GOP Congressman Tries to Lure Fox News to a 'Free' Red State: 'Escape New York'
With Buffalo buried under snow, New York City awash in crime, and Albany filled to the brim with Democrats, a Florida lawmaker said Fox News would be more at home in someplace other than a bastion of blue-state liberalism.
Republican Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida made the pitch this week during the Patriot Awards, held in Hollywood, Florida. The awards are a Fox News tradition to honor everyday Americans and first responders for their heroism.
Just made the pitch to @FoxNews to escape New York & move to the Free State of Florida! pic.twitter.com/1zi3uPLLKg
— Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (@RepCarlos) November 18, 2022
Welcome to South Florida, @FoxNews!
Great to be LIVE on Fox & Friends from the @FoxNews Patriot Awards. pic.twitter.com/Y0dOZH3Ybp
— Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (@RepCarlos) November 18, 2022
“I’m glad they’re here in South Florida, inviting them to stay here in South Florida and move from New York,” Gimenez said in a Twitter video.
“I don’t think they’re going to take me up on it, but I think it’s a good idea,” he said, while tweeting that he “just made the pitch” that Fox News should “escape New York & move to the Free State of Florida!”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said blue states bleed residents on taxes.
That’s a contention borne out by the State Tax Index, which noted New York is 49th in the nation in its Business Tax Climate Index. Florida is fourth.
This us NY millions screwed over by NYC. I’m counting down the days till my kids graduate and I can move to Florida. NY can keep their bad politics and high taxes. pic.twitter.com/6bo1KjLCf3
— T the Destroyer of Democracy #walkaway (@TBH0622) November 10, 2022
“They tax and regulate, so they repel people to leave their state,” DeSantis said in a March interview, according to the New York Post. “The base shrinks, so they got to do it again to try to square the circle. And you just can’t have it. So states like Illinois, New York — they are in a tailspin and they’re not probably going to be willing to change their policies.”
DeSantis noted that Florida does not coddle criminals.
“A lot of families were like, look, I need to live in a state that’s a law-and-order state,” he said. “So the number of people I run into from, like, Washington state or Minnesota who say one of the breaking points for them was the fact that crime was going through the roof.”
In an Op-Ed on Fox News, Christopher Rufo noted how DeSantis has made Florida a hotbed of conservative activism and economic growth.
“He has advanced a substantive agenda to rein in left-wing ideologies in Florida’s institutions, passing significant higher education reforms, new curriculum guidance for K–12 schools, a ban on gender theory in grades K–3, and the Stop W.O.K.E. Act, which restricts critical race theory-style racial scapegoating in large institutions, including corporations,” Rufo wrote.
“His administration has continued Florida’s rise as an economic powerhouse, counted votes in the midterms within hours of the polls closing, and led recent disaster-recovery efforts with skill and efficiency. After Hurricane Ian, the government deployed thousands of linemen, quickly restored power, and rebuilt a vital bridge in three days.
“DeSantis understands that maintaining essential services is the foundation of good government, and he has built a team to manage the complexities of administration,” Rufo wrote.
Gimenez noted in a recent Fox News interview that conservatives need to unite.
“What we have to do as Republicans is come together. The adversary is not us. The adversary is Joe Biden and his administration. The adversaries are the Democrats and their crazy policies. That’s who we should be focused in on, not each other,” Gimenez said.
“We have two years to figure it out. The good people from the Republican Party will figure out who their candidate will be, then we all need to get behind that person, and make sure that a Republican is the next President of the United States.”
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