BRANDON, Florida (LifeSiteNews) — Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis trolled President Joe Biden Thursday when he chose Brandon, Florida, as the location in which he put his signature to crucial pieces of legislation against COVID-19 jab mandates in the Sunshine State.
The bills were the result of a special legislative session called by DeSantis to provide permanent protections for Floridians against coercive jab mandates, particularly as the Biden administration has sought to force large businesses to require their workers to get the COVID-19 shot.
Though Gov. DeSantis didn’t comment directly on the choice of location to sign the bills, it’s clear the decision was a reference to the viral phrase “Let’s Go Brandon,” a euphemistic expression which has replaced the more vulgar “F*** Joe Biden” and has swept the nation since early October as Americans enthusiastically use the term to denounce President Biden and his policies.
“The Biden Administration has launched an assault on our Constitution and individual liberties”, DeSantis’ press secretary Christina Pushaw told Rebel News.
MORE: https://t.co/cgB6LryFbP pic.twitter.com/Xx4miRsyeJ
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) November 19, 2021
“We’re really excited to be here,” DeSantis said in his comments to the press as he prepared to sign the bills.
Stating that “we hear so much about all these things: mandates, restrictions, tearing people down,” the Florida governor said, “today, we lift people up.”
“We provide protections for people: no nurse, no firefighter, no police officer, no trucker, no anybody should lose their job because of these COVID jabs,” he said.
DeSantis referred to one of the bills put forward by the GOP-led Florida legislature as “the strongest piece of legislation that’s been enacted anywhere in the country in this regard.”
“We are respecting people’s individual freedom in this state,” he stated.
Asked by a reporter whether he chose the city of Brandon on purpose to “troll” the president, DeSantis replied, “I think that Brandon, Florida is a great American city. I think the people here are fantastic.”
“We’re proud to make a stand for freedom in Brandon, Florida,” he said.
Loud chants of “Let’s Go Brandon” broke out from the crowd during the event, to which the governor responded by smiling.
Thunderous chants of “LET’S GO BRANDON” erupt at @GovRonDeSantis bill signing to prevent vaccine mandates in Brandon, FL, DeSantis smiles 🔥 pic.twitter.com/VsdSMPY3zq Benny (@bennyjohnson) November 18, 2021
According to a press release put out by the governor’s office, the bills signed Thursday prohibit blanket employer COVID-19 jab mandates by requiring employers to provide a broad swath of exemption options including religious and health concerns and natural immunity.
Since the passage of S.B. 2006 in May, no entity in Florida may demand proof of COVID-19 vaccination.
The laws will impose hefty fines against employers who violate the law and formally ban government entities from requiring anyone, including employees, to get the shots.
Moreover, one bill strips the state health officer’s power to force citizens to get vaccinated during a declared public health emergency.
The legislation also tackles school-related mandates, forbidding educational institutions from requiring students to get jabbed, legally fortifying the governor’s ban on school mask mandates, prohibiting school districts from quarantining “healthy students,” and allowing parents and students to sue school districts who violate the laws.
The Florida Legislature and my administration are committed to protecting Florida jobs.
Today, I signed legislation protecting the right of Floridians to earn a living and to make health decisions for themselves. pic.twitter.com/rGnutyg8aH
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) November 19, 2021
Local10.com reported that the four bills “prevent COVID-19 mandates in Florida and get the governor his nationally watched clapback at the Biden administration over requiring vaccines in the workplace.”
The Tallahassee Democrat noted that while the bills do not outright ban employer jab mandates, they “render them largely toothless by requiring private employers to offer more opt-outs for any employees who refuse to be vaccinated,” including claiming natural immunity to the coronavirus and expressing sincerely-held concerns about the experimental jab.
DeSantis has been at loggerheads with Biden over the president’s move to force businesses with 100 or more employees to require their employees to get the COVID-19 shot, with the Republican governor calling the rule, put forward through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an attempt to “shoehorn policy through the bureaucracy” in violation of the U.S. Constitution.
“The state of Florida is going to respond, and we will combat the OSHA rule,” DeSantis said in a November 4 press conference.
In direct response to Biden’s mandate, one of the bills deriving from Florida’s special legislative session this week will withdraw Florida from OSHA, swapping out the federal agency for state oversight of occupational safety.
DeSantis’ decision to formally ban jab mandates in direct opposition to President Biden at a site in Brandon, Florida, comes after the governor jokingly referred to the Biden administration as the “Brandon administration” at an event earlier this month, earning cheers and chants from attendees.
The phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” has become something of a cultural phenomenon among conservatives and a frequent chant at sports games.
The saying originated in October after an NBC reporter interviewing NASCAR driver Brandon Brown inaccurately stated that the audience members in the stands, who were chanting: “F*** Joe Biden,” were actually saying: “Let’s go, Brandon.”
[WARNING: Foul language]
Conservatives immediately picked up “Let’s Go Brandon” as a euphemism for “F*** Joe Biden,” in what has become a nationwide anti-Biden joke.
The phrase has spread like wildfire throughout the U.S. and online, popping up in memes, comments sections, t-shirts, and bumper stickers, and replacing its more vulgar cousin as a popular chant at sports games and protests.
A cheeky way of showing dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden and his policies, “Let’s Go Brandon” also pokes fun at a legacy media whose credibility has nosedived for their reporting on subjects like the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, the “insurrection” at the Capitol in January 2021, and the COVID-19 pandemic, with huge numbers of Americans considering mainstream media reports to be misleading and biased.
PETITION UPDATE (9/27/21) -
United has agreed to put off its threatened COVID vaccine mandate for another 2 weeks, as proceedings came to a screeching halt in federal court last Friday.
Mark Paoletta, a partner at Schaerr Jaffe representing the plaintiffs, was quoted by Breitbart as saying:
"Now everyone can follow the court’s decision to take the time and care needed to carefully consider the legitimate claims our clients have as we seek a solution that allows United to take necessary steps to combat COVID-19 while respecting the civil rights of valuable employees who have sincere religious objections or medical conditions that make them unable to take the vaccine."
While this appears to be a lessening of tensions and possibly a step in the right direction, we must wait till the case resumes on October 15 to see if United will scrap their draconian mandate.
In the meantime, we must continue to apply pressure on United.
So, please continue to SIGN and SHARE this pledge to boycott the airline giant for threatening to impose harsh measures - including forced unpaid leave - in order to coerce employees with religious or medical objections to the vaccine to take the jab.
Thank you for continuing to SIGN and SHARE!
____________________________________________________________
United Airlines is accused of not respecting the religious and medical COVID vaccine exemptions which the company offered to employees who cannot, in good conscience or health, take the vaccine.
2,000 employees of the industry giant are represented in two court cases which have been initiated to stop United from laying-off or indefinitely furloughing workers who have sought COVID vaccine exemptions.
Please SIGN this BOYCOTT of United and send the airline a stong message that you will not support the implementation of these draconian measures.
Many United Airlines employees have sincerely held religious objections to taking the COVID vaccines, while other employees have been told by their doctors not to take the vaccine due to health concerns.
The religious and medical rights of these employees must be respected, and, will hopefully be vindicated by the courts.
But, airlines are for-profit businesses, and apart from the legal incentives, there must also be financial incentives for them to respect their employees' religious and medical rights, and, indeed, the same rights of all Americans.
And, that's why we are calling for a boycott.
The CEO of United Airlines, Scott Kirby, and HR Manager, Kate Gebo, need to understand that the American public will not support businesses who force their employees or customers to violate their religious beliefs or their doctors' recommendations.
Of course, this is totally unnecessary.
United could simply make reasonable accommodations for their employees who are claiming either a religious or medical exemption.
But, until United adopts that policy, we are asking you to consider boycotting the "unfriendly skies" and find another airline for your travel needs. By doing so, you will meaningfully stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these aggrieved United employees.
Thank you for SIGNING and SHARING this petition to boycott United Airlines over the company's failure to respect religious and medical COVID vaccine exemptions for its employees.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
'Pilots seek restraining order against United Airlines’ ‘unlawful, life-threatening, vaccine-mandate’' - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pilots-seek-restraining-order-against-united-airlines-unlawful-life-threatening-vaccine-mandate/
'United Airlines will put employees with religious, medical COVID vaccine exemptions on unpaid leave' - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/739949/
**Photo Credit: EQRoy / Shutterstock.com
“This chant has taken on a life of its own,” DeSantis said at a press conference November 5. “You have a reporter from NBC, who knows that’s what they’re saying, and she’s trying to cover for Biden. So she says, ‘yeah,’ they’re chanting Let’s Go, Brandon.’ “
“It exposes the dishonesty of these corporate reporters and what they do every day,” he said.
Asked last week what Biden thinks about the disparaging phrase, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, “I don’t think he spends much time focused on it or thinking about it.”
LifeSiteNews has produced an extensive COVID-19 vaccines resources page. View it here.