Fascistic Florida governor Ron DeSantis is once again being condemned by Cuban-Americans who arrived to the U.S. as children through Operation Pedro Pan. The program brought thousands of unaccompanied minors to the U.S. from Cuba in the early 1960s.
Cuban-Americans had previously slammed DeSantis for saying it was “disgusting” to compare Central American children arriving to the southern border in search of asylum today with children of Pedro Pan (it’s actually DeSantis, and not that specific comparison, that’s disgusting). During a press conference last week, former children of Pedro Pan again condemned DeSantis, this time for a despicable plan to bus migrants out of the state.
RELATED STORY: Florida Republican walks back anti-Cuban migrant remarks, says she meant to attack other migrants
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“The busing program, which DeSantis has placed on standby, is designed to transport ‘unauthorized aliens’ out of Florida through contracts with private companies," Miami Herald reported. DeSantis, in his thirst to be president, has tried to copy and paste the anti-immigrant policies of Texas’ Greg Abbott, in addition to copying and pasting the physical mannerisms of the insurrectionist former president (example: accordion hands). “It is unclear whether DeSantis intends to roll out the program any time soon, even though the Legislature set aside $12 million for it,” Miami Herald continued.
The state’s lieutenant governor, Jeanette Nuñez, enthusiastically supported busing Cuban migrants to Delaware as some sort of punishment for the president, until the ensuing firestorm forced her to walk back the remark. Sorta, basically saying that she meant those other kind of migrants, not Cuban migrants.
Nuñez’s remarks were also a focus of former Pedro Pan children and Democratic officials during the press conference last week. One former Pedro Pan child said she’d actually known Nuñez’s close family, and that this was not a person she recognized anymore. “She was not like that in the past,” Alicia Pelaez said in the report. “I cannot believe that ambition is putting her down this path.” Elena Muñoz, another former Pedro Pan child, pointed to Nuñez’s family background. Nuñez is Cuban-American and the daughter of exiles, Miami Herald reports. “Thanks to her father, she is here,” Muñoz said.
But Nuñez doesn’t have much of a defense, instead criticizing the words of the former Pedro Pan children as “political theater.” No, she’s thinking of anti-immigrant stunts by DeSantis. Nuñez also launched into some of the more popular GOP tropes of late, including so-called “open borders,” and the non-existent ties between migrants and fentanyl. All together now: it’s overwhelmingly U.S. citizens who are getting caught (keyword: caught) smuggling drugs across the border. This is happening at ports of entry, not in between.
DeSantis, in remarks reported by Miami Herald, repeated similar lies that don’t need to get repeated again here. However, he did say that Cuban migrants shouldn’t have to worry about his busing plan. “It applies to people illegally crossing the southern border who want to come to Florida,” he claimed. But seeking asylum is legal immigration. The thousands of individuals and families that have been bused from Texas to other regions of the U.S. by Greg Abbott have already been processed by federal immigration officials. You’re not making any sense, Ron.
“His base hates immigrants, and this city was created by immigrants, and we should value immigrants,” Democratic state Sen. Annette Taddeo said during the press conference. But the Republican Party of Florida is running a reprehensible ad targeting Democratic gubernatorial nominee Charlie Crist for a vote he cast in the U.S. House to permanently protect undocumented young people. Three House Republicans from Florida—Maria Elvira Salazar, Carlos Gimenez, and Mario Diaz-Balart—also voted for the bill. The ad doesn’t mention them.
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