Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis received less than a warm welcome in California when he came for a visit to the Reagan Library in Simi Valley.
Employees found the vandalism on the entrance sign to the presidential library at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, just ahead of the popular governor’s visit, according to a report from KTLA-TV.
The spray-paint read “Ron DeFascist” but was cleaned up before DeSantis arrived to give a speech to the sold-out crowd.
“The vandalism took place during the night and there were no witnesses,” read a statement from the Simi Valley Police Department.
Protesters demonstrated outside the library with similar themes in their signs, including, “Go Home Fascist” and “Go Back to FL DeSatan!”
DeSantis is publicizing his book, “The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival,” which many see as a possible springboard to a presidential campaign for the Republican nomination in 2024. The governor used his speech to contrast the liberal policies in California to his governance of Florida.
“You’ve seen massive gains in states like Florida, who are governed according to the driving principles that President Reagan held dear,” DeSantis said, referring to the decreasing population in California.
He also slammed California over the state’s liberal response to the pandemic shutdown.
“Were you as a governor gonna look at everything, consume the data yourself, be mindful of your state’s economic well-being, the education of your kids? Yes, health in terms of COVID, but also health in terms of every other thing, or were you gonna basically subcontract out your leadership to health bureaucrats like Dr. Fauci?”
DeSantis won a decisive reelection in Florida in the midterm elections, forcing liberal commentators to admit that he had made Florida a solidly red state.
Here’s DeSantis’ speech at the Reagan Library:
Onstage at the Reagan Library with Special Guest Governor DeSantiswww.youtube.com
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