After social-justice protests in the United States generated international attention in 2020, Republican-led states considered a variety of anti-protest measures in 2021. As regular readers may recall, GOP officials in Florida went further than most.
Under a law signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, if protesters block a road, the new state policy not only makes that a felony, it also extends civil liability protections to Florida drivers who plow into them, claiming self-defense.
“Just think about it, you’re driving home from work and, all of a sudden, you have people out there shutting down a highway,” the governor said at the bill signing, describing a situation he considered outlandish and unacceptable.
That was last year, when DeSantis considered the prospect of people he didn’t like protesting in ways he disapproved of. This year, as a relatively small group of Canadian truckers started shutting down highways because they don’t want to get vaccinated during a pandemic, the Florida Republican had a miraculous change of heart, publishing an all caps “TRUCK YEAH” tweet in celebration of the border antics in opposition to public health measure.
When GoFundMe said it wanted no part in efforts to raise money for the anti-vaccine protesters, DeSantis vowed to launch an investigation into the tech company.
How did the GOP governor reconcile the contradiction, condemning and then celebrating protesters who shut down highways? Why is it a criminal outrage if Black Lives Matter activists block an interstate, but great news when a small group of radical Canadians shut down border crossings and undermine the economy?
DeSantis’ office dodged the question. Imagine that.
As HuffPost noted, there’s a lot of this going around.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem reposted a Fox News post on Instagram that said she “applauds truckers for demanding respect from lawmakers and an end to mandates.” Months after taking office, her administration sought to expand anti-protest restrictions her predecessor signed into law, such as a 2017 bill that expanded the state’s powers to disallow vehicles from stopping on the highway. The law said “no person may stand upon the paved or improved or main-traveled portion of any highway with intent to impede or stop the flow of traffic.”
On Capitol Hill, Sen. Rand Paul offered little in the way of support for Black Lives Matter protesters two years ago, admonishing the activists for acting like a “crazed mob.”
Now, the Kentucky Republican is not only cheering on anti-vaccine truckers in a different country, Paul also argued that “it’d be great” if demonstrators came to the United States to “clog things up.”
“I’m all for it,” the GOP senator said, adding, “I hope the truckers do come to America, and I hope they clog up cities.”
One is left to wonder what these Republicans would be saying right now if the Canadian truckers were Black and seeking law-enforcement reforms while interfering with international trade.
