Governor Ron DeSantis addressed a crowd at Pensacola State College today, focusing on Florida’s higher education system and introducing new developments with Hope Florida to serve as the backdrop for his defense of his wife’s initiative and attack on House Republicans.
- The University of West Florida received a warning “to buckle up,” and the Escambia County Commission and Pensacola City Council were barred from the press conference. The media were allowed only two questions for the even,twhicht started 30 minutes late and lasted an hour and a half.
The governor was joined by several officials and stakeholders, including First Lady Casey DeSantis, State University System Chancellor Ray Rodriguez, and representatives from various community organizations involved in the Hope Florida program.
Criticizing “Indoctrination” in Higher Education
DeSantis devoted significant time to discussing his perspective on higher education reform. He expressed concern that universities nationwide have “lost their way” by focusing on what he termed “political indoctrination rather than classical education.” The governor firmly stated that Florida’s public universities should not be allowed to “promote whatever agenda they want” but should instead focus on “pursuing truth” and preparing students to be “citizens of the republic.”
He outlined several initiatives his administration has implemented to reform higher education in Florida, including:
- Eliminating DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs from public universities
- Requiring tenured professors to undergo review every five years
- Implementing reforms allowing university presidents to recruit professors without faculty approval
- Holding university administrators accountable for campus protests
The governor referred to a Wall Street Journal article that reportedly highlighted Florida’s higher education reforms as a model that the Trump administration might follow nationally.
Conflict with Florida House, Salzman
In a surprising turn, Gov. DeSantis dedicated substantial portions of his remarks to criticizing the Republican-controlled Florida House of Representatives, which he described as “rotten” despite having a “three-to-one super majority of Republicans.”
- He specifically targeted House Bill 1321, sponsored by Representative Michelle Saltzman from Escambia County, which he claimed would “undo the success” of his higher education reforms. DeSantis particularly objected to provisions limiting the governor’s involvement in selecting university presidents.
“Imagine that they bring some communist in to be the president of a university. And I’m just supposed to sit there and twiddle my thumbs. No, that’s not how I roll,” DeSantis stated.
The governor characterized the bill as an attempt to “neuter our ability to keep universities in line.”
Direct Attack on House Leadership
The governor’s criticism of the House leadership was particularly pointed. He accused the leadership of forcing representatives to support bills that contradict their campaign promises.
“When you go up there, the leadership will threaten these representatives,” DeSantis claimed. “They’ll say, ‘If you don’t do this bill, you will lose your committee assignment. You will lose your projects, you won’t have any of your bill heard.” So they exact retribution on these members.”
Salzman Going ‘Native’
DeSantis suggested that representatives like Saltzman “go to Tallahassee and they go native,” doing “the bidding of the leadership and the staff” rather than representing their constituents.
- He described the current House as “the least productive Florida House of Representatives in the modern history of the Florida Republican Party,” despite having “on paper the biggest majority in the history of the Florida Republican Party.”
The governor characterized the House leadership’s actions as a betrayal: “They’re trying to sabotage the success because they have a political agenda. These are folks that are not doing what they promised the voters they would do.”
- He added, “They all ran saying they were going to support conservative policies… And what they’re doing now is the opposite of what they told you they would do.”
DeSantis wanted the voters to take the challenges to the administration and his policies as personal attacks on them.
“I think what really irks voters is when people tell them, oh, they’re going to be the most conservative things since sliced bread. They’re going to fight the Dems, fight the left, and then they get in, and then they collude with the left and collude with the Dems. That’s wrong. That’s a fraud on the voters who elected these people.”
University of West Florida Warned
In a direct message to the University of West Florida, DeSantis issued what appeared to be both a warning and a promise of transformation: “University of West Florida, buckle up. You’re going to see a lot of changes there for the better… I mean, how does the most conservative part of the state have some of the most liberal programs in the state? It doesn’t make any sense. So the times are a changing there too.”
This statement suggests that the governor has specific plans to implement his higher education reform agenda at the University of West Florida, potentially targeting programs he considers too liberal for the region’s political leanings.
FACTCHECK: The 2024 Intellectual Freedom and Viewpoint Diversity Survey found that cancel culture, limitations on free speech and indoctrination are not problems at the University of West Florida.
-
- 65% of UWF students said the mood on campus was equally tolerant of both liberal and conservative ideas and beliefs, higher than the State University Student (SUS) average of 51% and the Buckley National Student Sample (36%).
Hope Florida Expansion to State Colleges
The pretense of the press conference was the expansion of Hope Florida to all 28 state colleges in Florida. Each college will now have a Hope Florida liaison who will serve as a point of contact between the college and the Hope Florida network.
- DeSantis gave an example of how this might work: “You have a single mom that’s got some young kids. She’s going to Pensacola State College, trying to get an education to be able to have a good job and be able to provide for her kids, and maybe misfortune strikes, maybe she gets evicted from her apartment.” In such a situation, the Hope Florida network would be activated, connecting the student with churches and charitable organizations that can provide assistance.
Defending Against ‘Manufactured Smears’
The governor then addressed what he described as “manufactured smears” against the Hope Florida program, suggesting that House leadership is “colluding with liberal media and the Democratic party in Florida” to undermine the initiative.
- He claimed these attacks happen because the House is “not cutting your property taxes, they’re not fixing the condo crisis, they’re not doing the things that voters want them to do.”
DeSantis pointed out what he saw as hypocrisy in the House leadership’s criticism: “We did the Governor’s Cup last year… We raised massive amounts of money in the Governor’s Cup for the charitable, the direct support organization affiliated with Hope Florida. They were all a part of this. They were all singing the praises.”
- He further criticized House members for not taking the time to understand the program: “How someone will come from Iowa to learn about Hope Florida. And you won’t even walk down the hall and ask questions about it. You don’t even know what you’re talking about. You don’t even understand what the program is actually doing.”
Conclusion: A Personal Note of Gratitude
In his concluding opening remarks, DeSantis thanked First Lady Casey DeSantis for developing and implementing the Hope Florida initiative. He acknowledged her leadership role in the program, stating, “She devised it. She set the vision; she executed the vision. And it’s been great to see the positive results, and I know the best is yet to come.”