Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump are crossing swords over the former President’s First Step Act, a prison reform law.
Former President Trump signed the First Step Act in 2018. According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the intent was “to improve criminal justice outcomes, as well as to reduce the size of the federal prison population while also creating mechanisms to maintain public safety.”
Governor DeSantis’ team has claimed the First Step Act had an opposite effect to than intended. Gov. DeSantis recently blamed President Trump’s signing of the First Step Act for increasing recidivism and letting dangerous criminals loose.
Trump’s campaign recently shot back, alleging DeSantis “voted for the First Step Act and hailed its successes.”
Ron DeSantis voted for the First Step Act and hailed its 'successes.' He now calls it 'the jailbreak bill' https://t.co/Pi6BTWMIFM
— Team Trump (Text TRUMP to 88022) (@TeamTrump) June 28, 2023
Christina Pushaw, DeSantis’ campaign’s rapid response director, refuted Team Trump’s allegations. “The *earlier* version of the First Step Act that DeSantis voted for was not a jailbreak bill. The final version was,” said Pushaw.
You're really doing this again after getting papered with Community Notes last time? The *earlier* version of the First Step Act that DeSantis voted for was not a jailbreak bill. The final version was.
RECEIPTS:
In May 2018, then-Senator Kamala Harris wrote an open letter… https://t.co/JyxnkSOkYZ pic.twitter.com/ZwClPWdCcx— Christina Pushaw 🐊 🇺🇸 (@ChristinaPushaw) June 28, 2023
Pressing further, Pushaw explained how “DeSantis did not vote for” the final First Step Act, which included “jailbreak provisions” and which Trump signed.
The latest from the Trump team includes a tweet seeking to discredit Pushaw by revealing her own previous support for Trump’s prison reform.
Christina - why did you delete this tweet? https://t.co/1xlMwrOn3C pic.twitter.com/2fzXM3Cu6K
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) June 28, 2023
Specifically, the First Step Act permits for eligible inmates to earn “FSA Time Credits” for good behavior which can be applied towards prerelease custody or early release. Inmates would be transferred to residential reentry centers or have their sentence decreased, respectively.
DeSantis did not vote for the final version of the criminal justice reform measure because he had already left the Congress to run full time for Governor in 2018. Would DeSantis have voted for the final version of the First Step Act if he did not quit his job?
Media attention has increasingly hovered over the Trump/DeSantis saga. However, their policies closely resemble each other.
Regarding immigration, for example, DeSantis’ vision for immigration reform closely resembles that of former President Donald Trump. According to a Floridian article, DeSantis wishes to enact similar policies to those proposed by Trump regarding the southern border and birthright citizenship.
