Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, rebuking efforts to tie him to “some jackasses” engaging in a Nazi demonstration in Orlando during the weekend, cited his stand against Ben & Jerry’s as part of his extensive record opposing anti-Semitism.
In a Palm Beach County press conference Monday, the governor called attention to his actions against companies – including Ben & Jerry’s – that supported the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.
“These Democrats…are trying to use this as some type of political issue to try to smear me as if I had something to do with that,” said DeSantis. “We’re not playing their game…
“I’m not going to have people try to smear me, that belong to a political party that has elevated anti-Semites to the halls of Congress, like Ilhan Omar, that have played footsie with the BDS movement…”
In July, …DeSantis called on the State Board of Administration (SBA) to immediately place Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever on the Continued Examination Companies that Boycott Israel List and initiate the process to place both companies on the Scrutinized Companies that Boycott Israel List.
In a letter sent to Ash Williams, the Executive Director of the State Board of Administration of Florida, DeSantis said, “It has come to my attention that Ben & Jerry’s has announced plans to remove its products and prohibit the sale of its ice cream in Judea and Samaria. These actions taken by Ben & Jerry’s fall squarely within the prohibited activities defined by Section 215.4725(1)(a), Florida Statutes. Ben & Jerry’s is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Unilever, a publicly-traded company in which Florida holds multiple investments.”
The Sunshine State stopped buying shares of Unilever in October, according to Florida Politics.
