“Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Law to Keep Travel Records Hidden Amid Presidential Campaign Rumors”

It is expected that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will immediately announce that he is running as a presidential candidate for the Republicans in 2024, writes Business Insider. At the same time that DeSantis is reportedly getting ready to campaign, this week he signed a somewhat special law.

Under the new law, details of the governor’s travels, whether on state or private planes, will be redacted.

It also includes names of employees and family members traveling with DeSantis. Visit logs to the governor’s home and office will also be hidden.

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Security considerations

Information about DeSantis’ travels and visitors will not just be hidden from eager reporters. Political opponents also won’t be able to glean valuable information about the Florida governor.

Visits and travels with lobbyists and other supporters can be very relevant to any political opponents. If DeSantis is on the verge of launching himself as a presidential candidate, it could give him a new card to play in the political power struggle.

DeSantis himself says that the new law was not necessarily his idea, but justifies it with security considerations.

Less visibility

That the new law has to do with security, Brian Wilcox believes, is frivolous and incomprehensible. He runs the political organization “Integrity Florida”.

He believes the population has a right to know how their tax money is being used. He says that what DeSantis does on his travels often resembles a political election campaign.

Barbara Petersen, executive director of the Florida Center for Government Accountability, believes the new law represents “the biggest attack on our public records law” in her 35 years of work on ethics and transparency in Florida.

DeSantis has not definitively answered questions about whether he will run for president, but is expected to do so sometime after Florida ends its legislative term this week, though an announcement may not come until June or later.