Dupage Policy Journal

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis visited with Illinoisans in a three-state tour on Presidents' Day.

DeSantis spoke to a crowd of law enforcement officers at the Elmhurst Knights of Columbus Hall.

“The reason why you have crime that is spiraled out of control in so many of these different areas is because you have politicians putting woke ideology ahead of public safety,” DeSantis said, FOX 32 Chicago reported. “As you see, massive increases in crime in places like Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, (and) Philadelphia. Florida has a 50-year low in our crime rate.” 

DeSantis has not yet announced a presidential bid but is expected to do so. 

“According to Safewise, Illinois had a higher violent crime rate at 4.3 incidents per 1,000, compared to the national average of 4.0. Total crime in Chicago is also up 41% compared to 2021 when looking at police statistics," The Center Square reported.

DeSantis is making public safety an issue. He visited Illinois after giving speeches in New York and Philadelphia on Presidents Day as well as part of his “Back the Blue” events. DeSantis' political team organized the appearance calling it “Law and Order: Florida Leading the Way.” 

The event was promoted by Chicago Lodge 7 of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) which said in an email to members that it was for “law enforcement members only, spouses are not included,” according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

The FOP received criticism from Chicago mayoral hopefuls for hosting DeSantis due to his political stances. "We were simply asked to help promote it…that is all we are doing," said John Catanzara, FOP Lodge 7 president, NBC Chicago reported. "This isn’t a left side of the aisle, right side of the aisle issue at all. I know people are trying to make it that.”

Attendee Joan McCarthy, whose brother works for the Chicago Police Department, told WTTW she is disappointed in the records of Democratic leaders including Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. 

“We’ve got to support law and order. Our society, if we don’t have law and order, then we’re total chaos,” McCarthy said. 

“I totally back the blue and I think that police have been getting kind of a raw deal in Illinois, and I came to support and to hear what another governor from another state is doing.”