EXCLUSIVE: Members of the Florida Republican Congressional Delegation on Friday called President Biden’s reports “unequivocally unconstitutional” regarding travel restrictions to the State of the Sun amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“As members of the Florida Republican Congressional Delegation, we are concerned about recent reports that your government is considering implementing travel restrictions for our beloved home, the State of the Sun,” Republican lawmakers led by Rep. Byron Donalds, including Greg Steube and Kat Cammack, wrote to Biden in a letter on Friday. “This decision not only lacks merit, it is also unmistakably unconstitutional and smells of partisanship that will only cause reprehensible damage to our state and the more than 21 million Americans who live in Florida.
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Lawmakers said any potential plans to restrict travel to Florida “demonstrate a flagrant abuse of power”, saying it would be a measure “that has no basis in science or the law”.
“As the third largest state in the union, Florida felt the pain of this pandemic particularly strongly. Fortunately, through reasoned leadership and common sense, we have maintained a significantly lower per capita mortality rate than many states, including New York, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Texas and even Washington, DC “, wrote. “As a nation, we have learned a lot about how to mitigate the damage inflicted on the health and safety of the American people and the economic difficulties caused by blockades and government orders.”
Republicans said that in Florida, the state has been able to “lessen the financial blow to our small and large businesses by giving Floridians the freedom to live their daily lives safely and responsibly.”
“Our state is known for its pristine beaches, robust entertainment industry and relaxed lifestyle that attracts millions of seasonal residents and tourists,” they wrote. “Many in our country continue to appreciate Florida’s response to the pandemic juxtaposed to authoritarian measures in many blue states that have shown little or no success in controlling the virus.”
They added that “more critical than instituting unprecedented restrictions on interstate travel” are the “millions of Florida residents, especially our elderly, desperately need their management to focus their energy on increasing access to the vaccine.”
“During this pandemic, it is vitally important that we follow the UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION and, at the same time, follow science and do not issue orders that limit the freedoms of the American people,” they wrote. “In Florida, we are doing just that.”
Lawmakers praised Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, saying that Florida vaccinated more than 1 million seniors and continues to prioritize the most vulnerable across the state.
“Many families and livelihoods have felt the unbearable pain of the pandemic, and any plan to ban travel to our state will only exacerbate that feeling,” they wrote, adding that Florida constituents “need to know that their president will not take any wrong action, such as the alleged travel ban directed directly at Florida. “
They added: “At the moment, we need stable leadership and a greater focus on increasing access to the COVID-19 vaccine. We hope to play an integral role in making this a reality.”
The letter was sent after DeSantis this week also attacked the Biden administration after media reports that the White House may request a ban on domestic travel to contain new strains of COVID-19 from spreading across the country.
“Any attempt to restrict or block Florida by the federal government would be an attack on our state, made solely for political purposes,” the Florida Republican told a news conference.
FLORIDA GOV. DESANTIS CALLS THREATS TO PROHIBIT DOMESTIC TRAVEL “UNCONSTITUTIONAL, UNCONSCIOUS, UNJUST”
“It would be unconstitutional. It would be reckless and unfair,” he added, saying the move was not based on science, but rather a “political attack” on the people of Florida.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki was pressured during a news conference on Thursday about the government’s alleged consideration of a ban on domestic travel.
“We are always considering what measures are needed to keep the American people safe, but we are not in the process of – no decision has been made on additional public health measures that would delay or change, I should say, domestic travel considerations,” said Psaki.
But, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Florida leads the number of cases for the new strain B.1.1.7 – a more highly infectious variant of the coronavirus, first reported in the UK
Health officials are concerned that the new strains of coronavirus that have emerged may hamper the progress made by the vaccine, as the new variants require different treatments and change “the effectiveness of current vaccines,” warned the CDC.
Meanwhile, Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio also reacted to the reports, calling Biden a “hypocrite”.
“The day after Donald Trump banned travel to China, Joe Biden said it was not the time for xenophobia and that kind of thing,” Rubio told Fox & Friends.
Rubio added: “And a month later, he really tweeted that banning travel anywhere didn’t work.”
Rubio also criticized the Biden government for considering travel restrictions between the country’s states.
“So now that they are considering real restrictions on Americans within the country, I think it is unconstitutional,” said Rubio. “I think it will be successfully challenged in court.”
Caitlin McFall and Joshua Nelson of Fox News contributed to this report.