Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was roundly criticized by Trump supporters for not responding to their satisfaction to rumors of a possible indictment of the former president, but when reports of the real thing came down Thursday the popular Republican governor was quick to take action.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg followed up on a campaign promise on what many saw as a dark day in American history with the first criminal indictment of a former president over hush money payments supposedly made to porn actress Stormy Daniels leading up to the 2016 presidential election. Bragg drummed up old charges that federal prosecutors decided not to pursue — charges that equate to misdemeanor bookkeeping errors, at best, and upped them to felonies. Trump leads the field to be the 2024 Republican presidential nominee and there can be little doubt that the Democratic prosecutor was politically motivated.
Shortly after news broke that Trump was being charged, DeSantis responded to call the action “un-American” and a “weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda.” More importantly, the governor said Florida “will not assist” in any extradition request by Bragg.
“The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head. It is un-American,” DeSantis said. “The Soros-backed Manhattan District Attorney has consistently bent the law to downgrade felonies and to excuse criminal misconduct. Yet, now he is stretching the law to target a political opponent.”
“Florida will not assist in an extradition request given the questionable circumstances at issue with this Soros-backed Manhattan prosecutor and his political agenda,” he added.
The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head.
It is un-American.
The Soros-backed Manhattan District Attorney has consistently bent the law to downgrade felonies and to excuse criminal misconduct. Yet, now he is…
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 30, 2023
The action comes despite DeSantis having every reason not to do the right thing — which is to resist participation in what amounts to political theater, as few legal minds believe Bragg will be successful in prosecuting Trump. What the DA will likely gain out of the persecution of a political enemy is the much-coveted mug shot, which will be played on a loop from the day the photo is taken until the 2024 election has taken place.
Trump, who lives at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, has been attacking DeSantis relentlessly over the past few weeks and hit with what may be his sharpest blows yet in a video released the day before the Bragg indictment, sounding much like a Democrat to suggest that DeSantis is being aided by the Bush family and that he wants to “destroy Social Security.”
DeSantis has yet to declare his candidacy for the White House, saying he will make a decision in the near future, but he is clearly seen by Team Trump as their greatest rival.
The radical left that’s shredding the very fabric of American society responded to DeSantis’s refusal to play along with the political persecution of Trump by calling him an antisemite for pointing out that Bragg was backed by the billionaire.
(((Soros-backed))) wink wink, you know, don't make me be more explicit https://t.co/xE1i81euig
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) March 30, 2023
Here are a few other responses from dissatisfied liberals, as seen on Twitter:
don’t worry. they’ll come arrest him if he doesnt turn himself in
— Jennifer “Pro-privacy” Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) March 30, 2023
Politicians are indicted all the time. We are a country of laws. Trump is not above the law. Your proclamation that you will not abide by our legal process is alarming, destructive and in my view, disqualifying you from further public office.
— Mia Farrow ️ (@MiaFarrow) March 31, 2023
Couldn’t resist the anti-Semitic “Soros-backed” bit, huh?
— Jeff Matthews MD (@JBMatthews) March 30, 2023
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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