In a video more reminiscent of a horror movie than a campaign promotion, team DeSantis unveiled the Florida governor’s new “No Excuses” immigration policy.
The video, complete with a terrifying soundtrack was underscored by various news reports making statements such as “some not old enough to walk but have already traveled hundreds of miles,” and “drugs coming across the border here are fueling an unprecedented epidemic across the country, the toll of which can be counted in the skyrocketing number of overdose deaths.”
A tweet from the DeSantis War Room account on Twitter stated: “We will secure the border. We will stop the cartels. We will stop the invasion. NO EXCUSES.”
Undermining Trump
That last line was no doubt a jab at former president Donald Trump who, throughout both campaigns, vowed to build a wall along the southern border but failed to deliver on his promises. According to an article in the Atlantic, “tens of thousands of steel slats, once destined to become part of [the] border wall are slowly rusting in the open air throughout the southwestern borderlands.” The 18 or 33-foot long hollow posts are worth at least a quarter of a billion dollars, says the article.
The War Room account also posted photos of the border without a wall asking, “You tell us. Does the wall look built?”
In Eagle Pass, TX, a stop on his tour of the Texas-Mexico border earlier this week to announce his immigration plan, DeSantis himself reiterated his commitment to do what he claims Trump failed to do.
“If you don’t fix it this time, I don’t think it’s ever going to get done and so we will do it. We’re more aggressive in terms of our plan than anything [Trump] did in empowering local officials to enforce immigration law.”
Ron DeSantis Blames Biden
DeSantis laid equal blame at the current administration’s feet, calling the recent flood of illegal immigrants an “invasion” and the skyrocketing deaths of Americans from fentanyl overdoses a “dereliction of duty.”
“We’ll reverse every one of them,” referring to Biden’s executive authorities when it comes to the border.
“The parole he’s doing is unconstitutional. He’s abusing the law to basically change the law to allow people to have an open border. So all that goes away on day one. We’re going to have a new sheriff in town on January 20th, 2025.”
Support From Sheriffs
The governor is putting his money where his mouth is. While he can’t do much as governor about the wall, he can and did announce a national coalition of dozens of sheriffs that will join forces to protect American communities against the ongoing immigration crisis.
In support of DeSantis, a statement from the coalition says they will step in to replace the role of the federal government that “is purposefully unwilling to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.”
The letter was signed by sheriffs from some of the states that have been hit hardest by the lax application of immigration law including California, Colorado, Maryland, Illinois, New York, and Oregon. Other states to sign include Florida, South Dakota, Maryland, Arizona.
The sheriffs praised DeSantis for preserving the safety and well-being of citizens by “deploying members of their national guard, highway patrol and state law enforcement to the border,” as well as his controversial decision to transport illegal immigrants to self-proclaimed sanctuary jurisdictions in states like California and New York.
Another War on Drugs
In their rallying cry, the sheriffs’ letter stated: “We can no longer sit by and watch our nation become overrun by gang activity and drug-related violence.”
In addition, DeSantis pledged to get tougher regarding the opioids surging across the border.
“We’re going to lean in against the drug cartels. They didn’t really do anything in prior administrations to hold the drug cartels accountable. I think we need to do that and we will do that robustly.”
DeSantis told those listening to his plan in Texas that he supported the use of “deadly force” against suspected drug traffickers.
“We are going to treat the Mexican drug cartels as the threat that they are.”
Many seem to be supportive of DeSantis’s tough stance. One resident from Eagle Pass stated, “I really think that the man is very sincere in his message.”
In another video, Ron DeSantis affirms, “We are going to be the administration that finally brings the issue of our southern border to a conclusion.”
For the sake of the country, we should hope voters offer him a chance to follow through on his declaration in 2025.
Jennifer Galardi is the politics and culture editor for 19FortyFive.com. She has a Master’s in Public Policy from Pepperdine University and produces and hosts the podcast Connection with conversations that address health, culture, politics and policy. In a previous life, she wrote for publications in the health, fitness, and nutrition space. In addition, her pieces have been published in the Epoch Times and Pepperdine Policy Review. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
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