Among the mistakes DeSantis has made, according to the op-ed: Not
closing down the state's beaches as spring breakers partied last month,
not yet approving retroactive unemployment benefits for those who have lost their jobs and
pushing hydroxychloroquine, a still unproven drug to treat coronavirus. (Hydroxychloroquine is also being heavily pushed by President Donald Trump, the man to whom DeSantis, a Republican, owes his governorship.)
Add to that a few things that happened
just yesterday:
* DeSantis declared WWE -- yes, professional wresting --
an "essential" business in the state, meaning that the organization could run live shows from its facility in Orlando. (Sidebar: I am a GIANT pro wrestling fan. But did we need a live "Monday Night Raw" on, uh, Monday night?)
* Florida's surgeon general Scott Rivkees said that
social distancing and mask-wearing should continue in Florida until a vaccine for coronavirus is approved. (That is likely to be a year or so from now.) Rivkees was almost immediately then "whisked away" by the governor's spokeswoman,
according to the Tampa Bay Times. DeSantis' communications director Helen Ferre disputed that Rivkees was pulled out of the conference, telling CNN in a statement that "Dr. Rivkees was not pulled out of the press conference, which ran longer than expected. He had a pre-scheduled meeting with Governor DeSantis' Deputy Chief of Staff Adrian Lukis he needed to attend.