Florida sues President Joe Biden’s administration over immigration policy

Tallahassee, Florida — Thursday Florida filed suit against President Joe Biden’s administration against his immigration policy.

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an order barring state agencies from assisting with the relocation of undocumented immigrants arriving in the state.

According to DeSantis’ order, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Highway Patrol are authorized “to detain any aircraft, bus, or other vehicles within the State of Florida reasonably believed to be transporting illegal aliens to Florida from the Southwest Border.”

DeSantis ordered the agencies to gather information on the identities of any immigrants arriving illegally in Florida from the Mexico border.

He told state agencies not to spend money assisting those immigrants unless required by law.

According to Attorney General Ashley Moody’s lawsuit claims, the federal immigration policy will cost the state millions of dollars and cause harm to Florida.

“While some arriving migrants have legitimate asylum claims, many do not. Some are gang members and drug traffickers exploiting the crisis at the border, as evidenced by the skyrocketing amount of Fentanyl seized at the border this year,” the suit says.

Moody and DeSantis held a news conference in southwest Florida. Both strongly condemned Biden on immigration and praised former President Donald Trump’s policies.

“President Biden is aiding and abetting criminal cartels,” Moody said.

When asked about the lawsuit and DeSantis’ order, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said she hadn’t seen the suit.

“Any Republican or any member who wants to have a constructive conversation about solutions to addressing what we all agree is not a long-term sustainable operational or moral approach to immigration, we’re happy to have that conversation,” Psaki said.

DeSantis, considered a potential 2024 presidential candidate, has been attacking Biden on immigration for months.