Dem
51
GOP
49
As long as we are on the subject of Ron DeSantis, lets talk about a situation that is becoming a real anchor around his neck: the flights of immigrants from Texas to Florida (for a brief stopover) to Martha's Vineyard.
Just to review, the whole thing really stinks to high heaven. It is unclear whether a brief stopover between Texas and Martha's Vineyard was enough to satisfy Florida state law. It is also unclear why the migrants were flown, at enormous expense ($1.6 million), by an air charter company with close ties to the Governor. It is unclear why DeSantis' point person, when it came to organizing the whole stunt, took steps to cover his tracks, including using burner phones and an anonymous Gmail account.
In any event, the Governor has brought a peck of legal trouble upon himself and his administration. And so, the state has retained two high-profile, $650/hour law firms. Thus far, the two firms have billed $122,000 in fees, but the retainer agreement says that each will be able to bill up to $500,000.
There were a total of 48 immigrants on the flights, and thus far the state has spent about $1.72 million. That's a bit more than $35,000 per immigrant. If the two law firms reach their cap (and when was the last time a law firm didn't bill the full amount possible?), then the price tag will be $2.6 million (or more), which works out to a bit more than $54,000 per immigrant.
This is an example of what we meant in the above item; that DeSantis has some black marks on his record that are going to require explanation. The Democratic talking points write themselves: "How come you didn't just buy each of them a Tesla, Ron?" or "Why not transport them on a luxury cruise ship—it would have been way cheaper?" or "Florida must not have any hungry or homeless people, or it would not be able to afford to blow $2.6 million like this!"
Ultimately, we just don't think DeSantis has any idea what it's going to be like under the world's biggest and most powerful microscope, should he choose to run in 2024. His experience in Florida, where the local Democratic organ is pretty feeble, is no preparation for what lies ahead. (Z)