A Democratic senator in Florida is suing Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis for sending dozens of migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard last week.
According to the suit filed on Thursday, State Sen. Jason Pizzo, who represents the Miami region, is accusing DeSantis of violating budget laws by using local funds to transport migrants from another state.
Pizzo’s lawsuit is seeking to ban DeSantis from using state money for any future migrant flights.
The state legislature passed a bipartisan budget earlier this year that set aside $12 million for a program to help “the transport of unauthorized aliens from this state consistent with federal law,” but Pizzo claims in his suit that DeSantis is manipulating the terms because the migrants were never in Florida.
The Democrat lawmaker also argued the migrants are not “unauthorized aliens” because they are seeking asylum and currently have legal status within the U.S.
“This is very clear and straightforward,” he said in an interview. “The governor had legislators carry and pass bills that were designed to suit his agenda and that he subsequently signed into law. And even with that completely privileged position, he still can’t comply with the law. He set the rules for the game and then he can’t follow them.”
This comes after DeSantis sent two full planes of illegal immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts last Wednesday as part of his state’s plan to transport illegal immigrants to sanctuary destinations.
“States like Massachusetts, New York and California will better facilitate the care of these individuals who they have invited into our country by incentivizing illegal immigration through their designation as ‘sanctuary states’ and support for the Biden administration’s open border policies,” a spokesperson for DeSantis told Fox News.
In response, President Joe Biden called on Republican governors to stop sending migrants into Democratic cities, calling such actions “political stunts” and “un-American.”
“Republicans are playing politics with human beings, using them as props. What they’re doing is simply wrong, it’s un-American, it’s reckless,” Biden said. “We have a process in place to manage migrants at the border,” the president added. “We’re working to make sure it’s safe and orderly and humane. Republican officials should not interfere with that process by waging a politically political stance.”
