The hosts of Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” pressed Democratic Florida gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist on Tuesday about his opponent garnering more Hispanic support than him.
Two weeks prior to the Florida gubernatorial election, recent polling found that Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is leading Crist by several percentage points among Hispanic voters in the state. A Telemundo/LX poll, conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy, showed the governor leading 51%-44% among the demographic. The poll surveyed 625 Hispanic voters between Oct. 17-20 with a 4% margin of error.
Fox News anchor Dana Perino questioned Crist about why Hispanics have overwhelmingly shifted their support toward DeSantis in the upcoming election. The Democratic challenger said DeSantis will lose Hispanic votes due to his chartering two planes to relocate 50 migrants who volunteered to travel to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.
“I think that’s going to change in the next two weeks and I’ll tell you why,” Crist answered. “He pulled a stunt recently where he chartered two jets, took ’em to Texas, lied to people, Hispanics, Venezuelans and Columbians in this case, and that’s not going to get him more support, it’s going to get him less support because it was cruel, inhumane and unusual.”
Despite the uproar from many critics, 50% of Hispanics favored the relocation of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard, according to NBC News.
Co-anchor Bill Hemmer asked Crist how he can argue that President Joe Biden’s administration has succeeded in keeping the border secure given that migrant apprehension numbers are at record-high levels. Crist immediately pinned DeSantis and congressional Republicans, saying that they do not support “comprehensive immigration reform” that would secure the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Do you believe the border’s secure, as others have suggested?” Hemmer asked.
“No, course it’s not,” he answered. “I mean, we all know that. It’s not secure, it needs to be. If we have comprehensive immigration reform along with strengthening our borders, it will be a better situation for everybody, including people that are fleeing socialist regimes in central and South America.”
Hemmer also asked Crist about his voting track record that is in complete alignment with President Joe Biden. Crist said the president did “what was right for the country” and he voted in alignment with the president to fix the border, have a more affordable economy and keep his state safe. (RELATED: Gov. DeSantis: ‘The Only Worn-Out Old Donkey I’m Looking To Put Out To Pasture Is Charlie Crist’)
Hemmer then pressed him on a provision in the Inflation Reduction Act that intends to add 87,000 agents to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
“Well, do you want to collect taxes so that we can support our military? I’m on the Subcommittee on Appropriations that supports our military and I have voted for every increase for them too,” he said. “You ought to point that out, Bill.”
“Well, the suggestion’s that the IRS isn’t doing its job and I think for taxpaying Americans they would suggest they are because they’re paying their fair share,” Hemmer said.
Perino then transitioned to the issue of mandating the COVID-19 vaccine for children in schools, which DeSantis has vocally opposed. Crist criticized the governor for not ordering vaccine for the children in order for parents to decide if the children could receive the shot.