Florida Channel screenshot of Gov. Ron DeSantis in Polk County on Jan. 15, 2024.
Two days after Florida’s GOP legislative leaders said that they were not aware of any specific guidance from Donald Trump about his plans to combat illegal immigration, Gov. Ron DeSantis responded Wednesday with a detailed list of proposals he expects the Legislature to approve when it convenes in the special session he has called for later this month.
“We are not approaching the new administration in a lackadaisical fashion,” DeSantis said during a press conference at the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. “We in Florida have a sense of urgency to accomplish this mission, and the mission is very simple. We need to end the illegal immigration crisis once and for all in these United States of America.”
The proposals he said he wants the Legislature to pass during the special session he called for Jan. 27 include:
- Require that city, county, and state law enforcement officers have “maximum” participation in any program to assist the federal government in enforcing federal immigration laws.
- Enact criminal penalties for illegal entry under state law.
- Appoint a state immigration enforcement officer to coordinate with federal authorities.
- Empower local authorities to detain and deport undocumented immigrants.
- Broaden the legal definition of “gang-related activities” so that it includes undocumented immigrants.
- Education and voting reform to discourage undocumented immigrants.
- Tightening voter registration laws to ensure that only Florida citizens can legally vote.
- Increase penalties for undocumented immigrants who commit voter fraud.
- Impose ID verification for foreign remittances.
- Bail and flight risk presumptions when undocumented are brought up on charges.
- Repeal the 2014 law allowing undocumented students to pay in-state tuition rates to Florida colleges and universities.
Attacks on legislative leaders
Throughout the press conference, DeSantis issued implicit (and later explicit) verbal attacks on Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Daniel Perez for their response to him that it was “premature” to host a special legislative session, saying it “appalls me to see these guys run for office, tell the voters what they want to hear, and they get in and they get amnesia.”
Joining DeSantis at the press conference was Attorney General Ashley Moody, Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey, and Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, all of whom trashed the Biden administration’s record in enforcing immigration laws over the past four years and welcomed Trump’s plans for mass deportations to begin shortly after he takes office.
Judd said it is imperative for the Trump administration to eliminate federal regulations that he described as “woke/left.”
“Listen, those of you that are writing for the Trump administration, get that crap out, and let us do what we do best,” he said.
Two DeSantis allies in the Florida Senate — Republican Hillsborough County state Sen. Jay Collins and Hernando County state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia — also joined the governor. Ingoglia sponsored the major anti-illegal immigration bill in the Senate in 2023, strongly pushed by DeSantis at that time.
“We need to go on Day One — ready on Day One — so these guys can do their job,” Ingoglia said, referring to Polk County sheriff’s deputies who stood behind him.
“The Biden administration was literally tearing the walls down and fostering more and more illegal immigration. Now we’re debating whether we want to do this now or wait? … We should not hesitate. We should not equivocate. We should do everything we can working hand in hand with the Trump administration, through our great governor Ron DeSantis, and get this done.”
DeSantis later told reporters that he was “surprised” by the letter that Albritton and Perez wrote on Monday rejecting his call for a special session.
“You’re basically saying that after four years of Biden’s really, really destructive immigration and border policies that it’s somehow premature for us to act with a new president coming in? Are you kidding me? This is the time to act. We don’t have time to wait, and it’s never premature to do the right thing.”
YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.