Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declares Sunshine State's Democratic Party is 'like a dead carcass'
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared Thursday in Michigan that Florida Republicans have 'beat the left' and that the Sunshine State's Democratic Party is like a 'dead carcass.' (WSMH)
The Miami Herald published an inaccurate headline about the arrest of former Democratic candidate Rebekah Jones' son Thursday.
Jones is a former Florida state employee who accused the DeSantis administration of hiding data about the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic from the public. A state inspector general later determined her claims to be false.
The Herald article's original title, "13-year-old son of Rebekah Jones, whistleblower who clashed with DeSantis, arrested over memes," made it appear as though Jones' son was arrested for making jokes.
However, in reality, Jones' son was arrested for allegedly threatening to shoot up his school. The Herald later changed its headline to "Son of Rebekah Jones, Florida Whistleblower, arrested in probe of threatening internet posts."
GOP Florida House comms staffer Andres Malave tweeted the headline comparison.
A side by side picture of Rep. Matt Gaetz and whistleblower Rebekah Jones. Gaetz defeated Jones in the 2022 midterm elections. (Getty Images/Reuters)
The Pensacola News Journal reported, in an article titled "Rebekah Jones' son arrested in Florida after allegedly threatening to shoot up school, stab students," that the son wrote several troubling messages on social media, including:
"I want to shoot up the school."
If I get a gun I’m gonna shoot up [Holley Navarre Middle School] lol."
"I’m getting a wrath and natural selection shirt so maybe but I don’t think many ppl know what the columbine shooters look like."
"Okay so it’s been like 3-4 weeks since I got on my new antidepressants and they aren’t working but they’re suppose to by now so I have no hope in getting better so why not kill the losers at school."
Jones herself praised the Miami Herald for their initial reporting and criticized the Pensacola News Journal for detailing the allegations against her son, tweeting:
"I've been having trouble posting all day, with any of my posts with links failing to load until several tries. I've also been in and out of service and on calls with family, lawyers, press.
"Then one of the ones from an outlet that's defamed me in the past sent a photographer to follow me when I refused an interview. The [Pensacola News Journal] 'forgot' to put me on their ballot guide in 2022 when I was running against Matt Gaetz, falsely claimed I took a plea deal in a case the state agreed to dismiss, and now is jumping through hoops to justify the state taking my son.
"The bad people in the media make it really hard for the good reporters who do an honest job. Pay attention to the @MiamiHerald. They're the only ones with video and documents," she wrote.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs books in Des Moines, Iowa, on March 10, 2023. (Photo by Rachel Mummey for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
In an exclusive comment to Fox News Digital, Jones hinted at a lawsuit against the Penscacola News Journal.
"The Miami Herald is correct; the Pensacola News Journal should be much more cautious in defaming children given how broke they are," she said.
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Charles C.W. Cooke, a writer at National Review, slammed the Miami Herald for initially downplaying Jones' son's statements and listed the various threats the 13-year-old posted.
"They weren’t ‘memes’. He wrote: ‘I want to shoot up the school.’ ‘If I get a gun I’m gonna shoot up hnms lol.’ ‘I’m getting a wrath and natural selection shirt so maybe but I don’t think many ppl know what the columbine shooters look like.’ ‘why not kill the losers at school,'" he wrote.
The Miami Herald building is shown in Doral, Florida. (REUTERS/Joe Skipper)
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Jones unsuccessfully challenged Rep. Matt Gaetz for Congress in the 2022 midterm elections. The DeSantis administration has denied her claim that they downplayed the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic in Florida.
The Miami Herald did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
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