Ron DeSantis—The FULL Interview on 2024, Donald Trump, COVID, the Border Crisis, Education & more.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Interview

In this interview, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis discusses his potential presidential candidacy and his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Potential Presidential Candidacy

• Governor DeSantis is a popular and controversial figure who is likely running for president.

• Betting odds suggest that if he were to run and be nominated, he would have a better chance of winning than Trump or Biden.

• Polls show that in swing states, DeSantis beats Biden, which may contribute to his high betting odds.

Leadership During COVID-19 Pandemic

• Despite criticism from the media and others, Governor DeSantis made decisions based on what he thought was right for the people of Florida during the pandemic.

• He allowed people to make their own decisions regarding masks and lockdowns, resulting in lower excess mortality rates compared to other states with strict lockdown measures.

• Governor DeSantis criticizes other governors who put their political gain ahead of children's lives during the pandemic.

The Damage of Locking Kids Out of School

Governor Ron DeSantis discusses the damage caused by locking kids out of school during the pandemic and how Florida's approach differed from other states.

Florida's Approach to Mask Mandates in Schools

• Governor DeSantis explains that Florida never mandated masks in schools, but some local jurisdictions did.

• Local police departments were going to fine people for not wearing masks, so Governor DeSantis used his clemency power to kneecap them.

• Parents had the choice whether or not to send their kids with a mask.

Personal Freedom vs. Corporate Imposition

• Governor DeSantis explains that big corporations were imposing vaccine and mask mandates, which threatened personal freedom.

• He argues that individuals should be the ultimate arbiter of these decisions rather than corporations.

• While businesses have certain regulations they must abide by, customers also have freedoms to choose.

School Choice in Florida

• Florida leads on school choice with $8,000 that any parent can take to a private school or switch to another public school.

• Public schools have improved as a result of school choice because they know parents have empowerment to make a choice.

School Choice and Immigration

In this section, Governor DeSantis discusses school choice and immigration policies.

School Choice

• Parents have the ability to choose where to send their children to school.

• Competition among schools leads to better education outcomes.

• Schools want to attract more students for financial reasons.

• Mask mandates in schools should not be based on fear but rather on evidence-based analysis.

Immigration

• Declare a national emergency and mobilize all departments including the Department of Defense.

• Reinstitute "remain in Mexico" policy for illegal immigrants.

• Do not entertain asylum claims coming across the southern border as most are bogus claims.

• Build a border wall to channel people into ports of entry where personnel can keep the country secure.

Open Borders and Immigration Policies

Governor Ron DeSantis discusses the issues with open borders and immigration policies in America.

Wealthy Enclaves vs Poor Towns

• Poor towns in Texas have to deal with thousands of people coming through, while wealthy enclaves like Martha's Vineyard couldn't even have 50 come in.

• Open borders just don't work, and we need to get away from Biden's policy.

• Using women, children, and families as political pawns is incredibly inhumane.

Martha's Vineyard Residents

• The media criticized DeSantis for being cruel by using people as literal pawns in a power play.

• Most of the people who went to Martha's Vineyard were thankful to be there because they didn't have opportunities elsewhere.

• It was inconvenient for the residents because they had to decide whether their virtue signaling was empty or not.

Immigration Policies

• The bulk of people crossing the border are being trafficked by drug cartels and promised an ability to stay in America illegally.

• A process needs to be put in place so that we know who is coming into our country and that they are serving the needs of American citizens.

• Legal immigration takes years, and our current system has nothing to do with merit or talent. Merit-based immigration would be a better approach.

Florida Bans Teaching About Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity

Governor Ron DeSantis discusses Florida's ban on teaching about sexual orientation or gender identity in public schools.

Don't Say Gay Law

• Florida banned public school teachers from teaching about sexual orientation or gender identity first K through third grade. Now even 12th grade is included.

• The legislature is adding through eighth as the statutory prohibition, and DeSantis supports it.

• The reason for the ban is to protect children from being indoctrinated with certain ideologies.

Inappropriate Topics in Schools

Governor Ron DeSantis discusses how topics such as transgender and sexuality are not appropriate for schools. Parents should have these discussions with their children, but they should not be part of the core curriculum.

Inappropriate Topics

• Transgender and probing students' sexuality are inappropriate topics for schools.

• The focus is on traditional education, leaving these topics to parents to discuss with their children.

