DELRAY BEACH, Fla. - House Republican Michael "Mike" Caruso (R- Delray Beach) announced on Monday he was removed as chair of the House Economic Infrastructure Subcommittee by Speaker of the House Danny "Daniel" Perez.
Caruso mentioned his vote against the "TRUMP Act" for his ouster. Moreover, he was the only Republican House member to vote against the measure.
"Today, petty, retaliatory measures were taken against me by the Speaker of the House for standing strong and voting against legislation that's bad for Florida and all of America," Caruso said. "The bill the House put forth, simply put, doesn't do what it needs to do."
Specifically, Caruso called the "TRUMP Act", passed by the Florida Legislature, a weak pro-amnesty bill and disingenuously titled. He also noted the bill made no mention of deportation and would allow catch and release.
"Make no mistake about it, this bill was intentionally crafted to mislead Floridians into thinking that it wasn't. It definitely duped the many legislators the many legislators who blindly followed the speaker, just did what they were told they had to do, and didn't even bother to read it," Caruso added.
Caruso also mentioned it was a "Red Flag" to put Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson in charge of illegal immigration. DeSantis later said putting Simpson in charge of immigration was like a "fox guarding the hen house", which Caruso noted was enough for him to vote down the bill.
DeSantis has vowed to veto the TRUMP ACT. Although, there might be signs of cooperation between the Governor and the Legislature.
"I am confident that under the Governor's strong leadership, good legislation against illegal immigration that helps Floridians and is blueprint for the rest of the country, will get heard and it will pass and common sense will prevail," Caruso continued. "Just know that I will stand strong in my convictions and I will never stop fighting for the people of Florida, especially when it comes to illegal immigration."
According to the House website, Rep. Chip LaMarca (R-Lighthouse Point) is the new chair of the Economic Infrastructure Subcommittee.
