This past week, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came out with a bold announcement.
He let everybody know District Attorney Andrew Warren, who was serving Hillsborough County near Tampa, was no longer on the job.
DeSantis let him go for a very simple reason. Warren said he would not enforce the law. Specifically, he said Florida’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks was not acceptable to him.
He’s now been replaced by DA Susan Lopez. Though Florida’s left is not going gently into the good night with this one and is throwing a real hissy fit.
Florida’s Democrats React Angrily
DeSantis’ rationale for letting Warren go is that the DA was putting himself “above the law” by stating he wouldn’t prosecute breaches of Florida’s abortion law.
Letting him go is a way for DeSantis to show he’s not just talk on pro-life issues, but for Democrats, it also represents a way to provoke and erode DeSantis’ support.
Florida’s post-15-week ban is not necessarily the fight the Democrats want, since it’s more or less in line with what polling indicates the average Americans support.
Instead, what they’d like is to continue the idea of portraying DeSantis as a tyrant “DeSatan” and so on.
The idea is he scrapped a well-meaning DA for his own conscience and just for saying his beliefs. After all, Warren had not actually failed to enforce the law, he simply said he would not enforce the law.
After seeing how even a deep red state like Kansas kept abortion laws in place, Florida Democrats see an opening to go after DeSantis as extreme and out of touch.
They want to portray him as a tyrant willing to overturn the will of voters and scrap a DA he dislikes just to send a political message.
Important point to clarify what “suspension” means. This is not like a paid administrative leave or whatever. Andrew Warren is no longer the Hillsborough state attorney. We have a new Hillsborough state attorney sworn in today to replace him: Susan Lopez. https://t.co/5R47dFyikZ
— Christina Pushaw 🐊 🇺🇸 (@ChristinaPushaw) August 5, 2022
Florida Dems Call This ‘Our January 6’ Crisis
Never ones to let drama go to waste, Florida Democrats are calling this their own personal January 6, including Hillsborough official Mariella Smith who implied if the left “rolls over,” dictatorship is coming to Florida.
Pat Kemp, a commissioner, added the “extreme abuse” done by DeSantis is all about his “political ambitions” and is completely illegal. It’s actually not illegal.
Congressman Charlie Crist claimed DeSantis can’t read the Constitution, despite going to Harvard and Yale.
Perhaps it’s Crist who has some comprehension problems (among many other issues) since he can’t seem to grasp the laws of Florida are set by the Florida legislature. By saying he won’t do his job, Warren basically handed in his resignation.
DeSantis called his bluff and took him off the field. It’s really that simple.
Florida’s left, in the past, has compared DeSantis to the Cuban regime and many other bizarre accusations with no grounding in reality; however, they certainly show how easy it is to trigger individuals who are completely out of touch with reality.
Ron DeSantis' suspension of State Attorney Andrew Warren does not cite examples of him not prosecuting cases. DeSantis is basing his suspension on Warren saying he will not prosecute people for getting abortions. DeSantis overthrew an election for things that haven't happened.
— Thomas Kennedy (@tomaskenn) August 5, 2022
The Bottom Line
If I have a job and say I will no longer do my job, getting suspended or fired is inevitable. Florida’s left is fighting a losing battle here.
This article appeared in Mainstpress and has been published here with permission.
