California’s Governor, Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has recently pointed a finger at Florida’s Governor, Ron DeSantis, a Republican, alleging that DeSantis was involved in the unauthorized transportation of 16 immigrants. These individuals, who were sent from New Mexico to Sacramento, California, reportedly landed without any prior arrangements for their reception.
As per the Los Angeles Times, the group of immigrants, originally from Venezuela and Colombia, were first moved by bus from El Paso to New Mexico. From there, they embarked on a flight to Sacramento. Upon arrival, they were left at the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento’s premises last Friday.
This event prompted a statement from California’s Attorney General, Rob Bonta, on Saturday. Bonta condemned Florida’s government for allegedly facilitating the relocation of these immigrants, who initially crossed the U.S. border into Texas.
This incident comes against the backdrop of a significant rise in immigration since President Joe Biden’s inauguration. Texas, for instance, has adopted a strategy of distributing certain immigrants to other states and cities, with a preference for so-called “sanctuary cities” managed by Democrats.
In a similar vein, Florida has also previously relocated immigrants that were initially brought into the state. During the fall of last year, Governor DeSantis dispatched a flight full of immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard, known as a retreat for the Democratic Party’s upper echelons. The island, despite signs expressing a warm welcome to immigrants, found itself unable to accommodate the newcomers and subsequently moved them to a shelter at a mainland military base within a day.
Newsom, who is known for his frequent social media engagement with conservative governors like DeSantis, publicly accused DeSantis of “abduction” on Monday. However, no concrete evidence has been presented to substantiate his involvement in the alleged incident.
Newsom, despite having faced criticism for taking a vacation in Mexico during severe blizzards earlier this year, has not directly addressed the broader issue of immigration or the state’s extensive welfare provisions for illegal immigrants.
It’s worth noting that California authorities have yet to disclose any documents that would implicate Florida in the matter. Interestingly, the immigrants in question never set foot in Florida.