Topline
Delaware and Illinois could be the next targets in Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ political stunt to relocate Latin American migrants crossing the border, according to a letter from the state’s contracted transportation company, which is reportedly trying to extend the controversial program through December 1.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could be targeting Illinois and Delaware as the next destinations in his … [+]
Key Facts
Vertol Systems Company, Inc., the transportation company contracted for DeSantis’ so-called relocation program, is looking to send 50 migrants to Delaware and 50 more to Illinois, according to a letter sent by company Vertol CEO James Montgomerie to Florida’s Department of Transportation, seen by the Miami Herald.
The transportation company had previously listed the two states in a September 15 memo obtained by CNN, as the next targets in the scheme.
Public records and internal text messages between DeSantis’ top aides released Friday revealed they were closely involved with the program, the Miami Herald reported after a public records request from a state watchdog group, with his public safety official Larry Keefe—who previously provided legal counsel for Vertol Systems Company—traveling to Texas to oversee it.
DeSantis’ communications director Taryn Fenske told the Miami Herald that although the governor’s office has been focused on recovery efforts from Hurricane Ian, which devastated parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast late last month, the “immigration relocation program remains active.”
Local officials in Delaware (Biden’s home state), had started preparations last month for a Vertol flight from San Antonio, Texas, with a stop in Crestview, Florida, to Georgetown, Delaware—although it was abruptly canceled, following a Texas sheriff’s criminal investigation into the program.
Montgomerie estimated two flights to Delaware and Illinois could cost roughly $950,000, according to the memo.
Big Number
$12 million. That’s how much money the Florida state legislature earmarked for the program, including the $1.56 it paid Vertol Systems Company, Inc. to send migrants on two Dornier charter planes to Martha’s Vineyard from San Antonio, Texas. DeSantis said he plans to spend every penny” of it.
Key Facts
DeSantis came under fire after taking credit for the two charter flights to Martha’s Vineyard on September 14, which is now the subject of multiple lawsuits and investigations, including one by a federal Treasury Department watchdog into whether he used Covid-era relief money to fund the flights. The 2024 Republican presidential hopeful is also facing a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of four of the migrants, who claim they were misled into boarding flights to Martha’s Vineyard, thinking they would be taken to an East Coast city where they would receive housing and work. Stories from several migrants days after they arrived on the Massachusetts island revealed they were approached by a blonde woman, later identified as Perla Huerta—a former U.S. Army combat medic—to board the planes, offering them gift cards and a free flight to a “sanctuary.” DeSantis’ communications director Taryn Fenske had said they would be given a “fresh start in a sanctuary state.” Democratic lawmakers, however, have decried the move as a political stunt, with President Joe Biden slamming DeSantis for “playing politics with human beings.”
Tangent
Officials on Nantucket, Massachusetts (where Biden’s family often spends its Thanksgiving), had issued an alert last week after airport officials learned another Dornier plane operated by Ultimate Jet Charters, a Vertol subcontractor, was set to arrive on the resort island. It later turned out to be a false alarm, when the flight arrived carrying business people instead.
Surprising Fact
The 48 migrants flown to Martha’s Vineyard could be eligible for special four-year U-visas reserved for crime victims, if an investigation by Bexar County, Texas, Sheriff Javier Salazar certifies they were victims of a crime. That process, however, could take time to complete. Although most U-visa applications are approved, the waitlist to obtain one includes more than 100,000 people, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Further Reading
DeSantis’ Martha’s Vineyard Flights Could Backfire: Migrants May Be Eligible For Crime Victim Visas (Forbes)
Nantucket On Alert For Next DeSantis Migrant Drop-Off As Documents Suggest He Planned More Flights (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/10/15/illinois-and-delaware-next-likely-targets-for-desantis-migrant-flights-documents-show-top-aides-running-program/