Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis recently announced the immediate suspension of a Florida state attorney, Andrew Warren, after he failed to enforce state laws regulating abortion and dealing with crime.
“Our government is a government of laws, not a government of men,” said DeSantis. “We’ve seen across the country over the last few years individual prosecutors take it upon themselves to determine which laws they like and will enforce, and which laws they don’t like and don’t enforce.”
DeSantis pointed to places like San Francisco and Los Angeles, where recall elections have been held over left-leaning prosecutors who didn’t enforce laws. Far-left billionaire George Soros helped fund prosecutors in both jurisdictions.
According to a Washington Examiner report, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon saw a 46% increase in homicides in his city during its first year in office. He received $4.7 million from a Soros-funded political action committee (PAC) and faces a recall over his policies of choosing not to enforce most drug and gun crimes and downgrading felonies.
In June, San Francisco voted overwhelmingly to recall San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin, who also received financial support from a Soros-funded PAC. This amounted to a clear-cut rejection of his policies of declining prosecution of “quality of life” crimes such as camping on the streets and public urination and doing away with cash bail.
According to a press release from DeSantis’s office, Warren was suspended under Article IV, Section 7 of the Florida Constitution. He said the suspension followed a statewide review, which found that most cases of laws not being prosecuted or enforced could be traced back to Warren’s office.
“He has put himself publicly above the law,” said DeSantis. “State Attorneys have a duty to prosecute crimes as defined in Florida law, not to pick and choose which laws to enforce based on his personal agenda. It is my duty to hold Florida’s elected officials to the highest standards for the people of Florida. I have the utmost trust that Judge Susan Lopez will lead the office through this transition and faithfully uphold the rule of law.”
Gov. DeSantis appointed Hillsborough County Judge Susan Lopez to take over for Warren.
DeSantis closes the gap in Republican polls
DeSantis has closed the gap with Trump in Republican polls after his strong Covid-19 response. In Florida, a poll conducted on July 15 projects DeSantis bashing Trump at the ballot box. Thirty-three percent of Republican voters in the Sunshine State said they’d back Trump in the 2024 presidential election, while 51 percent support DeSantis, according to the Victory Insights poll. The rest were undecided.
A Wisconsin straw poll in May also showed DeSantis with a 38 percent share of a more far-reaching pool of GOP candidates. Trump closely followed with 32 percent, with former U.N. Representative and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in a distant third.
Likewise, in New Hampshire, where the first presidential primary is traditionally held, Trump trailed DeSantis by 2 points, with DeSantis securing 39 percent voter support there. The University of New Hampshire Survey Center poll was conducted in June.
