An NBC News report documented how illegal aliens are panicking over the implementation of new immigration restrictions in Florida by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The new law requires businesses with more than 25 employees to use the online database E-Verify to make sure their new hires can legally work in the U.S. Critics have argued that this system has been in place for many years but that politicians were afraid to require its use.
The law also forbids local governments from issuing identification documents to illegal aliens and requires hospitals receiving Medicaid funds to ask patients if they’re in the U.S. legally.
NBC reporter Guad Venegas interviewed illegal aliens about their plans to deal with the new law.
Jesus, who has been a farm worker for 18 years and came from Mexico, told Venegas that he would work for as long as he could in Florida but would return to Mexico if officials forced him to leave.
Another illegal alien accused DeSantis of breaking up families with the new law.
Venegas appeared to interject his political opinion into his Instagram post about the report.
“These are workers who are ESSENTIAL to the Construction, Service and Agriculture industry. Many wonder if Ron DeSantis and state officials will be able to enforce the law,” wrote Venegas.
The report quoted a finding from the Florida Policy Institute that said 47% of agriculture workers in the state were illegal aliens and estimated that it would mean a $13 billion economic loss for the state if the workers returned to Mexico or went to other states.
“What the law has created is an environment of fear where people believe that they are risk,” said Samuel Vilchez Santiago, the state director of the American Business Immigration Coalition.
The Pew Research Center estimates that there are as many as 775,000 illegal aliens in the state of Florida alone.
The governor’s office released a statement to NBC News saying that the new restrictions were simply a response to illegal immigration.
“Any business that exploits this crisis by employing illegal aliens instead of Floridians will be held accountable,” the statement concluded.
Some have accused DeSantis of cracking down on immigration in order to bolster his campaign for the 2025 GOP presidential nomination.
Here’s the video of the NBC report:
New immigration law in Florida creates panic among undocumented workersyoutu.be
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