Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has responded to President Joe Biden’s chiding of the state’s COVID-19 response.
Florida leads the nation in new coronavirus cases, a situation that is exacerbated by recent moves by DeSantis and the Florida legislature that make it harder mitigate the spread of the virus.
Speaking on DeSantis’ orders that bar local governments and school districts from passing masking rules, Biden asked Florida leadership to stand aside and let the federal government work to contain the pandemic.
“If you’re not going to help, at least get out of the way of people trying to do the right thing,” Biden said on Tuesday.
The governor responded in a news conference on Wednesday in a manner familiar to anyone who has ever had to deal with a petulant child.
“If you’re coming after the rights of parents in Florida, I’m standing in your way. I’m not going to let you get away with it,” DeSantis said. “If you’re trying to deny kids a proper in-person education, I’m going to stand in your way.”
The majority of Florida’s voters support public school districts enforcing masking rules to keep children safe. Under DeSantis’ orders, school districts can be defunded for imposing such mandates. (That hasn’t stopped at least one district from trying.)
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This article appears in Aug 4-10, 2021.