Bill to have Floridians pay Trump legal fees draws veto threat from Ron DeSantis

A Miami Republican says she’ll drop a push to have Florida taxpayers help foot former President Donald Trump’s legal fees after Gov. Ron DeSantis came out in opposition to her bill.

State Sen. Ileana Garcia, R-Miami, authored a proposal that would grant up to $5 million to the Republican frontrunner, who has been indicted four times. The bill, filed Jan. 5, doesn’t name-drop the presidential hopeful, but says the funds would be provided to “qualified persons” who have been “subject to political discrimination” to “pay for legal fees incurred as a result of criminal charges brought by a U.S. public entity.”

For a person to qualify, the bill states, they must meet the presidential eligibility requirements and be a legal resident of the state.

Trump is the only president in American history to have faced criminal charges.

Trump is charged in two federal cases, one related to the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol and the other related to the alleged mishandling of highly classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. He’s also charged in Georgia with racketeering over attempting to subvert the 2020 election results and in New York with falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments.

The money would come from the Freedom Fighters Trust Fund, which Garcia filed a bill to create. According to the proposal, the distribution of money would be based on the severity of the charges — as well as the “causal connection” between the charges and the defendant’s political affiliation.

SB 1740, which would create “grants for victims of political discrimination,” has been introduced and referred to three committees. Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis backed the idea, which quickly drew criticism from Democrats on Monday as media outlets began to report on the legislation.

“What this shows you is who the Florida GOP is loyal to, because it’s certainly not the people of Florida,” Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried said in a statement. “They’re quick and ready to dole out up to $5 million dollars for Trump, but have yet to put forward a solution to our property insurance and housing crisis, the 4,000-teacher shortage, or the crippling costs of healthcare because the legislature simply refuses to expand Medicaid.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis, however, made clear Monday night that he’s against the proposal, noting on the social media site X that he wields the veto pen. Garcia, who did not respond to a Miami Herald request for comment, then said online that she would withdraw her bill.

“This bill was filed on January 5th amidst a crowded primary, including two Florida residents,” Garcia posted from her own account on X. “My concern was the political weaponization against conservative candidates, and while @JimmyPatronis brought me this bill at a time when all candidates were committing to campaign through the primary, one frontrunner now remains, and he can handle himself. I will be withdrawing the bill.”

This article has been updated to include reactions from DeSantis, Fried and Garcia.