Facing an increasingly uphill campaign, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is starting to amp up his criticisms of former President Donald Trump, including in a border security plan he unveiled Monday. DeSantis appeared to reference Trump during a speech in south Texas by saying that leaders of “both parties” are always “chirping” about problems on the border, but “never getting the job done.”
To be sure, DeSantis focused his attack on Democratic President Joe Biden and did not mention Trump by name. But before he can run against Biden, he has to catch Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. While agreeing with Trump on many immigration policies, such as ending birthright citizenship, DeSantis also proposed items that he believes the last Republican president left undone, including completion of a border wall with Mexico and more aggressive moves against drug cartels.
On the border
Border issues are particularly important to Republican voters. The subject played a large role in Trump’s rise to the presidency during the 2016 presidential campaign. DeSantis’ biggest echo of Trump is the proposal to end birthright citizenship, the constitutional declaration that any child born in the United States is automatically an American citizen. But changing that would likely require a constitutional amendment. A simple executive order would probably be struck down by the courts.
Some of DeSantis’ other proposals − including a plan to send more U.S. troops into Mexico to fight drug cartels − would require cooperation from other countries. The Florida governor also made other familiar-sounding proposals to end “catch-and-release” programs and restore a “Remain In Mexico” policy, which requires asylum applicants to remain in that country while their claims are being processed in the U.S. DeSantis also proposed pay increases for the Border Patrol.
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