Orange County Sheriff John Mina, whose jurisdiction is in central Florida and includes the city of Orlando, is not a fan of the newly active law from Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis and other Republicans in the state government that allows for concealed carry — meaning covertly carrying a firearm — without a permit.
DeSantis has personally expressed support for open carry without a permit, but that proposal didn’t take off in the state legislature… yet, at least. There’s only so much he can do of his own accord, even if sometimes, like in redistricting after the 2020 census, he’s essentially bullying his fellow Republicans into compliance.
“Even though I’m not in favor of permitless carry for a number of reasons, it’s still the law. So we’re going to enforce it like we normally would,” Mina said, according to a local Fox affiliate. “So it’s just going to make it a little more difficult for our deputies because there will be more guns on the streets, more people carrying concealed firearms, so we have concerns about that for our safety and the safety of our citizens.” These concerns are, of course, pretty basic… and evidently something that didn’t occur to state Republicans to the point of them being concerned enough to stop all of this from taking effect. Concealed carry without a permit is formally permitted in the state as of July 1.
DeSantis is now running for president, specifically hoping to nab the 2024 presidential nomination from the Republican Party and no doubt anticipating some kind of boost to his campaign among Republicans from the positions he’s loudly staked on so-called culture war issues in his home state. The problem is that a majority of just general Americans might not be a fan of someone who joins the obsession with which bathrooms are used by transgender people around them.
