DeSantis: Florida is 'the Iowa of the South'

May 31—PELLA — Laws recently passed by a Republican majority in the Iowa legislature have earned the state the nickname "the Florida of the North" — but 2024 presidential hopeful and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis posited in Pella on Wednesday that his home state had possibly become "the Iowa of the South."

DeSantis praised Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Republican Iowa legislature for making the party's "conservative ideas and principles" a reality. Recently, Reynolds signed an extensive education law that restricts educators from teaching about LGBTQ topics, including instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity before seventh grade; bans books in schools that include descriptions or depictions of sex acts; and gives parents the "constitutionally protected right" to make decisions in the education of their children.

"I wish the elites in [Washington] D.C. would learn a thing or two about what Iowa is doing. Instead, they are plunging our country into the abyss," he said. "We are going in the wrong direction as a country."

Sun Valley Barn was just one of four stops for the Florida governor's first full day on the campaign trail after announcing his run for presidency last week. Sen. Ken Rozenboom and Rep. Barb Kniff-McCulla, along with Marion County Supervisors Mark Raymie and Kisha Jahner were in attendance.

DeSantis and his campaign are on a mission to "restore sanity" to the United States, both culturally and legislatively.

"American decline is not inevitable; it's a choice," he said.

If elected president, DeSantis promised to reverse President Joe Biden's immigration, energy and economic policies, including building a border wall to block illegal immigrants from seeking asylum in the states at the Mexico/United States border; replace Christopher Wray, the current director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and continue to promote "conservative ideas and principles" across the country like he has in his home state.

DeSantis has passed legislation in Florida banning classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, transgender athletes from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity and requiring school staffers or students to refer to people by pronouns that don't correspond to the individual's sex.

He has also signed a bill banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. However, that bill won't take effect unless Florida's current 15-week ban is upheld in an ongoing legal challenge at the state Supreme Court.

"When we say that we will do things, we are not making just idle promises or putting out platitudes like typical politicians. If we say we will do it, we will follow through," he said.

As his speech came to a close, DeSantis pledged to "wage a war on woke."

"The woke mind virus represents a war on truth," he said. "As president, we will wage a war on woke. We will take on those companies. We will take on things like ESG [environmental, social and corporate governance]. I will fight to make sure our education system is focused on the basics. We will never, ever surrender to the woke mob, and we will leave woke ideology in the dust of history."

Fifteen-year-old Gabe Kauzlarich was impressed with DeSantis, stating that if he was of voting age, the Florida governor would get his vote.

"He's a man who is true to his word," Kauzlarich said.

The DeSantis tour

The governor is opening his campaign trailing Trump in the polls. He's also for months been dogged by criticism that, while he's comfortable on stage and in official settings, he can seem halting and awkward when interacting with regular voters.

Displaying a personal touch that resonates with voters is vital in states like Iowa. That's a departure from Florida and its large, expensive media markets, where television advertising is often more important than on-the-ground campaigning.

Trying to position himself as the most formidable alternative to Trump in the crowded-but-still-forming Republican White House primary field, DeSantis didn't mention the former president by name in Salix. But he said the Bible emphasized the importance of being humble.

"The tired dogmas of the past are inadequate for a vibrant future. We have to look forward," DeSantis said. "We can't look backwards. We must have the courage to lead and we must have the strength to win."

At his second stop, about 80 miles or 130 kilometers to the south and inside a Council Bluffs events center, DeSantis told a crowd of several hundred — many standing throughout his remarks: "We have to dispense with the culture of losing that we've seen throughout the Republican Party."

In a further indirect swipe at Trump's continued influence over the national GOP, DeSantis said in reference to the bipartisan deal to raise the nation's borrowing limit, "We should have 55 Republican senators right now, if we had played our cards right over the last few years, so we can't make excuses."

The governor launched his campaign with a glitch-filled online kickoff last week and held his first official Iowa event Tuesday night before an energetic crowd of roughly 500 gathered inside a suburban Des Moines church. Speaking to reporters afterward, he pushed back against the former president in a way he had not before on the national stage.

DeSantis accused Trump of essentially abandoning "America First" principles on immigration, supporting coronavirus pandemic-related lockdowns and generally having "moved left" on key issues. And DeSantis laughed off any criticism the former president had lobbed his way over his leadership in Florida, particularly on the state's response to COVID-19.

"Hell, his whole family moved to Florida under my governorship," DeSantis said. "Are you kidding me?"

Trump and his allies have unleashed a fresh round of anti-DeSantis attacks, sharing new polls finding the former president is the heavy favorite in the GOP race and taking aim at DeSantis' leadership during the pandemic. A pro-Trump super PAC is also running ads on Iowa television accusing DeSantis of wanting to raise taxes, which the governor denies.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Emily Hawk is the associate editor of the Ottumwa Courier and the Oskaloosa Herald. She can be reached at ehawk@ottumwacourier.com.