Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) is once again chiding President Joe Biden (D), saying that he’s “here to lead, not follow.” As DeSantis’ Democratic challengers gear up for a primary in August, the Governor is instead directing criticism at President Biden and Dr. Fauci, who announced that he’d be retiring at the end of President Biden’s term.
Governor DeSantis issued a message to supporters, criticizing “Biden’s Democrat allies.”
“Do you remember Biden’s Democrat allies in the legacy media running to cover for Dr. Fauci by supporting unscientific lockdowns and the harmful masking of our children?” DeSantis asked, adding, “or the Biden administration blatantly and disgracefully colluding with Big Tech to silence free speech and cancel all dissent during the pandemic?”
DeSantis, who has long argued that Florida remains the “freest” state in the country, recently stated, “as Governor of Florida, I reached out to and spoke with some of the best scientists and doctors in the world at Harvard, Stanford, and Oxford to assess the necessity of the Left’s destructive lockdown policies.”
The Governor argued that “the data showed the Left’s draconian policies were failures, and I kept Florida open. And I’m glad I did.”
Saying that “every American has a right to work,” DeSantis also affirmed that “every business has a right to operate.”
In turn, DeSantis commented that his goal has been to oppose Democrats, adding that he “didn’t let the grass grow under my feet before turning the Tallahassee establishment upside down.”
Since President Biden’s inauguration, Governor DeSantis has taken part in a rivalry with him and Dr. Fauci, putting them at odds with the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic. With the 2022 midterm election fast approaching, Dr. Fauci has already announced his retirement, and the election is largely viewed as a mandate of President Biden’s term in office.