Former President Trump released the following statement on Monday:
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is currently on a month-long, taxpayer-funded presidential campaign schedule paid for by Florida taxpayers, and new questions are emerging as to whether this will force DeSantis to resign from office. The matter also highlights yet another flip-flop for DeSantis, who previously resigned from Congress to run for Governor to “protect the taxpayers.”
At present, Florida has a “Resign to Run” law that requires statewide officeholders to leave their positions if they’re running for Federal office. In remarks first shared with the Associated Press, Nova Southeastern University Law School Professor Bob Jarvis said, “There is no ambiguity, no debate, no dispute. Under current law, DeSantis cannot run for president before first resigning as a governor.”
DeSantis allies in the Florida legislature are considering a change to state law to help the Governor, but DeSantis has already begun his month-long, taxpayer-funded campaign schedule before legislation could be passed.
Further complicating matters: Florida’s current “Resign to Run” law states that candidates must resign from their posts no later than 10 days before qualifying for office. But according to Politico’s Gary Fineout, over the month of April DeSantis is leaving Florida to campaign in Georgia, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan, Ohio, New Hampshire, Utah, and Texas, with South Carolina now being added to this month’s itinerary.
DeSantis also plans to visit Israel and the U.K. in April to score some last-minute foreign policy credentials for his 2024 presidential campaign, and it is now being reported that DeSantis will also visit Japan and Korea as part of his taxpayer-funded globetrotting.
All of this brings us back to 2018, when DeSantis was running for Governor and resigned from Congress, noting it would be “inappropriate” to “accept a salary” when he would be missing “the vast majority” or “remaining session days.”
DeSantis’ upcoming 2024 presidential campaign travel occurs while the Florida Legislature is in-session, and before DeSantis has formed a campaign committee to pay for his travel. This means that in addition to his salary, Florida taxpayers are on the hook for travel and security costs. So why the change of heart?
“Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to campaign full-time for president, during the Florida legislative session, while collecting a salary and having the taxpayers pick up the costs for his travel and security. It’s a massive flip-flop from his position in 2018,” said Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung. “To make matters worse, DeSantis’ upcoming taxpayer-funded campaign travel appears to put him at odds with Florida’s existing ‘Resign to Run’ law.”
In recent months, Gov. DeSantis has used taxpayer dollars to travel around the country for his 2024 presidential campaign, including to the early voting states of Iowa and Nevada. DeSantis’ gubernatorial office, however, refuses to tell reporters – and the public – how much taxpayer money has been spent to fund these travels, or how much DeSantis’ April globetrotting will cost.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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10 Responses
DeSantis is an authoritarian wanna be. He is anti-freedom and a danger to democracy.
His never ending attacks on free enterprise in Florida and his strong handed tactics in silencing criticism of dissenters should scare every American.
DeSantis is a faux conservative he has no respect for free speech, no respect for free enterprise and wastes tax payer money to fund his political ambitions with political stunts and campaigning on the public purse
Republicans must unite behind a true conservative and get rid of dangerous charlatans like DeSantis.
Why President Donald must you gain your popularity by cutting down other cedar trees? Why not just grow your tree higher based on your abilities! We finally have a great Republican governor: Why incompacitate him? Why chop him down? If you win the office of POTUS, he will only serve to help you. The American people need more good Republicans. Please stop this senseless knee-capping.
There are no nails left for his coffin !!!!
Such an attack will make it harder for De Santis or Trump to end up winning the general election (the attack will cause Trump supporters to avoid De Santis, and alienate De Santis supporters from voting for Trump).
HOWEVER, if Trump plans to endorse a different candidate as “heir”, attacking De Santis will only make it more likely the Trump endorsee will have an easy time getting the nomination.
Did you notice the only leaders who have been doing well are the ones that are healthy both mentally and physically, for all the rest, one needs to find a cure for them or ban them from any platform until they heal!
The world is fed up with sick politicos!
DeSantis is a petty dictator wanna be. He was outplayed by Disney and Disney exposed his pettiness and incompetence. Now the tyrant is threatening Disney with taxes and tolls..DeSantis is an egotistical fraud who must never get near the Whitehouse.
Trump is unfit for office but he is doing a great service by destroying the political ambitions of this dangerous man.
To ralphz: who’s coffin?
To the YWN editors: Learn how to punctuate long quotations.
Crazykanoi, You are certainly crazy, but what are you a kanoi about? Not Torah and certainly not the truth. Not a word you wrote was true.
As for this whole hit piece, it’s fundamentally a lie, because Desantis IS NOT CAMPAIGNING. He is doing his job as Governor, so it’s completely reasonable that the state is paying for his travel on its behalf. He does not have to resign, because he is not a candidate for any office. If and when he becomes a candidate, if the law still requires his resignation he will of course do so. But it’s ridiculous to demand that he resign long before that happens, and long before he has even decided what he wants to do next year! The so-called “experts” cited are all Democrat activists who are trying to help Trump because they want him to win the primary so they can beat him in the general. They have no ethics among them, and don’t care what lies they tell to promote their political agenda, and YWN is helping them.