Florida Republicans Admit They Made a Big Mistake With Anti-Immigrant Law. The farmers are mad as he

[riversedge]

DeSantis wanted the bill and Repugs jump everytime he says something.
we will all feel the effects eventually---fruit, honey, watermelons---food prices will go up and up




Florida Republicans Admit They Made a Big Mistake With Anti-Immigrant Law. The farmers are mad as hell. We are losing employees. They’re already starting to move to Georgia and other states. June 5, 2023/4:15 PM

Link to tweet

?s=20


Florida Republicans Admit They Made a Big Mistake With Anti-Immigrant Law
Republicans are trying to convince immigrants that the law was just to “scare” people, nothing more.



Aerial view of a bee farm, with boxes everywhere. One man stands in the midst of it.



..........................................

On Monday, Representatives Alina Garcia, Rick Roth, and Juan Fernandez Barquin hosted an event sponsored by Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo, also a Republican. The trio, all of whom voted to pass the anti-immigrant bill, clumsily attempted to appeal to the thousands of people their party has alienated.

“This bill is 100 percent supposed to scare you,” said Roth. “I’m a farmer, and the farmers are mad as hell. We are losing employees. They’re already starting to move to Georgia and other states. It’s urgent that you talk to all your people and convince them that you have resources, state representatives, and other people that can explain the bill to you,” he added, essentially begging Florida’s labor force to not leave the state that cares little for them.

“This is more of a political bill than it is policy. It does give more police state powers going forward to deal with immigration, but still this is mainly a political bill,” Roth concluded incoherently. It’s just politics and messaging, but also it ramps up the police state, but also it’s just all politics. OK.

“We had the best president in my life, the last 30 years, and I’m still supporting Donald Trump,” Roth continued. “I love my governor. He’s the greatest governor,” he said of Ron DeSantis, who led the charge to pass a bill stigmatizing and targeting the some 772,000 undocumented workers, students, and community members in Florida..........................

[EYESORE 9001]

1. Good luck getting DeFascist to listen, farmers

Your guv is busy running for office so he can ruin the entire nation.

[Dustlawyer]

9. Alabama did this a few years ago. Perfect example of not learning from history.

I saw a video of an Alabama farmer showing immigrants harvesting watermelons like clock work. He then hired American citizens to do the job and they were goofing off, busting melons and quitting at the end of the first day because it was too hard. The bill was quickly rescinded.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Easy solution: Vote to reverse

Super Majority to override veto.

[CatWoman]

3. Georgia pulled the same stunt some 10 years ago

The Law Of Unintended Consequences: Georgia's Immigration Law Backfires

To forgo a repeat of last year, when labor shortages triggered an estimated $140 million in agricultural losses, as crops rotted in the fields, officials in Georgia are now dispatching prisoners to the state’s farms to help harvest fruit and vegetables.

The labor shortages, which also have affected the hotel and restaurant industries, are a consequence of Georgia’s immigration enforcement law, HB 87, which was passed last year. As State Rep. Matt Ramsey, one of the bill’s authors, said at the time, “Our goal is … to eliminate incentives for illegal aliens to cross into our state.”

Now he and others are learning: Be careful what you wish for, because you may get more than you bargained for.

Georgia’s law, similar to those in Alabama, Arizona and a few other states, gives police the authority to demand immigration documentation from suspects when they detain them for other possible violations. The law also makes it more difficult for businesses to hire workers and creates harsher punishments for those who employ or harbor illegal immigrants.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/05/17/the-law-of-unintended-consequences-georgias-immigration-law-backfires/?sh=257aa4f492aa

[TheBlackAdder]

12. I remember that. They thought teens would work the hot 100 degree fields for a few bucks an hour.

.

A lot of peaches and other produce went to rot.

.

[Ferrets are Cool]

4. "We had the best president in my life"

# 1 Fuck You!
#2 read between the lines...we are losing our cheap labor force. please stop. but we still love DeSantis.


FUCK YOU. You can't have it both ways, assswipe.

