Florida Republicans escalate talk of safety risk posed by ‘criminal’ migrants

Amid a growing crisis in Haiti that could push Haitians to take to the sea to come to Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republicans in the state are increasingly characterizing the possibility of that situation and the presence of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. as a threat to Floridians.

At a press conference on Friday, DeSantis signed legislation that aims to crack down on illegal immigration by banning local community IDs that have historically benefited some migrants in places like Miami-Dade County, and by enhancing criminal penalties for migrants who drive without a license or who have previously been deported.

The Republican governor also amplified how his administration — preparing for what it calls a possible “invasion” — is helping patrol the South Florida shores in an effort to stop migrants at sea. DeSantis acknowledged that a surge of migrants has not materialized amid the situation in Haiti, but he said the state needs to be “proactive” and “prepared” to respond to a potential mass migration event.

“It’s the same thing we do when we have hurricanes,” DeSantis said, while noting his focus is on “protecting Floridians.”

The tone of the press conference — one of urgency and alarm — underscores how the politics of immigration is once again taking center stage in the minds of Florida Republicans, who are blaming President Joe Biden’s administration for the border security issue and endangering Americans.

“There is no doubt our country is less safe,” Attorney General Ashley Moody said. “Not a day goes by that you don’t see someone that has been harmed by someone here illegally that should not be here, was not vetted when they came across or they just escaped all detection.”

Another guest at the press conference, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, said that undocumented immigrants “are coming here not just to find a better way of life like many of our forefathers did, but they are coming here to kill our people while they make enormous profits,” in reference to the fentanyl crisis.

Research has shown that immigrants are convicted of crimes at lesser rates than U.S.-born Americans. A 2023 study from Stanford University analyzing over a century of Census data found that immigrants are 30% less likely to be in prison compared to white Americans, and 60% less likely than people born in the U.S. overall, including Black Americans.

In recent days, Republicans have amplified fears about the possibility of a surge of Haitian migrants.

Republican U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott sent a letter to Biden on Friday saying that while they have compassion for the Haitians, they are concerned about how the Biden administration will respond to the risks of a potential “migratory crisis.”

“We must consider this danger due to the numerous reports of gangs committing jailbreaks in Haiti and releasing thousands of dangerous criminals,” they wrote in the letter, which also asked Biden to provide more information about how his administration plans to respond to the matter.

In right-wing circles, there has also been chatter about cannibalism among criminal gangs in Haiti that stems from years-old videos posted by gang members intending to frighten their rivals. The isolated videos were never verified, and the State Department has said it has seen no credible evidence to substantiate the allegations. The claims are so baseless that X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, removed a video circulating widely online even after its CEO, Elon Musk, had shared it himself.

‘Those illegal aliens were turned over’

The DeSantis press conference came days after he announced he will be sending hundreds of state officers and soldiers to South Florida, along with helicopters, drones and boats, to help the U.S. Coast Guard stop migrants at sea.

It builds on an executive action from last January when the governor deployed Florida law enforcement agencies after hundreds of Cubans and Haitians started landing on the shores of the Florida Keys.

On Friday, DeSantis said the state has already had successes in stopping migrants at sea this year. He referenced a Feb. 29 event in which Florida Fish and Wildlife officers intercepted a 42-foot boat carrying 25 undocumented migrants from Haiti near Sebastian Inlet in Central Florida. There were five unaccompanied children among those passengers.

“Those illegal aliens were turned over to the Coast Guard for deportation,” DeSantis said.

The state agency waited to announce the seizure until the governor’s press conference was ongoing. The agency said officers found guns, drugs and night vision gear on the boat. The boat’s captain and one other passenger were American citizens.

Since that event, there have been other interdictions of Haitian migrants, including one by the U.S. Coast Guard near the Bahamas and another in Turks and Caicos by the islands’ police force. However, the Department of Homeland Security said earlier this week that irregular immigration in the Caribbean remains low for now.

Republican sheriff amplifies immigrant arrests

On Friday, Judd brought out a poster that said “federal policy drives illegal immigrant crime and victimization.” He also waved a small beige colored-banner with the words “BS flag” as he scoffed at the media reporting that immigrants who are in the country illegally don’t commit crimes at greater rates than Americans.

“Well, listen, if they weren’t here they couldn’t commit any crime, right? And they’re committing hundreds of thousands of crimes. And that’s just the ones we’re arresting them for. So I throw the “BS flag” on that,” Judd said.

He mentioned a seizure of ten kilos of fentanyl that authorities traced back to Mexico. Three men from the neighboring country were arrested during the operation. The drugs had originally passed through a house in Compton, but Judd alleged that law enforcement there did not assist them with entering the residence.

“The criminals are winning in California. The criminals are winning in New York. Governor DeSantis said that the criminals are not going to win in Florida,” he said.

In a separate recent human trafficking bust coordinated by Judd’s office, authorities arrested 228 people. Nine percent of the arrested were undocumented immigrants, said Judd, adding that some of the victims were from Venezuela.

In relation to Judd’s fentanyl comments, government data shows that between October 2021 and September 2022, 88% of fentanyl trafficking offenders were U.S. citizens, according to the U.S. sentencing commission. It was around the same percentage of Americans the previous year.

McClatchy’s Chief Washington Correspondent Michael Wilner contributed to this report.