CNN raised eyebrows on Wednesday to suggest that Florida Republican governor Ron DeSantis should not receive any credit for the boom in his state’s economy as it emerged from the coronavirus pandemic.
“A year after the pandemic started, Florida is growing and Republican Governor DeSantis is getting the credit,” said the headline in a report that described him as “ostensibly tall” among other governors who dealt with the virus.
“While many parts of the country are embarking on a restless march toward normality, Florida is not just back in business – it has been in business for most of last year,” reported CNN grudgingly. “DeSantis’ bet on adopting a laissez faire approach seems to be paying off – at least politically, at least for now, as other governors who call attention in the opening phase of the pandemic now face greater challenges.”
The report noted data that showed the State of the Sun in 24th place in deaths per capita, despite vague restrictions.
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“DeSantis – who, at 42, is the country’s youngest governor – is standing out among his peers and taking advantage of what he and his supporters believe is a justification for his policies,” wrote CNN. “With spring on the horizon, DeSantis suddenly appears to be in a position of strength compared to some of his fellow governors, including many of whom have taken much more restrictive approaches to fighting the coronavirus, which has had a ripple effect on the economy. “
Critics criticized the liberal network for trying to separate Florida’s apparent success from its governor.
“How about ‘One year after the start of the pandemic, Florida is growing BECAUSE of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis’,” proposed Ben Shapiro. “CNN spends a year playing Human Centipede with the liar and greedy Andrew Cuomo, but when Ron DeSantis really does a good job, the story is that he is taking credit for doing a good job.”
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“Why wouldn’t he get credit for something he did?” asked conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey.
“This is how it works in leadership. You take credit for success and responsibility for failure,” tweeted Republican Party strategist Blair Brandt.
“This tweet and article is a really sad attempt to turn positive news as completely negative or totally indicative of how it will look,” wrote Tablet Magazine associate editor Noam Blum.
“Did he write a book?” journalist Jeryl Bier joked, alluding to the memories of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, taking an early victory lap in his COVID response.
CNN has been relentless in its negative coverage of the Republican governor. On Monday, anchor Brianna Keilar scolded DeSantis for not wearing a mask or social detachment while socializing outdoors at Daytona Bike Week over the weekend.
“We saw photos over the weekend of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at Daytona Bike Week. He is not wearing a mask, he is certainly very close to other people who do not wear masks,” Keilar told a Florida police chief. “It makes things more difficult, how your officers are facing – I mean, are they facing violence, are they facing resistance to people who – do they want to behave like the governor is behaving?”
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In January, DeSantis had a combative exchange with CNN reporter Rosa Flores after she appeared to blame him for vaccine distribution issues during a press conference, while not giving the governor a chance to respond.
Meanwhile, CNN has spent much of the pandemic praising Andrew Cuomo, who now faces a plethora of scandals and investigations into how his government dealt with asylums during the pandemic, as well as accusations of sexual misconduct against him. The pro-Cuomo network even gave the governor a regular platform in the early months of the pandemic, scheduling him to attend friendly interviews on “Cuomo Prime Time” with his younger brother, anchor Chris Cuomo.