[calimary]

37. THIS!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes learning a lesson hurts. Too bad it can’t be confined to just hurting only these cold-hearted lunkheaded jerks.

The hurt affects LOTS more people, including everybody down the line from the growers - all the way to the consumer level at the grocery stores.

[Ferrets are Cool]

44. And, imagine having to move because of hatred. It has to be devastating.

[CaptainTruth]

39. +1,000,000

[progressoid]

52. Yeah, no shit.

These people's fealty to their hatred is sickening.

[Diamond_Dog]

5. So, why is he still in love with deSatan?

On edit

Ferret comment #4 said it way better.

[Baitball Blogger]

14. Because none of it has yet trickled down to the price at the groceries.

That's the only time that these idiots can see cause and effect. And the Florida Democrats had better be prepared to remind everyone why the prices are going up, because you know Florida Republicans will blame it on Biden.

[TheRealNorth]

31. Yup

Need to get in front of the messaging on this one.

[Mr.Bill]

51. And when it does

they will say it's inflation caused by Biden.

[Baitball Blogger]

59. That's exactly what they're going to do.

[Ferrets are Cool]

45. ...

[Diamond_Dog]

46. 😀

[hildegaard28]

6. It ramps

Up the police state, but it's just politics...Ok. It has real world consequences that will impact everyone's lives, but it's ok, it's just politics. Republicans are pretty much admitting that they're in favor of a police state.

[yardwork]

7. Rick Roth is a complete moran.

[Marcuse]

8. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

[Johonny]

10. They're doing what they campaigned on

And I voted for them. It's insane that I'd be mad at this, yet somehow I am. Said the farmer.

[Baitball Blogger]

11. Republicans have always been living a lie when it comes to undocumented immigrants.

All those Republican farmers in the rural areas of Florida that were rah-rah with their anti-immigrant sentiments, adding more fuel to the hate pyre, were living in deep hypocrisy. And now the chickens have come to roost.

[Goonch]

13. 👇👇👇👁️👁️

[bottomofthehill]

15. They are pissed that other states are getting to exploit their undocumented labor

Where the hell are the Floridians supposed to find help that they can treat like shit, pay below minimum wage and not give healthcare to and still get their crops picked???

I feel awful for the farm owners. What are they to do?

Sarcasm thingy added.

[treestar]

16. It should be legal for these people to work

Of course, Congress would never pass that.

They are needed as part of the economy, yet kept illegal so as to take advantage of them. They can't complain about violations of the labor laws that way.

The whole system is a stain on this country. If they can get a job that US citizens don't and won't do, then they should have a visa available to them. That at least would be honorable on our part. They'd have the protections of labor laws and get paid at least minimum, so we'd pay higher prices, but at least we would not be doing this dishonest thing.

[UpInArms]

23. Several years ago, a hard right fellow in my area decided to

Last edited Tue Jun 6, 2023, 11:03 AM - Edit history (1)

Bring his verbal knife to my verbal gun fight … it was pretty funny

He was complaining about all the migrants taking all the jobs from good hard working ‘murcans …

I just laughed and asked which of his children he wanted out in the hot sun toiling all day for pennies while they picked tomatoes …

He spluttered, thought about what I asked and was just kind of stunned … cuz he realized I had him …

He later became quite a decent acquaintance who came and talked to me about a great deal of issues …

[treestar]

24. you can get somewhere by

asking the right questions. Rather than argue a case, just ask them a question like the one you did - some of them might start thinking.

[brewens]

17. My Harvest Corps proposal may have been handy here. Years ago, immigrants were a big issue here

in Idaho and I sent my first letter to a politician, our Gov. Phil Batt.

I suggested if we were getting rid of the migrant workers, we have a draft for harvest labor. Any able bodied unemployed working age adult would be eligible. I made sure and stipulated there would be no discrimination. We wouldn't care what your income or wealth was. Rich people too! Not employed and your number comes up and you're on the bus headed for the fields.

[Paladin]

18. Higher watermelon prices are a reasonable price to pay...

...for a severe political wound to Der Santis.

