Florida Governor Ron DeSantis slammed an unidentified critic on Thursday after the man blamed his policies for the racially motivated shooting that killed three black people in Jacksonville last month.
The heated discussion took place at an Irish pub in Jacksonville, where DeSantis held a press conference highlighting his pledge not to close schools or businesses as the number of COVID-19 cases rises.
When DeSantis asked for questions from the press, an unidentified man spoke up and said the governor “allowed guns to fill the street” and fall into the hands of “immature, hateful people who have caused the deaths of the people who killed a few times have been killed’. weeks ago.’
“I didn’t allow anything with that,” responded DeSantis, who is running for the Republican presidential nominee. “I will not let you accuse me of committing criminal activity. I don’t accept that.’
“You guys have allowed people to hunt people like me,” the audience member, who is black, continued, prompting a visibly angry DeSantis to respond, “Oh, that’s bullshit.” That’s such nonsense.’
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Ron DeSantis slammed an unknown critic on Thursday after the man blamed his policies for the racist shooting that killed three black people in Jacksonville
“You’ve allowed people to prey on people like me,” said the audience member, who is black, prompting DeSantis to respond, “Oh, that’s bullshit.” That’s such nonsense
DeSantis also berated the critic, noting that the shooter should have been committed to a mental institution well before the shooting.
“You can’t come here and blame me for some lunatic,” DeSantis continued. “That’s inappropriate.”
The man was escorted out of the room as DeSantis continued to speak, praising his public safety record and insisting that his policies had reduced crime.
“The idea that we don’t support security is absurd,” the presidential hopeful said.
It was unclear from images of the event published by NBC news whether the man DeSantis criticized represented a particular organization or news channel, or perhaps was a private individual who somehow ended up at the press conference.
The heated discussion related to the August 26 shooting, in which a white gunman with swastikas on his rifle killed three black people at a Dollar General store.
Shortly before the shooting, the gunman was confronted and turned away by a security guard from nearby Edward Waters University, a historically black school. The gunman committed suicide after barricading himself in front of police.
The shooting reignited criticism of DeSantis from parts of Florida’s black community after the NAACP issued a “travel ban” for the state, saying the governor’s “anti-woke” policies fostered a culture of “open hostility.” towards African Americans and people of color. ‘
Some black community leaders criticized DeSantis for not explicitly describing the killer as a racist during a vigil for the victims of the Jacksonville shooting.
DeSantis was booed at the vigil, where he called the shooter “a major league asshole” and said, “We don’t allow people to be targeted based on their race.”
“Ron DeSantis has repeatedly condemned these racially motivated killings in the strongest possible language,” a DeSantis campaign spokesman told the AP after the vigil, adding, “He will not tolerate racial hatred or violence in Florida.”
The man was escorted out of the room as DeSantis continued to speak, praising his public safety record and insisting that his policies had reduced crime.
The heated discussion related to the August 26 shooting in which a white gunman wearing swastikas on his rifle killed three black people at a Dollar General.
After Thursday’s press conference, Florida black Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo returned to the podium to speak in defense of the governor.
Ladapo, who is black, called the unknown critic “crazy” and stressed that DeSantis is “a good man.”
“It’s appalling that people are taking advantage of the fact that he (DeSantis) has a different skin color than the poor victims of that tragedy to try and tie him into something. It’s immoral,” he said.
The purpose of the press conference was to underline DeSantis’ pledge not to bring back mask mandates or other restrictions as COVID cases begin to rise nationwide.
Ladapo, his general surgeon, also warned about getting the latest COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected to be available this month.
“There are a lot of warning signs,” he said, arguing there was no reason to get the updated vaccine.
Ladapo’s previous warnings against COVID-19 vaccines led to a public letter from federal health authorities saying his claims were harmful to the public.