(NewsNation) — Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., says Gov. Ron DeSantis’ plan to move Haitian migrants to Martha’s Vineyard is due to a fear of “mass migration.”
“I’ve never seen it this bad in Haiti,” Gimenez said Wednesday on NewsNation’s “The Hill.” “I’ve been in South Florida for over 60 years, and yes, we’ve had migrations from Haiti for a number of years. But he’s fearing mass migration. … I think the president (Joe Biden) needs to go to the United Nations, get a multinational force to go into Haiti and restore order.”
DeSantis announced Wednesday that he will be deploying over 250 state officers to secure Florida’s coast from potential migrants entering from Haiti.
“Given the circumstances in Haiti, I have directed the Division of Emergency Management, the Florida State Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy over 250 additional officers and soldiers and over a dozen air and sea craft to the southern coast of Florida to protect our state,” DeSantis said in a statement.
The Florida governor added that “no state has done more to supplement the (under-resourced) U.S. Coast Guard’s interdiction efforts; we cannot have illegal aliens coming to Florida.”
Chaos has unfolded in Haiti over the past weeks. The government has collapsed, and criminal gangs have overtaken the nation.
NewsNation’s Safia Samee Ali contributed to this report.