[CousinIT]

19. Maybe...just maybe....

...it's not a good idea to make laws to "scare people" - or because you just hate them. There are consequences to such sophomoric behavior intended to control people. And it certainly doesn't belong in government.

[UpInArms]

20. I am eating your face, said the member of the face eating party

Please hold still and let your dead body hold the next in line for me, as I continue eating faces

[Chi67]

21. Fuck the GQP

More people leaving Florida. I predict by next year, even more Floridians start crying about workers leaving. NO ONE in their right mind wants to live there! It's a fascist hellhole.

[CaptainTruth]

43. As a life-long Democrat & Florida resident who is most certainly in my right mind...

...I was tempted to alert on your post as a divisive attack, but I won't.

I'll just ask that you please not paint us all with the same brush, & if you ever visit where I live I think you'd find my "hellhole" to be quite pleasant. It's why my area is full of tourists year round.

And we FL Democrats are fighting the good fight, trying to open people's eyes.

Thanks.

[Mariana]

58. More people are moving to Florida than leaving it.

It's the biggest MAGAt magnet in the country by far. Thousands upon thousands of Republican voting retired Boomers are pouring into the state every year from all over the country, and there's no end in sight.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

22. making someone's out of state Drivers License invalid is not just political, that's real

[Vogon_Glory]

25. The only way Republican voters can learn that this was a bad idea is

The hard way—with produce shortages and skyrocketing food prices. I’ve given up hope that these people can be reasoned with or will listen to their conscience. They’ll have to learn the hard way— through experience.

Should Ron De Santis and his followers wreck Florida’s economy as badly as Fidel Castro wrecked Cuba’s and Chavez and Maduro wrecked Venezuela’s, maybe a plurality of Florida Republicans will wise up.

Of course I’ve always been over-optimistic. Maybe they won’t.

[Walleye]

26. OK I get it, arrest the immigrants for being undocumented

Incarcerate them, then send prisoners out to pick the fields. In other words, get the same people to work for nothing. Sounds like something from a victor Hugo book

[Renew Deal]

27. That last statement is funny. "Trump was the best and I love my governor."

Basically saying it's DeSantis' fault.

[dembotoz]

28. as much as i am from wisconsin and worship wisconsin beer and cheese

i frankly do not give a shit where my produce comes from.
I try to care but i really don't when it comes to origin.

[GAdem2016]

29. "This is more of a political bill than it is policy"

Fucking idiots. That's the crux of the problem. These assholes see their job as creating political theater.

[Deep State Witch]

30. The Dildo Of Consequences

Seldom arrives lubed.

[Sky Jewels]

40. ...

[ancianita]

32. Yeah but they'll still vote Republican in 2024.

Hoping Democratic numbers go up, or that FL's "No Party" registereds swing our way.

https://dos.myflorida.com/elections/data-statistics/voter-registration-statistics/voter-registration-reports/voter-registration-by-party-affiliation

[Chainfire]

33. Republican have gotten just what they demanded.

Now the crops can rot in the fields and building sites can remain dormant. It is only a matter of time before they blame it all on the Democrats.

[Vogon_Glory]

47. Of course. Personal responsibility isn't something Movement

“Conservatives” really do these last several decades.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

34. Thousands of people marching in Immokalee against Florida's anti-immigrant law

Link to tweet

[Caliman73]

35. "This bill is 100 percent supposed to scare you,"

Idiot Republicans need to ask themselves WHY? Why would they make a bill to, "scare" a group of people? Why would they gamble the viability of their businesses on something so cruel and stupid?

This is the ultimate dilemma of Conservative politics. They are the party of exclusion and subjugation. They NEED a permanent underclass to serve the "betters" but they can't say that out loud or this happens.

They are either ignorant or simply cruel, or both in that they do not understand that people do not just wake up and decide to leave everything they know to come to the United States, just for fun. They come because they see it as their only option to save their own lives or the lives of their families. They count on cheap labor they can exploit, but then turn around and despise the very people that are keeping them rich.

