The more Ron DeSantis loses, the more he lies. Get the facts about Ron DeSantis’ latest lies about Nikki Haley’s record and his own.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wants to accept Gaza refugees into the United States.
Haley has specifically said Hamas-supporting countries in the Middle East should absorb Gaza refugees. Fact checkers denounced DeSantis’ lie here, here, and here.
DeSantis falsely claims he never banned fracking and off-shore drilling in Florida.
DeSantis supported a fracking and off-shore drilling ban when he campaigned for governor. On his second day in office, he signed a fracking and off-shore drilling ban, and was praised by the liberal Sierra Club.
DeSantis falsely claims he never gave Chinese companies government subsidies or recruited Chinese businesses.
Under DeSantis, Florida’s economic development office had a Hong Kong office to recruit Chinese companies and investment to Florida. DeSantis gave Jinko Solar, a Chinese solar company, hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer subsidies. DeSantis also takes campaign cash from a Chinese-backed company, iGas.
DeSantis falsely attacks Nikki Haley’s record on China.
Haley took on China every day at the United Nations. She hammered China into signing onto the toughest set of sanctions on North Korea ever. She is the most outspoken candidate on the growing China threat and has a comprehensive plan to get China out of our schools, our businesses, and our land.
DeSantis falsely claims Nikki Haley brought Confucius Institutes to South Carolina.
Fact checkers denounced this as false. Confucius Institutes were already in South Carolina when Haley became governor, just like they were in nearly every state in the country.
DeSantis falsely claims Hillary Clinton is Nikki Haley’s role model.
DeSantis is distorting Haley’s comments. Fact checkers denounced DeSantis’ lies here, here, here, here, here, and here.
DeSantis falsely claims Nikki Haley supports gender-changing surgeries for minors.
Haley opposes gender-changing surgeries and puberty blockers for minors and is on record saying as much multiple times. Fact checkers denounced DeSantis’ lie here.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wants to allow transgender individuals to use the bathroom of their choosing.
Haley has always said boys should use boys’ bathrooms and girls should use girls’ bathrooms. In 2016, Haley argued that South Carolina didn’t need a bathroom bill because there was little demand for it, and when necessary, individuals could use a private bathroom. Ron DeSantis had the same position as a gubernatorial candidate in 2018.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley raised the South Carolina gas tax and sales tax.
Haley never supported a net tax increase. In fact, she killed a stand-alone gas tax increase as governor. She proposed a roads plan that would increase the gas tax ONLY if legislators also cut South Carolina’s income tax by five times as much—giving taxpayers a huge tax cut. Similarly, a sales tax increase was coupled with a property tax cut and the elimination of the grocery tax that gave taxpayers a large tax cut. Fact checkers called DeSantis’ attacks false here, here, here, and here.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wanted to fund the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) which gives money to Palestinians.
On the contrary, over the objections of the State Department, Haley led the successful fight to eliminate U.S. taxpayer funding for Palestinians that was funneled through UNRWA.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley supports a “blank check” for Ukraine.
Haley is on record repeatedly saying “no blank check” for Ukraine. See here, here, and here. She opposes sending cash or U.S. troops to Ukraine. She supports sending Ukraine the weapons it needs to defeat the Russian invasion of its country. DeSantis voted for aid to Ukraine under Obama. Then, he flip-flopped to copy Trump.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley supported the Black Lives Matter movement with her statement on George Floyd’s death.
Haley’s statement on George Floyd was very similar to DeSantis’. And Haley repeatedly criticized the Black Lives Matter movement here, here, here, here, and many more times.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wanted to settle Syrian refugees in South Carolina.
As governor, Haley fought the Obama administration on settling Syrian refugees in South Carolina. As ambassador, Haley opposed settling Syrian refugees in the United States, arguing that it is better for refugees to stay in the region in which they live.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wants to allow unlimited legal immigration into this country.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley opposed Trump’s border wall in 2015.
In 2015, Haley criticized politicians for relying “just” on a border wall exclusively. She called for a comprehensive approach that included building a wall, ground troops, drones, equipment, etc. Fact checkers called this attack false.
DeSantis lies about his support for the Renewable Fuel Standard program.
DeSantis long opposed ethanol before he decided to run for president. In 2015, DeSantis introduced legislation to repeal the Renewable Fuel Standard, and cosponsored five pieces of legislation to repeal it: HR 259, HR 1461, HR 1001, HR 703, HR 1314. DeSantis also wrote an op-ed calling ethanol “venture socialism.”
DeSantis falsely claims Haley always caves to the left.
Haley has a long track record of taking on both Democrats and Republicans to fight for conservative policies. Haley took on the establishment to put votes on the record, pass ethics reform, cut wasteful spending, and kill tax increases. She passed one of the toughest anti-illegal immigration laws in the country, enacted pro-life bills, passed voter ID, cut taxes, created tens of thousands of jobs, fought the Obama administration on accepting Syrian refugees, undocumented minors, and Guantanamo Bay prisoners in South Carolina, and expanded gun rights. As UN ambassador, she enacted the toughest set of sanctions against North Korea ever, defended Israel, defended moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, cut aid to UNRWA, withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council, condemned Russia, and pushed to leave the Iran deal.
DeSantis falsely claims Haley wants to raise the retirement age for retirees.
Haley has ONLY called for adjusting the retirement age for younger workers in their twenties like her children. It was DeSantis who wanted to raise the retirement age to 70 when he was in Congress, voting to do so in 2013, 2014, and 2015. In 2012, Ron DeSantis told a local Florida newspaper that Social Security was unsustainable and was never intended for people to be retiring at “65 or 67” if they are going to live into their eighties. Fact checkers called his claims “misleading.”
DeSantis falsely claims Haley opposes free speech on social media.
Haley supports free speech on social media for Americans. She does not support free speech for Russian, Iranian, or Chinese bots spreading anti-American messages. Ironically, DeSantis pushed for a bill that would ban anonymous sources in press coverage in violation of the First Amendment.
DeSantis claims he took on Disney because it had become too woke.
Disney was woke for years and Ron DeSantis never objected. In fact, he gave Disney the largest subsidy in Florida history. He only took on Disney because of a personal vendetta.
DeSantis claims he will take on the big spenders in Washington.
In 2012, DeSantis promised he would never vote to increase the debt limit, saying, “I’m not going to raise the debt ceiling. We need to force Congress to make tough choices.” As a congressman, DeSantis voted to increase the debt limit that led to Washington’s bloated spending and inflation crisis. As governor, DeSantis spent millions of Biden’s COVID slush fund money on a massive giveaway to a top donor’s pet project. He also brought back the taxpayer-funded airplane after the previous Republican Governor Rick Scott eliminated it.