Mike Downey: Ron DeSantis is doing a lot of things that could fall under environmentalism even though he doesn't talk about it. In his first term he says he came up with 1.6 billion dollars worth of funding for water quality improvements and replacing leaky septic tanks in Florida. He's also done quite a bit for wildlife corridors which are basically ways to restore wilderness so that animals like Florida Panthers the few that are left can get across highways and not be hit by cars. The Sierra Club gives him a D minus on their scorecard of rating governors and other politicians on the environment they say that one of the biggest problems is that he has blocked local governments from doing stuff
Florida’s governor–and likely presidential candidate–Ron DeSantis has pledged billions to restore Florida’s Everglades. Among other good things, that will help lower Florida’s carbon footprint and potentially combat some of the effects of climate change.
But you won’t hear him boasting about those benefits.
As a Republican trying to lure away Donald Trump’s voters with promises to attack “woke” policies, he says he’s “not a global warming person”, opposes restrictions on fossil fuels, and often downplays the environmental upsides of his own policies.
Bloomberg national reporter Michael Smith joins this episode to talk about the Florida Governor's mixed environmental record–and how he’s walking a very fine line between shoring up Florida’s natural resources and alienating Republican primary voters he hopes will carry him to the White House.
Read more on this story: DeSantis Fights for Everglades As He Neglects Climate Crisis
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