death rate was twice Washington’s, thanks in part to his lax public health policies. What about crime?
DeSantis is bragging he’s made Florida a safe state, but nothing backs that up. So far in 2023, his state ranks #2 for mass shootings, behind California.
Crime in general is hard to quantify for Florida, because crime statistics there are a mess. At the very least, his claims to be an effective crime-fighter lack statistical support. That’s because crime in Florida is only spottily reported.
But we do know this: “In some Florida cities, the data shows murder rates are significantly higher than in blue cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Boston. Experts say there’s also no evidence to support that some of DeSantis’s signature public safety policies, including doubling down on cash bail, are effective in reducing crime” (see story here).
As of now, DeSantis isn’t a declared candidate for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, but he’s hungry and is acting like one. Most probably when, not if, he makes it official and hits the campaign trail, voters should see his crime-fighting brag for what it is: A campaign strategy, not an accomplishment. And a lie.
An outside research firm that analyzed murders in Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa concluded those cities were more violent in 2021 than “for most of the 2010s, much less 50 years ago,” and “the situation is getting worse.” In contrast to nearly double-digit increases from 2021 to 2022 in those cities, homicide rates fell by an equal amount in New York, Rochester, and Syracuse.
Florida gun deaths began rising immediately after DeSantis became governor. As with Covid-19, his policies toward guns are lax, and Florida now ranks near the top among states in gun deaths per 100,000 people. He actually favors more guns on the streets, and last week signed permitless carry legislation.
Researchers have linked relaxed gun permit requirements “to higher rates of violent crime,” which can be expected to play out in Florida as well. But apart from that, it defies common sense that letting anyone carry a concealed gun without police screening or any firearms training somehow makes communities safer.
Here’s what voters need to realize: Republicans are skilled at propaganda, but lousy at governing. And nothing they do is more destructive to innocent human lives than their crazy gun policies. Not even their reckless approach to Covid-19 came close.
Photo: Whereas Tom Cruise, though not a real F-18 pilot, can fly some planes (details here), Ron DeSantis’ “Top Gun” pose is 100% fake.