TALLAHASSEE, Fla — Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody fired back at California Democrats in a letter to the Department of Justice defending Gov. Ron DeSantis and his controversial migrant flights.
The three-page letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland urges the DOJ not to investigate the state of Florida as requested in a July 6 letter from California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Newsom's letter was sent after around 20 people were flown by private jet from El Paso, Texas to Sacramento, California as part of a Florida-funded program.
Moody called the request for investigation "a political stunt, not a legal request."
She emphasized that Florida's migrant relocation program is "voluntary" and that the "immigrants Florida transported gave verbal and written consent to travel to California." Newsom, on the other hand, claimed that the immigrants were lured onto the flights under false pretenses they would get "access to jobs, housing, or other services."
“California’s letter requesting that the U.S. Department of Justice investigate Florida is a ridiculous political stunt. Our voluntary immigration relocation program is lawful, and California’s request fails to identify any violation of federal law," Moody said in a statement. "I thought California loved to tout its commitment to illegal immigrants, but now its governor does not want more immigrants in California, claiming that more of them could break his state—how ironic.”
In her letter, Moody asks why Newsom is only requesting an investigation of DeSantis' program and not other Democrat-led jurisdictions that have facilitated the transport of migrants.
In his original request, Newsom noted that it is not uncommon for local jurisdictions to facilitate travel for migrants who arrive at the U.S. border, but "this scheme is different" because of the way the migrants were deceived.
Moody also speculated that Newsom targeted Florida in an effort to undermine DeSantis' presidential campaign.
"Two career Democrat politicians take aim at the State of Florida because Florida's Governor is running for President and is among the front runners to be nominated to run against the current president," Moody wrote in reference to Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to 10 Tampa Bay's request for comment.
DeSantis has made immigration a focus of his presidential campaign, pledging to get control of the border and flexing his muscles on a signature issue for Donald Trump, his chief rival for the 2024 nomination. The governor also signed a bill earlier this year which provides $12 million to move migrants from anywhere in the U.S. — not just Florida — to anywhere else in the country.
“I think the border should be closed. I don’t think we should have any of this," DeSantis said last month during a visit to the border. “But if there’s a policy to have an open border, then I think the sanctuary jurisdictions should be the ones that have to bear that.”