A.G. Gancarski
On yet another issue, Florida’s Governor and Agriculture Commissioner are at odds.
Florida’s only statewide elected Democrat took issue Friday with Gov. Ron DeSantis‘ decision to deploy law enforcement to the Mexican border, saying it was a “made-up crisis” that would do nothing to reduce drug-related crime, as DeSantis contends.
“We’ve got issues here in the state of Florida,” Commissioner Nikki Fried told Florida Politics’ Capitol reporter Haley Brown after a news conference in the Capitol.
“Certainly, in the height of hurricane season — hurricane season’s started. This is where our law enforcement officers need to be. And quite honestly, this is for the federal government. This is something that is a made-up crisis, and we need to make sure we are prioritizing the people of the state of Florida first,” Fried said.
Reminded that DeSantis’ position is that state forces are necessary because the federal government has effectively stopped enforcing immigration law and that fentanyl and methamphetamine are pouring into Florida; as a result, the Commissioner stood her ground.
“I think the fact that he is saying that this is going to reduce crime in the state of Florida, that even means more so, that we need to get the law enforcement here to our state, working on the crime in our state,” Fried elaborated.
“There is no direct correlation between what is happening at the border and anything that’s happening in the state of Florida,” Fried continued. “This Governor likes to create chaos for the sake of creating chaos and (the border problem as DeSantis describes) is not what is happening.”
Fried’s position is opposite of DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody, who said the Joe Biden administration took a “wrecking ball” to previous border policy.
“Understand what’s going on here,” Moody thundered Thursday. “You have a Biden administration that has taken a wrecking ball to any sort of control or infrastructure at that border, and then throwing up their arms and abdicating any responsibility for dealing with the aftermath.”
“You have governors in these border states sending out calls for emergency help,” she added. “Florida is the first state to step up and say ‘look, we are sending folks to help control this chaos that is created solely due to the actions or inaction of the Biden administration.’”
DeSantis, like many Republicans, questions the White House deployment of Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the effort to stop the border breach “disaster.”
‘Meth is all coming from across the southern border,” he said on “Fox and Friends” Friday. “The cartels are eating Biden and Harris’ lunch, and she won’t even go down there.”
4 comments
DONNA MATSON
June 18, 2021 at 12:46 pm
Nikki,
If you don’t think it will affect our state you’re sadly mistaken. Good move on our Governor’s part. This shows how little you know of the drug, human, and sex trafficking happening at our borders. It’s a trickle-down effect, but in this case, it’s not a trickle it’s a flood.
Jason
June 18, 2021 at 3:01 pm
you are sadly mistaken, most of these drugs come across our coastline into Florida, not through any border
Michael Hoffmann
June 18, 2021 at 2:24 pm
“The Cartels are eating Biden and Harris’ lunch,” according to the Governor whose party has turned a blind eye to the catastrophic effect on daily life south of the border of illicit firearms trafficked from the US to Mexico and beyond. Mexican officials estimate that over the last five years some 250,000 firearms ANNUALLY have been trafficked into Mexico where most end up in the hands of the cartels. No number on how many guns end up in the hands of street gangs in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.
The resulting years of violence have unsettled the existence of average Mexicans and residents of the Emerald Triangle, and is an important reason underlying the vast tides of migration northward.
The cartels are bringing in most of the drugs via ports. The primary source of firearms is Houston where 5,000 gun shops cater to every taste in killing.
Arthro
June 19, 2021 at 3:50 am
Nikki, please tell us what you have accomplished as Agriculture Commissioner – other than admitting to not reporting $350,000 in income and running for Governor. The real crisis is that Florida taxpayers pay your salary so you can do nothing but use your position to run for Governor. DeSantis is the best Governor in the US, hands down.
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