Florida Republican Rep. Byron Donalds clapped back at the NAACP after the civil rights group issued a travel warning to black Americans to avoid the GOP-led state.
NAACP President Derrick Johnson on Monday warned blacks, people of color and LGBTQ+ Americans planning to visit the state of Florida, alleging that the Sunshine State “devalues and marginalizes the contributions of and the challenges faced by African-Americans and other communities of color.”
In an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, Donalds was asked about the advisory and responded:
I think it’s dumb. I don’t know what they’re really talking about. I think they’re more mad because they don’t have a voice per se through the legislature, the governor is not listening to this kind of stuff, he shouldn’t listen to this kind of stuff. Listen, Black Americans have been moving to Florida for a long time. They continue to move to Florida. They’re thriving in our state. They’re opening businesses in our state. Their kids are actually going to school, actually being educated in our state. The sky is the limit the sunshine is bright. I don’t know what the NAACP is talking about…
Florida is awesome. At the end of the day, what do we support, school choice giving every child — white, black, Hispanic — it doesn’t matter giving them an opportunity to find the place they want to get to. That’s number one. Number 2, just having the opportunity to raise your kids in peace in safe cities to be able to walk down the street and enjoy your community. That’s what Florida brings. You’re going say that black people should be careful coming to our state? …
Democrats know they’re losing black men. Black men are looking at what’s going on under Joe Biden and the Democrats and they’re basically saying this is enough, we’re out. Because their pockets aren’t getting better, job prospects aren’t getting better, the economy is squeezing black families more than most families…
Black families are forming at that time highest rate in 40 years. Black moms and black dads are raising their kids. That’s a good thing. But they’re haters because they’re liberals first and foremost and they cannot tolerate black people in this country saying, you know what, I’m done with Democrat policy because it doesn’t work when you look at it because the Democrats understand that without black voters being loyal to them then they lose.
He also addressed the advisory earlier in an interview with Fox & Friends: