TALLAHASSEE, Fla — As protests in California over federal immigration raids draw national attention and a military response, political fallout is already spreading to the opposite coast. In Florida, Republican leaders are reacting forcefully, denouncing the unrest, praising federal intervention, and using the moment to rally support and fundraising.
Watch full report from Forrest Saunders
Over the weekend, demonstrators in Los Angeles clashed with law enforcement in protests against sweeping immigration raids conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In some cases, the demonstrations escalated into property damage, including vandalism and burning vehicles. That prompted the federal government to deploy the National Guard — and now, a contingent of Marines.
Protesters on the ground voiced outrage at the methods used in the raids.
"You guys are taking people from their homes like ISIS taking people from their homes," one protester told the Scripps News Group. "They're not criminals."
Thousands of miles away, Florida Republicans are seizing on the chaos to highlight policy differences — and to make political points.
"The chaos in California is a stark reminder of why so many Americans are moving to states like Florida,” James Uthmeier, (R) Florida Attorney General posted on X. “We respect and enforce the law and prioritize public safety.”
Governor Ron DeSantis echoed those sentiments during a press conference, framing the protests as evidence of moral and civic breakdown.
“You have some of these people, they're objecting because they don't want to get kicked out of America, and yet they're burning the American flag, and yet they're waving the flag of the country that they don't want to get sent back to,” said DeSantis at a press event in Crawfordville. “Can you please make this make sense to me?”
At the federal level, Florida Republican lawmakers are backing President Donald Trump’s decision to bypass California’s leadership by sending in troops.
“I respect the President's wishes to want a law and order environment to exist in our country,” said Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-FL1). This is why I support the actions he's had towards settling things down.”
Meanwhile, the Florida GOP is using the unrest as a political opportunity. A Monday fundraising email warned supporters if similar protests erupted in Tampa they would be “met with the FULL force of the law.”
“Fellow Conservative,” the email reads, “please help us fight back and show the radical Left. We will NOT let them California our Florida by making a donation today to help keep Florida Free.”
But not all Republicans are in lockstep. In South Florida, State Sen. Ileana Garcia (R-Miami), a co-founder of Latinas for Trump, issued a sharp rebuke of the immigration raids. She called them “arbitrary measures” to satisfy a “self-fabricated deportation goal.”
“This is not what we voted for,” Garcia wrote. “I have always supported Trump, through thick and thin. However, this is unacceptable and inhumane.”
Florida Democrats, for their part, are calling for a bipartisan coalition to resist what they call unjust deportations.
“My heart hurts for our diverse community,” said Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando).
Eskamani said constituents are already experiencing the fallout in her Central Florida district. She cited a recent message from a UCF student whose father was detained.
“His case was then dismissed, and then he was detained, and the rest of his family, they're all US citizens,” said Eskamani. “They've been trying to follow things the right way. And I think that's the reality in this country is that there really is no clear path to citizenship. So we're basically criminalizing individuals that have done everything to the best of their ability, the right way only to learn that the United States every way is wrong, apparently.”
For now, Florida has yet to see protests on the scale unfolding in California. Explanations vary depending on political perspective. Republicans say Florida’s laws are tougher on violent demonstrations. Democrats argue that aggressive policing has discouraged even peaceful protests.
What happens next is anyone’s guess.
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