Ron DeSantis is turning Florida into the blueprint for conservative governance.
But not everyone in his party is on board with his agenda.
And Ron DeSantis got a helping hand in this war against the RINOs in Florida.
RINOs in Florida State Legislature fight against open carry
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been fighting to restore and expand Second Amendment freedoms in the Sunshine State.
The 2018 Parkland shooting led RINOs in the Florida State Legislature to pass a slew of gun control bills.
DeSantis signed a Constitutional Carry bill into law last year but it was missing open carry.
Gun rights activists fought to have it included but were blocked by Republican leadership.
DeSantis said that he would support a special session of the legislature for open carry, but it never got off the ground.
Florida is grouped with anti-gun states like California, Illinois, and New York that make open carry illegal carry in all circumstances.
That is why Gun Owners of America (GOA) is headed to court to get Florida’s ban on open carry overturned after RINOs refused to budge.
GOA filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to have the 1893 law banning open carry declared unconstitutional.
The 1893 law states that it is “unlawful for any person to openly carry on or about his or her person any firearm or electric weapon or device.”
“Despite its reputation as a largely gun-friendly state, Florida inexplicably continues to prohibit the peaceable carrying of firearms in an open and unconcealed manner,” the lawsuit states.
Supreme Court gives Florida an opening to expand gun rights
GOA’s lawsuit cited the Supreme Court’s landmark 2022 New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen decision by pointing out that Florida’s open carry violates historical traditional firearms regulations.
“This blatant infringement of the Second Amendment right to ‘bear arms’ runs counter to this nation’s historical tradition and would have criminalized the very colonists who openly carried their muskets and mustered on the greens at Lexington and Concord to fight for their independence,” the lawsuit explained.
The lawsuit stated that the ban on open carry was outside the norm for states.
“In contrast, the vast majority of states permit the open carry of all manner of firearms (both handguns and long guns), by any law-abiding adult and without any sort of permit at all,” the lawsuit read.
A spokesman from DeSantis’ office told Fox News Digital that he supported open carry legislation, but the state legislature would not act on the issue.
RINO Florida State Senate President Kathleen Passidomo opposed open carry and other pro-gun legislation.
She cited the Florida Sheriffs Association’s opposition to open carry for her decision.
GOA Florida state director Luis Valdes ripped Passidomo’s excuse.
“As a 15-year law enforcement officer, I find such a statement ludicrous, especially for the fact that the rest of the country has open carry, and their cops can deal with it without a problem,” Valdes said.
Florida could bypass the anti-gun RINOs in the State Legislature to expand gun rights if GOA’s lawsuit succeeds.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
