Credit: SCREENGRAB VIA DESANTIS/TWITTER

Credit: SCREENGRAB VIA DESANTIS/TWITTER
Last year, COVID-19 was the leading cause of death for police officers in the country, killing more cops than gun violence and vehicle crashes combined. And, while most first responders believe that getting vaccinated is part of what it means to “serve and protect,” many still don’t, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wants these un-vaxxed dingdongs to uproot their lives for a few thousands bucks and move on down to the Sunshine State.

Yesterday, while appearing on the Fox News show “Sunday Morning Futures,” DeSantis told host Maria Bartiromo that he plans to offer $5,000 bonuses to unvaccinated law enforcement officers who are willing to relocate to Florida.

“We’re actually actively working to recruit out-of-state law enforcement,” said DeSantis. “We do have needs in our police and our sheriff’s departments,” DeSantis said. “So, in the next legislative session, I’m going to hopefully sign legislation that gives a $5,000 bonus to any out-of-state law enforcement that relocates in Florida. “NYPD [New York], Minneapolis, Seattle, if you’re not being treated well, we will treat you better here. You can fill important needs for us, and we will compensate you as a result.”

On Monday, DeSantis clarified that his $5,000 offer is actually good for any cop willing to move to Florida, vaccinated or unvaccinated. "We are looking to capitalize off a lot of communities across our country who have turned their back on law enforcement, who aren't providing them the support," DeSantis added.

The comments come about a week after DeSantis called for a special session to combat Biden’s proposed vaccine mandate, which would require businesses with 100 or more workers to require vaccines or weekly COVID-19 testing.

Last week, DeSantis also posted a picture to his social media accounts of a Gadsden Flag but with an alligator instead of a snake, and the words “Don’t tread on Florida.”

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This article appears in Oct 28 – Nov 3, 2021.

Colin Wolf has been working with weekly newspapers since 2007 and has been the Digital Editor for Creative Loafing Tampa since 2019. He is also the Director of Digital Content Strategy for CL's parent...