DeSantis's Florida shows the disaster of more competent Trumpism
The Trump policy agenda but with less drama and more competent execution.
Thats the platform most GOP presidential hopefuls are presenting to primary voters. The idea seems to be that by toning down former president Donald Trumps more vaudevillian, law-skirting qualities, candidates can lure away the traditional conservatives who think of themselves as prioritizing pro-life values, adherence to the Constitution, limited government, fiscal restraint and religious freedom.
Unfortunately, no shift in style can obscure the fact that a truly Trumpian agenda serves none of these lofty principles. It subordinates them to one single goal: owning the libs and other disfavored groups. And were already seeing proof of concept, since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has lately been implementing such an agenda in his state with an efficiency that shows how much more Trumpism undercuts conservative values when it doesnt have incompetence to hold it back.
Take DeSantiss draconian new anti-immigrant law, which took effect last month. It was supposed to demonstrate how a more disciplined government executive could deliver on Trumps unfinished economic and cultural agenda. But evidence available so far suggests its undermining values that conservatives say they care about.
Among other measures, the law requires hospitals to interrogate incoming patients about their immigration status, and then report the resulting data back to the state. Unsurprisingly, this has had the effect of discouraging immigrants and their family members from seeking potentially lifesaving medical treatment.
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