No matter how 2024 shakes out, Ron DeSantis will undoubtedly remain a leading figure within the Republican Party for some time, and has rightly earned the distinction as AMAC’s 2022 Man of the Year for his successes thus far.
pay and enacting more ambitious performance standards. Following similar actions by President Trump in 2020, DeSantis signed legislation last year banning Critical Race Theory and false histories like the 1619 Proj- ect . A separate law championed by DeSantis banned instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity in K-3 classrooms last March. In addition to revamping the state’s government and civics curriculum, the Florida Department of Educa- tion under DeSantis’s leadership has rejected textbooks and other class- room materials that promote the idea that the United States is “systemically racist.” Florida schools are also now required to involve parents in conver- sations about students’ physical and mental health — including discussions of gender transition. At the same time, DeSantis has pursued a number of more traditional conservative policy changes, includ-
ing cutting more than $3 billion in taxes; investing more than $4 billion in transportation infrastructure; banning sanctuary cities and prevent- ing Florida executive agencies from supporting Biden’s illegal immigra- tion actions (an effort that included flying migrants to Martha’s Vineyard); hiring more cops and raising law enforcement pay; backing consti- tutional carry legislation; signing a 15-week abortion ban; strengthening election security; and providing more than $500 million in funding for work- force development — all while running a record budget surplus of nearly $22 billion for FY 2021-2022.
in 2024, and polls continue to show that he would be a strong contender for the nation’s highest office. No matter how 2024 shakes out, Ron DeSantis will undoubtedly remain a leading figure within the Republican Party for some time, and has rightly earned the distinction as AMAC’s 2022 Man of the Year for his successes thus far. Regardless of political affiliation, Floridians and Americans of all polit- ical stripes should at the very least appreciate in Governor DeSantis the inspiring example of a politician who listens to his constituents and refuses to ever back down from what he believes in. Shane Harris Shane Harris is a writer and political consultant from Southwest Ohio. You can follow him on Twitter @Shane_Harris_.
Looking to the Future
As he embarks on his second term as governor, the momentum that has propelled DeSantis to the forefront of the American conservative move- ment shows few signs of slowing. As far back as 2021, pundits were discuss- ing the possibility of a presidential run
24 • AMAC Magazine
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