• These issues can come up in school situations, but they will not be part of the core curriculum.

• Focusing on these topics takes away from academic subjects like math.

Sex Education in Florida Schools

Governor Ron DeSantis explains that sex education is not required in Florida schools. School districts can choose whether or not to teach it.

Sex Education

• Sex education is not required in Florida schools.

• School districts can choose whether or not to teach it.

Misleading Narratives

Governor Ron DeSantis addresses the media's portrayal of the "Don't Say Gay" law and how it has been misrepresented.

Misleading Narratives

• The media calls it the "Don't Say Gay" law, which is a misleading narrative.

• Polling shows that many parents across the board support focusing on traditional education rather than including controversial topics in the curriculum.

America's Biggest Issue

Governor Ron DeSantis believes that America's biggest issue is going broke and discusses how Florida's balanced budget requirement has helped.

America's Biggest Issue

• America's biggest issue is going broke.

• Florida has a balanced budget requirement, which helps prevent overspending.

Discretionary Spending and Budget Cuts

In this section, the speaker discusses discretionary spending over the last five or six years and how it has contributed to the current state of the budget. He also talks about the need to cut spending and return it to pre-Covid levels.

Discretionary Spending

• Discretionary spending refers to what Congress does on a yearly basis, including special projects for states and entitlement programs.

• Starting with Covid, there has been a significant increase in discretionary spending due to bills like the CARES Act and Biden's American Rescue Plan.

• The federal government has inflated currency by increasing money supply, leading to inflation. The interest on debt is now a massive line item that needs servicing.

Need for Budget Cuts

• To reduce spending, we need to return it to pre-Covid levels. There is a lot of money that hasn't been spent from Covid-related funds that can be clawed back.

• Florida uses zero-based budgeting where agencies have to justify their budgets each year instead of automatically adding what they got last year (baseline budgeting).

• Even holding constant or reducing the rate of increase would make a difference. Republicans have promised reductions in certain departments like education which should be a state issue rather than federal.

Reducing Federal Bureaucracy

In this section, the speaker talks about reducing federal bureaucracy through attrition and firing employees.

Departments to Cut

• The Department of Education should be a state issue, not federal. Commerce has a lot of bloat, but there are some necessary things like the Census.

• Reducing the number of bureaucrats is also important.

Reducing Federal Bureaucracy

• The federal bureaucracy can be reduced through attrition by not backfilling positions over time.

• The executive branch has the authority to fire more people than we've been led to believe.

The Role of Government Departments

In this section, the speaker discusses the role of government departments and their effectiveness.

Agriculture Department

• The Agriculture Department has been built up over the years with different programs.

• The speaker questions why we need a department for agriculture.

• It is difficult to remove such departments due to their strong support in Congress.

Energy Department

• The speaker questions the purpose of the Energy Department and its effectiveness.

• He believes that it has turned into an anti-energy department, making it harder to produce necessary energy.

• Discretionary spending on such departments is small compared to entitlements.

Restructuring Entitlements

• Congress can take action with enough votes to restructure entitlements.

• The trajectory of these programs needs to be considered when making changes.

• Changes should not affect those currently receiving benefits but should be made for younger people who have an opportunity to make decisions in their lives.

Restructuring Entitlements and Media Bias

In this section, the speaker talks about restructuring entitlements and media bias.

Restructuring Entitlements

• The retirement age should be raised as part of restructuring entitlements.

• Attacks from Democrats are misplaced as they suggest that promises made to elderly constituents will not be honored.

Media Bias

• The media has become more partisan in recent years, pursuing a certain agenda.

• This is not out of character for most American history where newspapers were stridently partisan.

Ron DeSantis and Trump Ad

In this section, Ron DeSantis talks about a satirical ad that he ran during his campaign for governor of Florida. The ad featured him reading to his children while promoting President Trump's agenda.

Satirical Ad

• Ron DeSantis ran a satirical ad during his campaign for governor of Florida.

• The ad featured him reading to his children while promoting President Trump's agenda.

• The goal was to get notoriety and cause the press to go berserk.

• The media ran the ad for them because they were so upset that it was a pro-Trump ad.

Military Spending and Foreign Policy

In this section, Ron DeSantis talks about military spending and foreign policy. He believes that there is too much bureaucracy in the Pentagon that needs to be reduced. He also thinks that we need a clear rationale for using military force and a concrete identification of what victory means.