I do not want any harm to befall Floridians who support a better Florida, who are Democrats and did not support DeSantis and the Republicans. I do not want any harm to befall the immigrants either. I do however, want those stupid politicians and the farmers that supported them, to lose their businesses and end up in the soup lines. I want them to suffer the consequences of their stupidity and not recover. I would like them to experience some of the desperation that they exploit in others.

[pandr32]

36. They should have looked into the possible effects of the law--first!

To plow ahead with moves to make headlines and excite your crazy base isn't how laws are supposed to get made. Florida is sinking into 'shit-hole' and there will be more consequences.

[Chainfire]

48. The bottom line is that DeSantis doesn't give a damn who he hurts, he is just proving his

far-right credentials. He hopes to pick up the forever Trump vote if Trump is unable to mount a strong race. He feels like he can ride the radical right minority combined with the never vote Democratic, to the White House. Anything that gets in his way is in danger; he is unrestrained by ethics, morals or laws. The man is evil.

[pandr32]

63. I hope he fails spectacularly.

It may be too late for Florida, though. Crazies have been moving there and lots of long-time reasonable residents are moving away. What DeSantis is doing to Florida's reputation will take a long time to wash away.

[The Unmitigated Gall]

38. Put Governor Shithole in the field.

Better he's picking oranges than fucking the U.S like he's fucked Florida.

[Rabrrrrrr]

41. It's amazing how they never learn - farm owners went apeshit in Bush II's term

about migrant workers not being able to get in to work in the fields.

And they probably went apeshit in the 80s. And numerous times before -

fucking GOP zealot fucks never learn a goddamn thing.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

42. On Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" Stephen Colbert

had the leader of a migrant workers organization as a guest. Colbert -- in his role as a RW talk show host regurgitated the Republican talking points, especially, " Illegal aliens are taking American jobs."

In return he was invited to work alongside farm workers for a day, which he gladly accepted.

Even though it was a comedy show, by working alongside those who do the work every single day he was able to show and not just tell how back-breaking the work was, how miserable the weather conditions (mostly stifling heat) could be, and how many different physically demanding tasks the workers performed. He was also able to show the workers as fellow human beings.

At the end, Colbert had demonstrated that migrant farm workers were not taking jobs from Americans. To the contrary, they were doing work the vast majority of Americans just would not do.

IMO, legislators, congressmen and governors should be required to experience the effects their laws have on real citizens. Let them work the fields for a week or so.

[edisdead]

49. Not a fan of desantis but...

when this topic comes up I always wonder why it is ok to pay migrants less money to do this work for us. Like we are ok creating a secind class citizen to do the work and somehow feel ok having defended their ability to do it.

[Happy Hoosier]

54. It's not always about pay.

Field work sucks.

[edisdead]

55. but in the case I mentioned it is.

And thats the thing that gets me. That we “know” white people won’t do the work because for the difficulty of the work the pay is not commensurate. Why are we of with migrants doing it for that amount?

[Happy Hoosier]

62. Not saying I am, per se.

Everybody, including immigrants, documented or otherwise, deserves a living wage. But it's also true that increased labor costs will increase food costs, which tend to hit poor people the hardest. It's what we refer to as a "wicked problem." No easy answers.

[yardwork]

61. It's not ok. The whole situation is terrible.

[Hekate]

50. It sounds like a pretty spectacular self-own. What idiots.

[Happy Hoosier]

53. They voted for Desatan

And they‘ll vote for the next GQP fascist. They are getting what they voted for.

[Cha]

56. And whose brilliant idea was that?

MoRon deSadist.

[dalton99a]

57. .

[Arazi]

60. Another example why Florida sucks these days

Even stupider, he’s had immigrant labor for many years as a FL farmer and needs an interpreter AND has to use third parties to try to reach his labor force because he hasn’t bothered to take even the smallest steps towards facilitating a relationship with them.

If he had even ONE immigrant employee relationship, he’d have heard first hand how devastating his bill is.