DeSantis's Leadership Question After Open Carry Fails

Stick a fork in the Open Carry amendment to the Public Safety (CS/HB 543) bill.

Open Carry in Florida is dead on arrival and gun activists are seething mad.

Rep. Mike Beltran introduced his amendment earlier this week and quickly pulled it.

Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R) signaled that she was not in favor of Open Carry, even though Gov. Ron DeSantis supported the measure.

Both President Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner have said in the past the existing measure would work without an open carry measure attached to it.

Gov. DeSantis recently said that he would sign off on open carry if it made it through the Republican-led legislature.

“I like Gov. DeSantis, but quite frankly, the inability to get open carry included in this bill is embarrassing for him,” said gun activist Matt Collins said. “It’s failed leadership and it’s weak. And finally, it begs the question that if the governor cannot get a very friendly Legislature to add open carry to this bill, then how do we think he’s going to do trying to convince Congress to act on anything if he becomes president?”

Collins’ disappointment with DeSantis was echoed by Conservative Laura Loomer, who has been arguably the most outspoken critic of DeSantis.

Loomer stated that she knew DeSantis would not get open carry done, calling a “liar and a showboater” who “supports red flag laws.”

With DeSantis in the process of mounting a presidential run, losing this gun battle could turn out to be costly against someone like former President Donald Trump.