Florida’s Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly has recently promised to protect Miami’s Haitian community, as well as other immigrants, if he’s elected. The promises sparked backlash against Jolly, however, as some Florida residents were skeptical the Democrat could fulfill them.
According to WLRN, Jolly spoke about U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown while campaigning in North Miami with Haitian leaders. He pledged to challenge federal policies and defend locals. Jolly said he supports extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants, which ended for Haitians in July.
To help immigrant communities, Jolly vowed to use state resources to provide legal representation and end cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Floridians Are Divided on Jolly’s Immigration-Related Promises
While most Floridians on r/Florida were not exactly against Jolly’s ideas, most of them seemed skeptical that he would be able to deliver on his promises. Someone commented: “Pandering – who’d have thunk it?”
Others added: “I see Jolly hasn’t lost his political touch of making promises they can’t keep to try and trick uninformed people into voting for them.”
Some Floridians agreed with that, saying, “That’s pretty good, seeing as he has no authority to be making those promises.” However, some people were more hopeful, comparing his possible response to that of the current Florida governor: “Eh, I don’t doubt he’d cooperate with Trump less than DeSantis does.”
In any case, other commenters highlighted why immigration had become such a concern for Americans in recent times. As one put it, “Our neighbors are being tortured in concentration camps for civil paperwork violations. We are supposed to love our neighbor.”
Another seemingly bitter Floridian wrote: “This is America. As long as the neighbor doesn’t look like what MAGA considers to be “American”, anything goes. The cruelty and evil are the point. It’s always been there. The sadism has been going on for centuries.”
It remains to be seen whether Jolly will defeat Republican Byron Donalds in the gubernatorial race, which will likely determine how the state government responds to the federal crackdown on illegal immigration.
