Jay Collins says California extradition mission isn’t ‘business as usual’

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. 1/4/23-Sen. Jay Collins, R-Tampa, chairs his first meeting of the Agriculture Committee, Wednesday at the Capitol in Tallahassee. COLIN HACKLEY PHOTO

There’s a first time for everything. And that’s especially true when the man called the “Chuck Norris of Florida Politics” flies three time zones away to bring a commercial truck driver turned criminal suspect to face justice.

Florida’s Lieutenant Governor has set a new precedent in heading to California to extradite Harjinder Singh, an Indian national accused of killing three people on the Florida Turnpike last week after making an illegal U-turn on the Florida Turnpike.

And during a news conference in Stockton, California, where the remarks sometimes weren’t family-friendly, Jay Collins established his personal brand as much as he detailed the necessity of his cross-country flight to bring the “thug” back to face Florida charges.

“This isn’t business as usual. This isn’t politics as usual. I am not some run-of-the-mill Lieutenant Governor. In the words of … some left-leaning Californians, I don’t identify as a politician. I identify as a God fearing, gun-loving, freedom-defending, one-legged, retired Green Beret,” said the former state Senator and Ron DeSantis loyalist recently picked for the long-vacant No. 2 job.

Collins continued to criticize California throughout his remarks, noting that Singh was licensed despite not having “basic English proficiency” and blaming it on “failed border policy” and Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “failed policies.”

Singh, who crossed the Mexican border to enter the United States, was processed for deportation under the first Donald Trump administration, but claimed to fear returning to India. His work authorization was approved in the first months of the Joe Biden administration.

Asked why he needed to do a job typically done by law enforcement, Collins said he wanted to “make sure this guy goes back to Florida and faces justice.”

Haranguing Newsom’s “failed policies” again, Collins said, “we’re done with that shit.”

Noting that he was part of Florida’s recent mission to fly Americans back from Israel during its brief conflict with Iran earlier this year, Collins said Californians, who were brought back at the expense of Florida taxpayers, voiced concerns about the policy at the Mexican border even as they were being ferried back from a war zone.

“I brought back a lot of people from California, from Israel, when we were out there dodging ballistic missiles. They’re concerned about illegal immigration. Each and every one of them brought it up. And they wouldn’t have voted for me if they could have, frankly,” said the appointed Lieutenant Governor. “They weren’t Republican voters.”

Asked about the perception of his visit as “performative,” Collins called it “hogwash” and offered further criticisms of Newsom.