DeSantis's upcoming horror show...
It is indisputable that Ron DeSantis got, as he put it "a win for the ages" on November 8th. In addition to his overwhelming margin against Charlie Crist, Republicans significantly expanded their majorities in the Florida House and Senate, reduced to eight the number of Democrats in the 28-seat state congressional delegation, and he's still sitting on nearly $100 million in unspent campaign cash with which to fund a nascent presidential run.
People in DeSantis' circle are telling the press that a potential presidential campaign is an all but foregone conclusion, but that it wouldn't begin until after the 2023 Florida legislative session, which begins next March. This is going to be an especially consequential legislative session for DeSantis. Emboldened by more durable lawmaking majorities and with something to prove in advance of a presidential run, the upcoming session will be where DeSantis takes his most significant next steps towards fascism in Florida.
Let's look at what DeSantis and his cronies in the legislature might do to further consolidate state power and strip freedoms from average Floridians.
Abortion
DeSantis managed to get through a general election against Charlie Crist without really talking about abortion, despite Crist’s repeated attempts to engage. That silence will certainly be broken in the upcoming legislative session, as conservative supermajorities now rule both chambers. The Florida Senate, historically the more moderate of the two bodies, has already signaled they are open to further restrictions, with incoming Senate President Kathleen Passidomo telling Politico she would be open to a 12-week ban. Passidomo says she wants exceptions for rape and incest, which Florida’s current 15-week abortion ban lacks, but the mere fact that the Senate President has come out so early in support of further restrictions signals more an openness to negotiation from Passidomo rather than drawing some sort of line in the sand on possible exceptions.
Meanwhile, the Florida House is staying mum with incoming speaker Paul Renner’s spokesman saying only that there will be a “sincere and robust discussion about the role Florida will play in protecting life.” Allow me to translate: everything is on the table in terms of further abortion restrictions in the Florida House. In the last session Rep. Webster Barnaby filed a so-called “heartbeat” bill, modeled after the Texas legislation, which would effectively ban all abortions after six weeks, and allow civil suits against physicians. Barnaby’s bill died in committee last year because leadership had decided to plow full steam ahead with a 15-week ban, but expect to see it filed again this year, with more support than before.
Ultimately, it is not a question of if the Florida legislature will enact further abortion restrictions, but what will those restrictions be? This issue is going to require DeSantis putting his finger on the scale, and I’d bet that it’s not in favor of women’s freedom.
Labor Unions
In the panoply of ALEC wish list items, one looms larger than all the rest: “paycheck protection.” Dismantling organized labor has been a long-stated goal of the conservative movement, and megadonor corporate and industrial titans who fund it. This legislation would eliminate the ability of labor unions to collect dues from their members by automatic paycheck deductions. Unions are funded entirely through member dues, and this sort of legislation would have the effect of crippling labor unions in Florida.
So-called “paycheck protection” legislation has yet to pass any statehouse, but DeSantis and his allies in the legislature have been quietly signaling that Florida intends to be the first. There were rumblings about this being brought up in a special session earlier this year, but that never came to pass. Expect the future of organized labor in Florida to be on the chopping block this legislative session.
Voting Rights
Florida has already moved to restrict voting rights over previous sessions, restricting absentee ballot drop boxes, slapping new regulations on voter registration groups and strengthening I.D. requirements at polling places. With DeSantis’ support, the legislature moved quickly to effectively overturn the amendment voters approved in 2018 to restore felons’ voting rights. And DeSantis has, of course, also established the Office of Election Crimes and Security, which he used in advance of the 2022 elections as a cudgel to minority voters into staying home.
Don’t think for a second that Republicans in Tallahassee are going to rest on their laurels when it comes to voting rights. Donald Trump, announcing his third run for president, went as far as to suggest that states move to restrict voting to only election day (Republicans have dominated election day voting since absentee voting surged in the 2020 election). Like abortion, this is not a matter of if, but what?
Guns
Two words: Open. Carry.
Like Texas, the Florida of Ron DeSantis’ second term is poised to be a place where you can walk around with a sidearm on your hip (or an AR-15 over your shoulder). You don’t have to believe me. This is happening.
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And those, folks, are just the highlights of what we can expect this upcoming session. What has been a slow march towards fascism is about to get sped up significantly in the first six months of next year as DeSantis preps his run for president. This legislative session will be a proving ground for his nascent campaign, and DeSantis has shown us repeatedly that what he intends to prove is the extent of his power and reach into our lives and our freedoms.