Military Spending

• There is too much bureaucracy in the Pentagon that needs to be reduced.

• We need a clear rationale for using military force and a concrete identification of what victory means.

• Our foreign policy establishment has wanted to do things like Syria, which are more amorphous and not really grounded in our core national security.

Drug War

In this section, Ron DeSantis talks about drug war policies. He believes that there should be more focus on interdiction and holding cartels accountable. Additionally, he thinks there should be more focus on the demand side, including programs in schools to educate children about the dangers of drugs.

Drug War Policies

• There should be more focus on interdiction and holding cartels accountable.

• There are strong penalties for fentanyl supply, but there is still an opportunity to do more on interdiction.

• Programs in schools can help educate children about the dangers of drugs.

• The coordinated opioid response network tries to treat people with addiction.

Central Bank Digital Currency

In this section, the speaker discusses the potential dangers of a central bank digital currency and how it could lead to a cashless society where all transactions are monitored by the government.

Displacing Cryptocurrency

• The Central Bank digital currency aims to displace all cryptocurrency because they cannot control it.

Supervisory Jurisdiction

• A cashless society would mean that the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department would have supervisory jurisdiction over all transactions, which is concerning from a privacy perspective.

Imposing Ideology

• The Central Bank digital currency could be used to impose ideology through the economy, leading to a situation where views are superimposed on individuals. This could result in restrictions on certain purchases or activities.

Total Disaster

• The speaker believes that a central bank digital currency would be a total disaster due to the risks associated with being in a cashless society and having all transactions monitored by the government.

Executive Order on Responsible Development of Digital Assets

In this section, the speaker reads from President Biden's executive order on responsible development of digital assets and discusses concerns about its impact.

Protecting Consumers, Investors, and Environment

• The executive order claims that it will protect consumers, investors, and environment but there are concerns about what criteria will be imposed with digital currency.

Independence of Cash

• Cash provides independence as it allows individuals to make transactions without depending on someone else. It is also private unlike digital currency which can be monitored by authorities.

Risks Associated with Digital Currency

• There are risks associated with being in a cashless society, such as the possibility of an EMP attack or power outages. The speaker believes that the risks associated with a central bank digital currency far outweigh any proposed benefits.

Pushback Against Central Bank Digital Currency

In this section, the speaker discusses how Florida is leading the pushback against a central bank digital currency and why it is important to protect citizens from unilateral actions by the Treasury or Federal Reserve.

Congressional Authorization

• The Federal Reserve claims that they would only implement a central bank digital currency after consulting with legislative and executive branches and getting specific congressional authorization. However, the constitution requires Congress to authorize such actions.

Protecting Floridians

• The state of Florida has passed laws protecting its citizens against unilateral actions by either Treasury or Federal Reserve since they do not have the authority to do so without congressional approval. Other states like Texas are also pushing back against a central bank digital currency.

Role of Federalism

• The speaker believes that federalism involves a back-and-forth between federal government and states, and it is important for states to push back against things they believe are not good for their citizens.

DeSantis on Central Bank Digital Currency

In this section, Governor DeSantis discusses the corporate press's reaction to his views on central bank digital currency and why organizations care so much about it.

The Corporate Press Reaction

• When Governor DeSantis started talking about the dangers of privacy and central bank digital currency, the corporate press began promoting conspiracy theories that he was trying to advance.

• These outlets hate him, but they care about central bank digital currency because it could help them advance their ideology of having more central authority and supervisory power over the average American.

Why Organizations Care About Central Bank Digital Currency

• Elizabeth Warren believes legitimate digital public money could help drive out bogus digital private money. However, she rejects any type of digital asset that is not controlled by a central authority.

• The U.S. financial system is still old school when it comes to moving money around, according to Wall Street Journal. However, Governor DeSantis disagrees and thinks America has fared well.

• Organizations don't like Bitcoin or other decentralized assets because they don't control them.

Governor DeSantis on Modernizing the Financial System

In this section, Governor DeSantis talks about modernizing the financial system and how some people are opposed to it.

Modernizing the Financial System

• According to Wall Street Journal, America's financial system is old school when it comes to moving money around.

• There are opportunities for people to do different things in finance that some organizations don't like such as Bitcoin or other decentralized assets.

Opposition to Digital Assets

• If digital assets are so good, why are some people opposed to them? The reason is that they don't control them.