WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday called for a state sanction against Iran during an event held at a synagogue in Surfside.
"We should use all available avenues to choke off money going to the Iranian regime," DeSantis said.
In a show of support for Israel, the governor pushed the state Legislature for sanctions against Iran.
"The clearinghouse for terrorist funding in the region is something the United States needs to take seriously," the governor said.
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Jimmy Patronis, the state's chief financial officer, echoed those calls.
"What has taken place this last week is just simply not acceptable, and so, the state of Florida will react in the ways we have available to us, and that'll be economically," he said.
Patronis went on to say this is not a first for the state.
"We have got investment sanctions on a number of different countries," he said. "We will make sure that the state of Florida isn't investing in Iran. We'll go as far as contemplating divesting from those companies that do business in Iran. Some of this will take legislative action. Some of it we'll be able to do at the Cabinet level. This is the direction we are taking ... making it loud and clear."
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Kevin Wagner, a political science professor at Florida Atlantic University, painted a broader picture of these proposed sanctions.
"Florida is actually a pretty big state, so depending on the amount of investment a foreign entity has, it can have an impact," Wagner said, "but certainly not as large an impact as a decision by the United States as a whole county."
Brian Crowley, WPTV's political analyst, made note of the fact it's an election season for DeSantis.
"By going after Iran, he's showing a lot of support for the Jewish community, which is not unexpected and something he should do," Crowley said, "but this will only help him enormously politically because people will see he is on the right side of this issue, and that is going to be a big help for him."
