Ron DeSantis
Running for: US President
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has gained national attention for splashy, “anti-Woke” policies, from a tax break for gas stoves, to banning AP African American studies, to flying migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. Some Republicans see him as a more electable version of Trump, but others - such as Nikki Haley - argue he is "mini Trump" without any new policy ideas. DeSantis officially announced his presidential campaign in May.
Position on Issues
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In April 2023, DeSantis signed a 6-week abortion ban in Florida. When pressed by Megyn Kelly on whether he would sign a federal abortion ban, he said, "I'll always come down on the side of life, and I'm proud to be pro-life, and I'll be a pro-life president." However, he also said, "I don't have much confidence Congress is going to do anything meaningful in this regard."
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DeSantis said "I don't think we would do that" when asked if he would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. He continued, "I think that we have too many people using drugs in this country right now, I think it hurts our workforce readiness, I think it hurts people's ability to prosper in life, and just from my experience growing up, in Tampa Bay area in Florida, the kids in high school who got involved in that, that I went with, you know, all suffered, all their activities, all their grades, and everything like that. So particularly for the youth, I just think we have to be united."
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DeSantis is a vocal critic of Critical Race Theory and diversity programs.
For example, in 2021 he said, "Let me be clear: there’s no room in our classrooms for things like critical race theory. Teaching kids to hate their country and to hate each other is not worth one red cent of taxpayer money."
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"If we could term limit members of Congress, you would be able to bring in new blood, you’d be able to bring in new ideas, people would have an incentive to go in and say ‘hey, I may only have three terms in the U.S. House, I wanna get something done,’ instead of kind of doing what they’ve gone into a big morass in terms of how they do business."
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In his 2019 State of the State Address, DeSantis said, "As you are aware, health care is being hotly debated at the national level, so let me say: Any proposal that seeks to eliminate the private health insurance policies of millions of Floridians is unacceptable. Government has no right to take away the policies that Floridians earn through their jobs or purchase on the individual market."
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Candidate's Website, 2023
"As president, Ron DeSantis will build the wall. No excuses."Other| Read My Position
In a 2023 DeSantis wrote, "While the U.S. has many vital national interests — securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness within our military, achieving energy security and independence, and checking the economic, cultural, and military power of the Chinese Communist Party — becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them."
At the August 23 debate he said that U.S. aid to Ukraine should be contingent on European countries' aid to Ukraine.
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DeSantis supports lowering the age to buy a rifle in Florida, to age eighteen.
"If we're going to say as a society that the age of adulthood is 21 then that would be one thing. But it's not," he said. "I mean, you send people out when they're 18, they can vote when they're 18. And so it's a constitutionally protected freedom, I don't think that there's basis to say that you can just blanket exclude people arbitrarily."
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As governor of Florida, DeSantis signed a bill that prohibits tech platforms from suspending or banning political candidates. This law came into conflict with Section 230.
"Some of these massive, massive companies in Silicon Valley are exerting a power over our population that really has no precedent in American history," said DeSantis. "One of their major missions seems to be suppressing ideas."
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Candidate's Website, 2023
"DeSantis will work to not only extend the individual tax rates and further simplify the tax code, but also seek permanence."
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Candidate's Website, 2023
"DeSantis will unleash our domestic energy sector, modernize and protect our grid, and advance American energy independence. This will not only increase our economic and national security while reducing inflation, it will also help fuel a manufacturing renaissance that will create jobs, revitalize our communities, and improve our standard of living. We can no longer afford to tie one arm behind our economy's back by prioritizing the left's ideological agenda, crushing regulations, and endless permitting requirements."Against| Read My Position
Candidate's Website, 2023
"DeSantis will no longer incentivize useless degrees and courses with blanket government loans. To that end, he will make universities, not taxpayers, responsible for the loans their students accrue. He will also seek to allow student loans to be discharged through bankruptcy like any other loan."For| Read My Position
Candidate's Website, 2023
"DeSantis will be a new sheriff in town when it comes to spending, and he will not be afraid of using his veto pen. Our government programs as they exist today are wrought with waste, fraud, and abuse, and continue to be a major drag on our economy, our budget, and the flourishing of our citizens."
