DeSantis Sending Migrants to Martha’s Vineyard Might Have Been Illegal Under Florida Law

Sarah RumpfSep 15th, 2022, 5:01 pm
 
Ron DeSantis standing in front of an American flag

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) got his name trending on Thursday after sending two charter planes of Venezuelan migrants to Martha’s Vineyard, drawing outrage from his critics and applause from his supporters — but the use of taxpayer funds for the trip might have violated state law.

The Florida governor borrowed the controversial tactic from his Texan counterpart and potential 2024 presidential rival, Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX), who has been busing migrants from Texas to Democrat-controlled cities like Washington, D.C. and New York City, and drawing similar criticism and cheers from the expected sides of the political aisle.

Massachusetts has a Republican governor, but Gov. Charlie Baker (R-MA) is far from a hard-line conservative, including on the issue of immigration, and the posh island community of Martha’s Vineyard is a beloved summer retreat for many prominent Democrats, including former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

The budget passed by the Florida Legislature earlier this year included a section that was among DeSantis’ recommendations, allocating $12 million to the state Department of Transportation “for implementing a program to facilitate the transport of unauthorized aliens from this state.”

The full budget can be read here and the relevant language is in this section on page 494:

SECTION 185. From the interest earnings associated with the federal Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (Public Law 117-2), the nonrecurring sum of $12,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund is appropriated to the Department of Transportation for Fiscal Year 2021-2022, for implementing a program to facilitate the transport of unauthorized aliens from this state consistent with federal law. The department may, upon the receipt of at least two quotes, negotiate and enter into contracts with private parties, including common carriers, to implement the program. The department may enter into agreements with any applicable federal agency to implement the program. The term “unauthorized alien” means a person who is unlawfully present in the United States according to the terms of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. ss. 1101 et seq. The term shall be interpreted consistently with any applicable federal statutes, rules, or regulations. The unexpended balance of funds appropriated to the department in this section remaining as of June 30, 2022, shall revert and is appropriated for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 to the department for the same purpose. This section shall take effect upon becoming a law.

Longtime Florida political reporter Marc Caputo, currently at NBC News Digital after stints at the Miami Herald and Politico, posted several tweets Thursday afternoon highlighting the budget proviso that allocated the funds for transporting migrants “from this state,” noting that would mean Florida, not Texas.

NPR’s report on the plane transport had uncovered that the flights originated in San Antonio, Texas and stopped in Florida on the way to Martha’s Vineyard:

Flight trackers show two flights took off from San Antonio around 8 a.m. local time on Wednesday.

A number of migrants told NPR their flight originated in San Antonio, and that they were being transported to Boston, not Martha’s Vineyard.

One flight took off from San Antonio and made a stop in Florida and South Carolina before landing in Martha’s Vineyard. The second flight also stopped in Florida, but made another stop in Charlotte, North Carolina before landing in Martha’s Vineyard.

Those flights made a brief stop in Crestview, a small town in the Florida Panhandle, Caputo noted, but “[DeSantis’] press shop won’t answer basic questions about any of it.”

The governor had “strongly implied the illegal immigrants were flown out of FL” during his press conference earlier Thursday, Caputo added, including a transcript of DeSantis’ remarks.

DeSantis never directly said where the migrants were from, but did, as Caputo noted, make multiple references to people who come across the border and “a lot” of them “want to come to Florida.”

“[I]f you have folks that are inclined to think Florida is a good place,” DeSantis said, “our message to them is we are not a sanctuary state, and it’s better to be able to go to a sanctuary jurisdiction. And yes, we will help facilitate that transport for you to be able to go to greener pastures.”

“And of course, we are just one state that everybody wants to come to,” he added, saying that Americans were moving to Florida “in record numbers,” along with the visits by both foreign and domestic tourists.

“[P]eople across the border, there’s a lot that say they want to come to Florida,” the governor concluded. “So our message is, you know, we’re not a sanctuary state. We don’t have benefits or any of that. There are some sanctuary jurisdictions, and that would be better. Now what would be the best is for Biden to do his damn job and secure the border.”

The question, of course, is what is the penalty for not strictly following the language of a budget proviso and who would enforce such a thing? Theoretically the legislature might push back on the governor not following the letter of the law they passed, but the Republican-controlled Florida House and Senate have shown virtually zero interest in giving even the slightest nudge to any of DeSantis’ agenda — they wouldn’t even defend their own legislative district maps against his proposed map — so that seems unlikely.

A lawsuit could be filed by state taxpayers to enjoin any further expenditures from the $12 million allocated in that section of the budget, but there is less than two months to go before the 2022 election, making a tough legal battle even more uphill. In the meantime, DeSantis got his Fox News mentions and memes tweeted by his diehard supporters.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law&Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe. Follow Sarah on Threads, Twitter, and Bluesky.