California Gov. Gavin Newsom appeared to take exception with Florida’s policy of sending undocumented immigrants to other states, suggesting on Monday that Gov. Ron DeSantis could be charged with kidnapping.
In the tweet, Newsom called DeSantis a “small, pathetic man.”
“This isn’t Martha’s Vineyard. Kidnapping charges?” Newsom said, adding a screenshot of California’s kidnapping law.
The text of the California law Newsom tweeted states, “Every person who, being out of this state, abducts or takes by force or fraud any person contrary to the law of the place where that act is committed, and brings, sends, or conveys that person within the limits of this state, and is afterwards found within the limits thereof, is guilty of kidnapping.”
Earlier on Monday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said a second plane full of asylum seekers landed in Sacramento.
“We're investigating the circumstances by which they were brought to California,” he said.
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Bonta reported another flight arrived in Sacramento late last week.
"Today I met with over a dozen migrants who were brought to Sacramento by private plane, with no prior arrangement or care in place,” Bonta said on Saturday. “We are investigating the circumstances by which these individuals were brought to California. We are also evaluating potential criminal or civil action against those who transported or arranged for the transport of these vulnerable immigrants. While this is still under investigation, we can confirm these individuals were in possession of documentation purporting to be from the government of the State of Florida.”
DeSantis, along with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, have openly discussed sending migrants to Democratic-led cities in retaliation for “sanctuary city” policies.
In February, DeSantis signed Senate Bill 6B, which created the Unauthorized Alien Transport Program. The program and its $10 million of funding allow the State of Florida to transfer migrants from one state to another.
Last month, DeSantis signed a bill he deemed to be the “strongest anti-illegal immigration” legislation in the U.S. The bill added another $12 million to the Unauthorized Alien Transport Program.
“The Biden Border Crisis has wreaked havoc across the United States and has put Americans in danger,” said DeSantis. “In Florida, we will not stand idly by while the federal government abandons its lawful duties to protect our country.”
The bill signing came just before DeSantis launched his 2024 presidential campaign.
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