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Business Manager: Brendan Flaherty

Email: bflaherty1@umassd.edu

Ron DeSantis has occupied the position of 46th Governor of Florida since 2019. Since his introduction, he has established many rules and laws that many consider outrageous.

As a former Navy Lieutenant and original Floridian-raised child, he grew up very much on the Republican side of the political realm. He also established himself as an ally of Donald Trump, thus backing all of his ideals.

DeSantis has run for Congress multiple times and even ran for President in 2024 but dropped from the race in January.

So what kind of unique rules and laws is DeSantis attempting to put into position, and why should the average American care?

For starters, he has been an instrument in banning books in American schools. Though it didn’t originate with him, he has been carrying the hateful ideal and has been using it as his political campaign focus.

In an article from The Associated Press, it was reported from the PEN America group, which has been fighting book banning, that “Florida is responsible for 72% of the books that have been pulled from the nation’s schools.”

In fact, during DeSantis’s campaign for presidency, he talked heavily about the reorganization of education systems in the country, effectively working to make challenging books in schools easier for people.

Since the beginning of this law, many parents have been able to challenge any book that the schools offer through a complaint as many times as they want and as often as they want.

“Challenging” a book is essentially where any individual can complain about what is present in the book’s contents and thus have it removed from the school or library that it resides in.

Unfortunately, this is where the hatred and the bigotry shine, where books including “LBTQ+ identities, that include characters of color, that talk about race and racism, that include depictions of sexual experiences in the most broadest interpretation of that understanding” are banned from public access, according to Kasey Meehan, Pen America’s Freedom to Read program director.

Although, according to a recent article from The Boston Globe, said that DeSantis “signed into law on Tuesday a bill that will limit ‘the number of books and classroom materials that can be challenged in school districts.’”

So why would DeSantis backtrack on this law and rework it to work against what his party originally wanted (being more control over the literature that children had access to)?

While it is not officially confirmed, many ideas have sprouted from his switch-up.

According to a CNN article, DeSantis acknowledged that “some school districts in the state may have gone too far” in regard to the removal of books from schools.

DeSantis also replied that banning books from schools was being used as a political weapon against the Republican party and that the idea that Florida bans books is a “false narrative,” according to Carlos Suarez and others in a CNN article.

Alongside the controversial book-banning changeup, DeSantis has also continued his campaign against the availability of abortions for any patient at any point.

As stated in an MSN article, DeSantis went on to criticize a recently cleared abortion rights amendment, calling it “incredibly radical’ and allowing ‘abortion up until birth.”

For reference, the amendment simply states that abortions cannot be restricted, delayed, or outright prohibited for the safety of the patient’s health.

Although DeSantis’ statement does have some truth to it, where technically abortions are available up until birth, it is highly unlikely and is not something that would happen.

However this amendment is not without its complications. Only certain kinds of abortions are allowed under certain circumstances.

For example, continuing from the article from Romy Ellenbogen, “Two doctors sign off that the abortion procedure is needed to ‘save the pregnant woman’s life’” is one way in particular for someone to get an abortion in Florida.

While this is certainly a step in the right direction for many, this topic has been up for discussion for a long time.

DeSantis continued his campaign against the availability by signing a six-week abortion ban that is to take effect in May, according to ABC News.

Again, for reference, the ban states that no abortion can be had after the first six weeks of pregnancy, again creating an extremely hostile and dangerous place for women in the state of Florida.

ABC News reports that the White House commented on the ban, saying that it “flies in the face of fundamental freedoms and is out of step with the views of the vast majority of the people.”

While DeSantis claims to have very honorable goals and intentions, he has simultaneously managed to reverse previously harmful rules and move forward on more controversial and harmful laws.

It could be assumed that DeSantis is merely trying to find solutions that abide by his morals and accomplish his goals, all while being liked by the people.

It can be hoped that one day, all Americans can reach a common goal of trying to do what’s best for everyone, not simply on man’s agenda.

As America draws ever closer to the next voting period for the next presidential candidate in 2024, one can only hope that they have the American people’s best intentions at heart and that they will make the best decisions possible for the country as a whole.