‘Threats’ are why Ron DeSantis has ’24/7′ security

Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a town hall event in Hollis, N.H., Tuesday, June 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)

Florida’s Governor told South Carolina media that state-funded security is by his side, “24/7,” no matter where in the country he might go.

During a virtual press conference with South Carolina reporters, Ron DeSantis talked about his own security detail in lieu of answering a question about Donald Trump’s unpaid bills for a rally in upstate Pickens.

“Since I’m a sitting Governor, we have security. That’s just a 24/7 thing that the State of Florida has provided in law. So when we’re going, we rely on our folks to do what they would do,” DeSantis said.

The Governor went on to make it clear state security was with him on all campaign stops.

“So if I’m campaigning in South Carolina, you know, if I’m going to an event in Florida, if I’m just in the neighborhood here in Tallahassee, you know, our security is basically the same. So we’re in a little bit different situation than maybe some of these other candidates who are out of office,” DeSantis said.

“But that’s just with the 24/7 nature of what we have,” DeSantis added. “We have that. Unfortunately, as I become more known, we do get a lot of threats. It’s unfortunate that that’s the case, but I think the State of Florida has made decisions long before I was Governor to make sure that there was adequate security for the chief executive.”

The Governor made news with state resources in Tennessee recently, when cars in the DeSantis motorcade were involved in a wreck with each other.

DeSantis is in politically uncharted territory, with state legislators urging him to run for President by passing clarifying language exempting him from “resign to run” concerns, then with many of them endorsing him before the budget was signed into law earlier this year. Should he not become President, he will remain as Governor through 2026.