Plenty of fish: Gov. DeSantis says Donald Trump ‘supportive’ of Atlantic snapper harvest

Florida’s Governor says the federal government may come through in expanding the red snapper season in the Atlantic.

“I think the administration is supportive of it,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

“I have mentioned it to the President, but I definitely mentioned it also to the Secretary of the Commerce. And I know they’re still filling out NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and they’re doing, still, all that. And there’s a lot of irons in the fire, but returning this to state management would be a home run.”

Recreational anglers got just one day in 2024, though commercial operations had from July until the end of the year.

DeSantis notes that the restrictions “predate the current administration” and show “the bureaucracy being more ideological and purpose-driven rather than evidence-based.”

DeSantis made the comments Monday at Panama City Beach’s Treasure Island Marina.

He’s made similar complaints before, including earlier this year. In February, he pleaded for a longer red snapper season in the Atlantic “just like we do in the Gulf,” saying “anglers will be really, really happy” if the Department of Commerce gives Florida its much-desired extension.

“The people are there, they see the fish. I mean, they’re there,” he said in 2024. “So why don’t we go and actually do this in a way that makes sense?”

He even made the case when he was in Congress.

“Our coastal communities up and down the east coast are just now beginning the long road of recovery after Hurricane Matthew,” said DeSantis eight years ago, during Trump’s first term. “A 2017 red snapper season would go far in bringing an influx of tourist dollars to help fuel our recovery.”