Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told RCP’s Philip Wegmann during a visit to “Alligator Alcatraz” that he hopes the new migrant detention facility will inspire people to self-deport. “All the standards are being followed here, but the Dems try to create this narrative, and we debunk it,” DeSantis said. “But you don’t necessarily see me on the rooftop saying that, because the reality is I hope people would not want to come here.” “Is the idea of Alligator Alcatraz a deterrent, so more people are eager to self-deport?” Wegmann asked. “It’d be better for them to just look and say, hey, the Trump administration is committed to enforcing the law. Florida is not a sanctuary state. They’re on board. It’s not going to work to try to evade the law at this point,” he said. “If that’s the message that gets sent from this, then I think that’s good. However, the nonsense that gets spewed — it is B.S.” “We’re hoping [other states] follow Florida’s lead,” DeSantis said. “People say there’s no due process. There’s a lot of process the federal government has to go through to be able to deport somebody once they’re in the interior of the country for a time.” “How many of the detainees here currently are hardened criminals, and how many were perhaps pulled over by Florida State Patrol for some type of traffic violation?” Wegmann asked. “They all are on final orders of removal,” DeSantis explained. “So they’ve all already been ordered to be removed from this country. Now, that doesn’t mean they all have additional felony convictions, but they’ve gone through a process where they’ve been found to be in this country illegally and subject to removal.” “The reality is, if you look at the number of arrests and removals per day, you have to increase those numbers,” he said. “A facility like this isn’t the only way. ICE has existing facilities they likely will be able to expand… But they don’t have the room.” “We were bringing them in faster than they could hold them or process them. So we don’t want a situation where we have illegals who have to be released into the community just because there’s not enough space.” “Our sheriffs will use some of their local jails, but we have guys who are raping and murdering U.S. citizens. They have to be held accountable in the criminal process, which needs those facilities,” he said. “What we did in Florida to get this took over six years,” he said, “Breaking down bureaucratic barriers, cutting red tape.” “We’ve really perfected that art. I probably have more authority to do that than they may at the federal level. There is just so much bureaucracy. You also have a lot of bureaucrats who end up in there who may not be used to moving. There’s a whole host of factors, but the reality is they have the resources. Getting that on target is the key.”
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