NEAR TEL AVIV, Israel, (WSVN) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he’s taking a stand against hate, as he opened up about various issues during his visit to Israel.
Cameras captured the moment the governor signed an antisemitism bill in Jerusalem, Thursday.
“All right, that’s in the books. We’re fighting back,” he said as he held up the bill he signed into law.
Florida State Reps. Michael Caruso from Delray Beach and Randy Fine from Melbourne applauded as they stood next to DeSantis.
“It’s sad, but [antisemitism] is escalating, and we need to nip it in the bud and put it to rest right now,” said Caruso.
The law increases penalties for hate-based vandalism and criminalizes projections onto buildings without the owner’s permission, like one spotted scrolling on the outside of TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville during a college football game back in October.
The law also categorizes flyers, like anti-Jewish pamphlets thrown on driveways and front lawns across the Sunshine State, as litter, making it a crime.
“If you want to walk down the street with a sign that says, ‘Put Randy Fine in the ovens,’ you can do that. It’s not against the law; it’s America,” said Fine, “but you can’t litter, you can’t graffiti, you can’t prevent someone from going to synagogue. You can’t do these things.”
The bill signing was a small part of the governor’s visit. His Israel stop is just one in a mission to promote Florida business, his office said.
But in anticipation of a possible presidential run, his trip would also likely raise his international profile.
During a speech at the Museum of Tolerance, the governor promoted pro-Israel policies.
“We must support Israel’s right to defend itself. We must also ensure that, however the future political winds may blow, the U.S. Embassy will always be right here in Jerusalem,” he said.
But DeSantis also didn’t shy away from praising his potential presidential rival, former President Donald Trump.
“The Trump administration – Iran was on the ropes. The Iran deal, that sent a great signal to the Sunni Arab states,” he said.
But with a national run in the offing, questions moved beyond the Middle East.
The governor responded to reports of a Guantanamo detainee who remembers a young Naval Officer DeSantis witnessing force feedings, which some human rights groups call torture.
“How would they know me? OK, think about that. Do you honestly believe that’s credible?” said DeSantis. “So this is 2006. I’m a junior officer. Do you honestly think that they would have remembered me from Adam? Of course not. They’re just trying to get into the news because they know people like you will consume it, because it fits your preordained narrative that you’re trying to spin.”
The governor also weighed in on Disney’s lawsuit against him for what the company called “weaponizing government power” after Disney came out against Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, referred to by critics as “Don’t Say Gay.”
“They had no accountability, no transparency, none of that, and that [Reedy Creek Improvement District] arrangement was not good for the state of Florida. We did not think that that should continue, so we now brought accountability,” said DeSantis.
The governor’s next stop is the United Kingdom.
While DeSantis made his remarks from Israel, his office in Tallahassee was served a summons from Disney.
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