Prosecutor Suspended By DeSantis Over Abortion Ban Comments Lashes Out At ‘Blatantly Unconstitutional’ Punishment
Florida state attorney Andrew Warren (D) lashed out at Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), claiming the Republican does not have the authority to suspend over recent comments on the state’s abortion restrictions.
After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Florida enacted a ban on abortions after 15 weeks. The law is being contested, but Warren made it clear recently that he would refuse to actually enforce the law, leading to DeSantis announcing his suspension.
“Policy differences aside, we’ve had governors who have respected the rule of law, and now we have one who clearly doesn’t. He’s stepping on the rights of the voters of Hillsborough County,” Warren told CBS News’ Jonathan Vigliotti this week about the governor’s action.
Warren has served in Hillsborough County since 2016, and he said he plans on continuing to do so, suggesting he is not leaving.
“This is blatantly unconstitutional and a violation of Florida statute. He doesn’t have the authority to suspend me just because he wants to, especially when he’s focused on things I haven’t even done yet,” Warren said. “The bottom line is people elected me to serve in this position and I’m going to continue doing it to keep our neighborhoods safe.”
In previous tweets this week addressing his suspension, Warren accused DeSantis of using his office to “further his own political ambitions.”
Today’s political stunt is an illegal overreach that continues a dangerous pattern by Ron DeSantis of using his office to further his own political ambition. It spits in the face of the voters of Hillsborough County who have twice elected me to serve *them*, not Ron DeSantis… pic.twitter.com/RzPXksSSWa
— Andrew Warren (@AndrewWarrenFL) August 4, 2022
The governor held a press conference on Thursday accused Warren of “neglect of duty.”
“When you say you are not going to enforce laws you don’t like, that’s a neglect of duty,” DeSantis said. The governor accused of Warren of pushing a “basically woke” agenda and made clear he would not tolerate state attorney’s trying use “veto power” to pick and choose which laws to enforce.
Watch above via CBS News
