DeSantis Shifts Campaign Focus Amid Rising Crime Rates
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, buoyed by the Trump-aligned faction of the GOP, is strategizing to appeal to a broader electorate for his potential 2024 campaign. In a recent development, DeSantis initiated a political action committee dubbed “Ron DeSantis for America,” signaling his intention to expand his political presence beyond Florida. The governor also launched his first campaign promotion, spotlighting a variety of Floridians commending the “freedom-loving governor”. This effort clearly aims to repackage DeSantis’ image, which is largely characterized by his handling of COVID-19 and adversarial relationship with the media.
However, the Governor’s campaign appears to be employing a Trump-like strategy of obscuring the truth. In a press release that announced the campaign ad, DeSantis’ team declared that “liberal policies are dead” in Florida and that they had “turned the tide on crime”. These assertions are contradicted by the actual crime rates in Florida. Cities like Miami, Orlando, and Jacksonville have seen murder rates increase by 34%, 37%, and 15% respectively. Worse still, DeSantis’ home city of St. Petersburg has witnessed a staggering 79% rise in murder rates, the highest in the state. Despite the drop in property crimes, the state’s violent crime rate has surged by 22%, casting doubt on the campaign’s claim of safety.
Interestingly, DeSantis himself has not glossed over these facts. In a May press conference, he admitted that Florida “has a lot of work to do” to curb the escalating murder rate. He further announced the deployment of 200 state troopers to Miami to tackle the “spike in violence”. Despite these efforts, the campaign’s messaging paints Florida as a crime-free haven under DeSantis’ leadership. The stark reality is that Florida’s crime rate is escalating, and it remains to be seen how DeSantis plans to address this issue as he seeks to present himself to a national audience.
* None of the quotes in this article were spoken by an actual person. More info.