Gov. Ron DeSantis compared himself to a dog biting people’s ankles as the Governor continued to pressure lawmakers to return for a Special Session to crack down on illegal immigration.
“I am not just going to let go. We are going to get this done,” DeSantis said as he has faced opposition from Republican leaders over returning to Tallahassee early.
DeSantis made the remarks Tuesday during a media question-and-answer session following his statements on emergency preparedness for the upcoming Winter storm.
DeSantis said “it’s fine” for legislators to argue, “We’re not going to let the Governor drive the train or all this other stuff.”
“The problem, though, they have is they don’t have a political mandate for that. They ran for election. How many people won a Republican Primary in the last six years saying they were going to oppose the Governor on the agenda? Zero did that,” DeSantis said.
“I can tell you because they asked for my picture to be in their literature. So they ran saying we’re going to support the Governor’s agenda. That’s just the reality. So I have a responsibility to lead on these issues. I can’t just sit idly by. The voters expect me to lead on these issues.”
Earlier this month, DeSantis called for a Special Session to start Jan. 27 in order to support President Donald Trump’s agenda.
However, Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Daniel Perez pushed back and argued a Special Session isn’t necessary without clear direction from Trump.
“Florida’s Constitution compels our attendance at a Special Session unilaterally called by the Governor. However, the power to convene a Special Session also resides with the presiding officers. As the people’s elected representatives, the Legislature, not the Governor, will decide when and what legislation we consider,” the leaders said in a joint statement.
Trump has since backed the Governor’s call, and DeSantis was asked about the situation at his presser Tuesday.
“You can view me as like a dog that’s got you on the ankle on immigration,” DeSantis said, challenging Albritton and Perez.
“The two leaders pointed out the Governor can’t pass legislation. Obviously, that’s basic separation of powers, but I have constitutional authority to call them into Session on these particular issues. They have a decision to make about how they want to handle that. We know what the voters want. They want to get the job done.”
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