Florida’s principled limited government constitutional conservative Governor Ron DeSantis yesterday announced he was calling the state legislature into Special Session to address the illegal alien crisis and support President Trump’s plan to deport millions of illegal aliens.
DeSantis announced he’s scheduling the special session for the week of Jan. 27, the week after Trump is sworn in, so that state lawmakers will be poised to help implement the incoming president’s policies immediately.
“State and local officials in Florida must help the Trump administration enforce our nation’s immigration laws,” DeSantis said. “In order to do that effectively, we are going to need legislation to impose additional duties on local officials and provide funding for those local officials.”
The Associated Press reported the Republican governor said he’s prepared to suspend elected officials from office if they are “neglecting their duties” under the new immigration mandates. DeSantis has removed multiple officials from office, including two state attorneys, arguing they were failing to prosecute certain crimes.
DeSantis said he anticipates allocating tens of millions of dollars in new funding to help state and local officials expand their enforcement and detention efforts and said he would consider activating the Florida National Guard and the Florida State Guard to carry out in-state enforcement measures.
“There also needs to be measures to hold people accountable who are violating our anti-sanctuary policies,” he said. “Florida needs to make sure that we don’t have any lingering incentives for people to come into our state illegally.”
FOX News reported President-elect Trump gave a shoutout to Gov. DeSantis for calling the special legislative session to implement Trump's expected immigration crackdown.
And Trump is urging other governors across the country to follow Florida's lead.
"Thank you Ron, hopefully other governors will follow!" the president-elect said in a social media post.
However, not every Republican was enthusiastic about DeSantis’s move.
In a strongly-worded joint statement released Monday afternoon, and reported by the Associated Press, Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Danny Perez, both Republicans, said that without any specific guidance from the incoming administration and only “fragments of ideas” from the governor, it’s too soon for lawmakers to hold a special session.
“It is completely irresponsible to get out ahead of any announcements President Trump will make, especially when uninformed or ill-timed state action could potentially impair or impede the success of President Trump’s forthcoming efforts to end illegal immigration,” the Republican leaders said.
While the governor can call a special session, Albritton and Perez said that “the Legislature, not the Governor, will decide when and what legislation we consider.”
"I was honestly surprised by their letter," DeSantis said. "It's never premature to do the right thing." DeSantis said he's spoken at-length to President-elect Donald Trump about executive orders coming after he takes office Jan. 20.
"Now is such a golden opportunity," he said.
"We have a sense of urgency in the State of Florida," DeSantis said at a news conference at the Polk County Sheriff's Operations Center in Winter Haven, reported by Sara-Megan Walsh of the Lakeland Ledger. "We have to come in right on the heels of the new president getting sworn into office and we have to enact strong policies that are going help this administration accomplish the mission the American people spoke loudly and clearly about in November."
Gov. DeSantis said he wants legislation requiring all law enforcement agencies at the state, county and municipal level to participate in any programs to assist the federal government with enforcement of federal immigration laws.
"Trust me, the president does not want this to get bogged down in red tape," DeSantis said. "He understands; he wants to see support."
The governor is calling for mandatory enrollment in the 287(g) program, which allows U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to partner with local law enforcement to remove incarcerated noncitizens from the country. Currently, about two-thirds of Florida counties participate, with Alachua, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach among the exceptions.
DeSantis said he plans to appoint state immigration enforcement officers to oversee coordination between the federal government and Florida's existing programs.
In the upcoming special session, DeSantis outlined two proposals that would tighten personal-identification laws in hopes of limiting activity by those not in the country legally.
First, Ms. Walsh of the Lakeland Ledger reported, DeSantis said the state needs to require sworn affirmation of U.S. citizenship by those registering to vote and proof of Florida residency. While individuals need to be a citizen to vote in elections, the governor wants a box to be checked off as a sworn statement.
This would allow the state to pursue noncitizens who commit voter fraud with providing false information when attempting to register. DeSantis wants to see penalties for false information or voter fraud increased.
"If people know they are going to be held accountable, they will be much less likely to do it," he said.
Second, reported Ms. Walsh, DeSantis wants to build on use of E-verify to require money transfer companies to verify an individual's citizenship before transmitting funds. The governor said many individuals who enter the country illegally do so to work menial jobs at higher wages than they'd receive in their native countries, then send money back to family and friends.
The governor called the measure a "huge deterrent" and said he thinks Trump will look to enact similar measures once in office. He highlighted Trump might have to wait for bills to work their way through Congress.
Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, staunchly supported DeSantis' call for a special session to address immigration and the policies announced. He issued a call for his party members to do the same.
"We need to stand with DeSantis. We need to stand with President Trump and we need to stand against illegal immigration," he said. "This is arguably the most important issue that led to the results of the 2024 election.
"What will happen is as Florida leads working with the feds, other states will follow suit. We will create a healthy competition to be able to get these things done," Sen. Ingoglia said, according to Ms. Walsh’s reporting. "We don't have time to waste. We have to make use of every opportunity we have to make a difference for our constituents."
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