Posted on 04/21/2023 8:40:19 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Throughout the pandemic conservatives (and even disaffected Democrats and independents) vacationed in and moved to the “Free State of Florida” in record numbers, attracted to relatively affordable housing and, well, freedom. Donald Trump spends the vast majority of his time there, escaping the New York winters, over-taxation, and politically-motivated, unscrupulous prosecutors. But according to an email he sent out Friday, the state is a hellhole.
Atop the email was this statement from Steven Cheung, Trump’s campaign spokesman.
“The real DeSantis record is one of misery and despair. He has left a wake of destruction all across Florida and people are hurting because he has spent more time playing public relations games instead of actually doing the hard-work needed to improve the lives of the people he represents.”
Then the main portion of the email begins:
While Ron DeSantis engages in a weeks-long shadow campaign for president boasting his playbook, Florida continues to tumble into complete and total delinquency and destruction.
Thousands of people from places like New York, Michigan, Illinois, and California moved to Florida during the pandemic, many of them Republicans. Though the Miami area was hit with an unprecedented rain event last week and has been suffering from gas shortages as a result, it isn’t likely that those new Floridians will see that as a signal that the state is tumbling into “complete and total delinquency and destruction.” And, that characterization could lead to eyerolls from conservatives still stuck in places like San Francisco or Philadelphia or St. Louis that truly have tumbled into total delinquency and destruction.
Before listing numerous categories in which Florida resident Trump contends his state is the worst, he states:
On DeSantis’ watch, Florida has become one of the least affordable states to live in the country.
In his first term as Florida governor, Ron DeSantis raised taxes on Floridians by more than $1.5 billion.
The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that a Floridian making $10 an hour must work 86 hours per week just to afford rent on a modest single bedroom home in Florida.
The cost of living in south Florida shot up 10% in just the last year alone, the highest increase by far in years, while the national average was only 6.5%.
Home prices skyrocketed in Miami by 32% last year, and by 34% in Tampa.
According to a 2023 SmartAsset study, the Orlando metropolitan area was the 10th most expensive to live comfortably in the nation. Miami closely followed, as the 12th most expensive metropolitan area and Tampa also made the list, as the 16th most expensive.
Then, he hits DeSantis on high gas prices and recent shortages in Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
While nearly half of the gas stations in Miami and Fort Lauderdale are without fuel, those Floridians lucky enough to find a gas station with fuel will be paying a stiff premium.
Florida ranks in the 10 most expensive states in the continental United States for fuel prices, and in 2023, Florida imposed a new hike on fuel purchases.
I haven’t clicked every link and read every piece of data the email links to as backup (and at least one Substack linked to is down, probably because of the amount of traffic directed to it), so I make no assessment of the claims. The link to the justification for the claim of a massive tax hike doesn’t work, but I am especially interested in reading more about that because it’s at odds with things DeSantis says in his speeches.
Undoubtedly, Ron DeSantis’ spokespeople will have rebuttals of the email’s contents. I’ll preview what I think they might be.
First, Trump has praised DeSantis over the years, and since leaving office has talked about about how great it was to live in Florida and specifically praised DeSantis.
Second, given the number of people who moved to Florida in the past three years – some of them sent there by their employers who left California – it’s reasonable to see home prices increase rapidly and not anything any government official has much control over. And DeSantis supporters will likely point to the fact that Trump didn’t stand up to Fauci and Birx and blue state governors who kept millions of Americans under unjustified and ineffective “state of emergency” orders, which arguably contributed a great deal to the exodus to Florida and the resulting price increases.
Third, the fuel shortages in the Miami area are due to severe flooding at terminals at Port Everglades and, according to officials, panic buying is exacerbating the problem. Still, State of Florida emergency officials on Tuesday announced that they’re sending 500,000 gallons of gasoline to ease the pain, and said that delivery delays continue to decrease.
The point of me listing these anticipated defenses isn’t to prop up DeSantis or to slam Trump. Especially with this week’s revelations regarding whistleblowers and election interference and Alvin Bragg, Trump has solid arguments to make to Republican primary voters about why he should be the 2024 nominee. Choosing to send a melodramatic email telling Floridians and all of the people who moved there during the pandemic how terrible their home state is, using some fairly easily disputed points, doesn’t seem like the best tactic.
Why?????? Must we focus our anger on our compatriots?
I thought Florida was doing better than any of the other states.
Oh ok
I know for a fact that DeSantis had Trump come and stump for him when it looked like he wouldn’t win
So you’ll vote for Biden over Trump?
Reality is that I have no ability to affect the outcome. Trump or DeSantis. I will vote for either one against Gruesome Newsome or Joe Biden. Unfortunately, Trump is dominating. While DeSantis looks like he is the better man who can win against Biden or whomever the Dem candidate is.
(I have voted Trump twice)
I just see DeSantis as beholden to and part of the elite establishment. He’s trying to ride on a few hot button social issues that the vast number of the population agrees with him on, but if he expects my support he needs to start addressing some of what I consider the bigger issues. I just see DeSantis as another Ted Cruz, both of whom are more conventionally conservative than Trump, but probably unelectable in the general. I’m well aware of Trump’s many flaws but still consider him our best shot at this point.
I live in Florida and this is trash from Trump—I’ll vote for him if he is the GOP nominee.
To Charlie Crist?
DeSantis won 60-40 over Crist. That's a statewide blowout.
There was one June poll run by President Trump's pollster of registered voters that showed Crist up by 1, but I guess you were the only person who believed it.
-PJ
> So you’ll vote for Biden over Trump? <
As I noted earlier, I’m personally using a ‘MAGA x electability’ formula.
Trump has the highest MAGA score of any politician out there.
But at this point in time, DeSantis seems more electable, to me anyway.
So it’s kind of a tie. But who knows what tomorrow will bring?
As for Slow Joe, his MAGA score is, of course, zero.
That gives him an overall score of zero. My cat has a higher score.
So I’d vote for my cat before voting for Biden.
Trump’s right DeSantis has yet to speak of international events and his views to solve the problems.
DeSantis is more of a state operator then a leader of a country.
Yet I bet you’d be really offended if it was 2024, Trump won the primary and DeSantis even mildly entertained the idea of running third party.
People are talking about the 2018 governor’s election, which DeSantis won narrowly over Andrew Gillum (sp?). That election was where DeSantis got an assist from Trump.
Jesus Christ, this is probably the most delusional post ever written here, and that’s saying something.
I think part of DeSantis' 2022 success had to do with Floridian anger at the LAAP-dog media after Gillem was found in a hotel room with a gay prostitute and an drug OD victim.
Anyway, the only elections that count are the most recent ones, and DeSantis blew it out of the water. I think that Floridians did for DeSantis in 2022 what Trump voters want to do in 2024, that is, right a wrong.
-PJ
We are in serious danger of breaking off from Georgia and floating to Cuba if the population continues increasing. Which in itself might not be a total tragedy but what if the state went off course and hit Haiti instead!?!
They had better put more focus on Robert Kennedy.
I watched his interview with Neil today. He sounds just like a FReeper.
I wonder what his pseudonym is here.
Trump is making sure he wins nomination.
Right now only DeSantis stands in his way.
I think he should attack more. Politics is blood sport. Not for the thin skinned.
And I like DeSantis a lot as my governor.
I’d vote for your cat over Biden, but my cat may get jealous.
Focus on Biden?
That would be dumb in April 2023.
Trump has to demolish opponents in primary first.
There will be plenty time later to attack Brandon.
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