Ahead of the Iowa caucuses, Florida Democratic Party Nikki Fried swiped at two Florida men seeking delegates.
Fried served as Florida Agriculture Commissioner during Ron DeSantis’ first term as Florida Governor. She also campaigned with President Joe Biden against former President Donald Trump. She dished on both DeSantis and Trump as both rally support in the Hawkeye State.
“Take it from a Floridian — our country can’t afford another four years of Donald Trump, but Ron DeSantis isn’t the answer either,” she said. “A Trump or DeSantis presidency would be an absolute disaster for our pockets and our freedoms. They’ve already failed Florida — don’t give them a chance to fail America too.”
She especially laid into DeSantis. Fried previously said she felt optimistic when both won statewide office in 2018 that they could work together, but frequently ended up at odds with the GOP leader.
“As Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture from 2019 to 2023 — and as the only elected Democrat on the Florida Cabinet — I had a front-row seat to Ron’s failures as a leader,” she said.
“Florida’s affordability crisis is out of control — inflation here is nearly double the national average, our property insurance rates have skyrocketed by over 400%, and rent prices are spiraling out of control. Ron could be putting forward policies that help keep money in people’s pockets, but when he laid out his priorities at his State of the State speech last week, he didn’t mention a single one.”
She said he prioritized right-wing social issues over Floridians’ priorities like reducing health care costs, and she expects the same right-wing pandering if he’s elected President. She also hit him on an issue rural Iowa voters may hold dear.
“And don’t let him fool you when he says he cares about America’s farmers — he’s ignored the needs of Florida’s farmers by passing bills that decimated their workforce and refusing $100 million in federal funding to protect and conserve farmland,” she said. “Every farmer I’ve ever talked to would rather he spend less time on made-up culture wars and more time protecting their industry.”
But she offered no praise for Trump, either, who she sees as a corrupting force in traditional Republican politics.
“I’m a lifelong Democrat, but I was raised by a Republican — and I remember what the Republican Party used to stand for,” she said.
“As leaders in today’s GOP, Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis have warped the party platform beyond recognition. The party that once valued small government and fiscal responsibility is now obsessed with inserting the government into private medical decisions and giving ridiculous tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy. Under Ron’s leadership, Florida Republicans have made a mockery of the Bill of Rights and passed the largest budgets in state history.”
Of course, the Democratic leader said voters in Iowa and elsewhere will be better off staying the course and re-electing Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“In just three years, the Biden-Harris administration has lowered healthcare costs, invested in American infrastructure, and created millions of new jobs,” she wrote.
“They’ve fought to protect our right to make private decisions about our health care without interference from the government, and they’re committed to safeguarding democracy from extremism. For all of our sakes, we must give them a chance to finish the job and continue delivering results for the American people.”
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