Under the leadership of Gov. Ron DeSantis, recent legislation has brought about a seismic shift in the social order.
Many of these changes resonate heavily with the conservative voice that is all-too-often stifled or needlessly mocked in the national mainstream media.
But the legislation written about in this article, all hot-button issues, serve to 1) protect and defend the most innocent and vulnerable; 2) afford eligible American citizens unfettered access to a constitutional privilege; and 3) stave off the smuggling of drugs, humans and the resulting violence occurring at the U.S. southern crossings. In truth, we should all like to see legislation advance across the states, in one form or another.
Important legislation
The UF College Republicans hope that the current Supreme Court recognizes a practical, moral, and societal obligation and allows the death penalty to be applicable to anyone charged with sexual battery of a person under 12.
The National Library of Medicine produced data showing child sexual predators have high recidivism rates even 15-20 years after their original offense, showing an almost obsessive-compulsive disease.
Darkness to Light published a paper in 2016 outlining research showing one in 10 children will be a victim of sexual abuse before their 18th birthday (an aggregate of both boys and girls). No excuse, rebuttal or argument can explain how death is not a proportional punishment for child rape. The ultimate sentence is really the only sense of closure for the victims and their loved ones.
Among new legislation is the introduction of constitutional carry, which expands the ability of the average citizen to defend themself from both common crime and a tyrannical government.
Many dissenters falsely claimed this bill will hand out firearms like Halloween candy, which is absurd. The prerequisites, including background checks and minimum age requirements, still apply. Convicted felons or people convicted of certain crimes are automatically disqualified from concealed carry. This bill aims to eliminate an arbitrary step needed to exercise one’s Second Amendment right.
UF College Republicans is proud to say DeSantis and Florida lawmakers have been attempting to create a statewide response to the U.S.’ current immigration crisis.
The present state of immigration is, and has been, in complete disarray. In 2022 alone, 2.76 million illegal immigrants were stopped from crossing the border. In response to this uncontrolled and largely ignored issue, Florida has taken matters into its own hands. For example, Senate Bill 1718 imposes that companies are banned from transporting illegal immigrants into Florida for reasons other than detainment, deportation and removal.
While economic arguments are tied to this development involving loss of workers in migrant-dominated fields, there is evidence that earnings are driven down in sectors where illegal immigrants are willing to work for less than average salary and below minimum wage. The social consequences must also be considered in these circumstances such as unabated immigration has been historically linked to the prevalence of higher crime rates. We affirm that DeSantis’ stance on immigration is a step in the right direction to halting the invasion we are seeing at the U.S southern border.
We cannot pay a visit to contemporary Florida policy without discussing the abortion limits recently presented.
Changing the threshold from 15 weeks to the time of a detectable heartbeat, many people, as they have in the past, were in an uproar over the “right” to end an unborn child’s life. The hard truth is that abortion isn’t, and was never meant to be, the convenient birth control method.
Over half of the states currently have abortion laws that do not protect the unborn after fetal viability (or the point at which children can survive outside the womb) with six states having no restrictions whatsoever. After hearing the overzealous defenders of the abortion argument and their willingness and eagerness to end an unborn child’s life even a day before birth, I find it progressively difficult to see the good faith on the other side of this debate.
We are fighting against a constantly changing goal post, so we enthusiastically support Florida’s readiness to unapologetically put its foot down and move away from this stranglehold of supported and assisted homicide.
We can reassuringly say that the state has shown the appropriate response to these matters, and we hope to see Florida continue to act as a powerful bastion of the quality of life many seek to witness in our great nation.
Michael Andre is a UF finance freshman.
