Florida makes a bust of its immigration roundup [View all]

Did you really expect anything else?

The Tampa Bay Times reported Sunday that Florida arrested more than two dozen people under a new immigration crackdown even after a federal judge blocked the law, saying it was likely unconstitutional. Most were rounded up on rinky-dink charges that the state police and attorney general wouldn’t explain. The arrests have set the stage for costly legal battles and further politicization of law enforcement and the courts.

It’s a terrible story, for sure. But raise your hand if you didn’t see this coming.

That’s because the Times report captures in a single piece everything that’s wrong with Florida government today — the cravenness of public policy, the servitude of actors across the political spectrum, bureaucratic indifference and the mindset in Tallahassee that the rule of law is for chumps. This mildewing of the public sphere has been building for years, but the guardrails have come off on immigration, with Donald Trump flying high cover for crazy.

As the Times reported, nearly all the 25 people arrested after a judge blocked the law ended up on the radar of federal immigration enforcement after they were stopped by the Florida Highway Patrol. Most were pulled over for minor traffic infractions, such as following too closely or going slightly over the speed limit. One man was arrested after being the apparent victim of a hit-and-run crash. Ten faced no charges other than the immigration offense. None were arrested for violent crimes; six were merely passengers in someone else’s vehicle.

This is how the Florida Highway Patrol spends its time? Only weeks ago, a Florida police union official, writing in the Times, bemoaned the highway patrol’s workload, complaining that troopers “continue to struggle with an unsustainable staffing shortage that significantly compromises public safety.” Maybe jumping to indulge the governor and president on immigration wasn’t the agency’s best decision. Choices, after all, come with consequences. No wonder the patrol didn’t respond to questions from the Times or agree to an interview. I’d be too embarrassed, too.

https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2025/06/04/florida-makes-bust-its-immigration-roundup-column/