White House slams DeSantis' migrant flights, won't say if he's guilty of 'kidnapping'

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White House declines to weigh in on Florida migrant flight 'kidnapping' accusations

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday condemned Florida's migrant flights to California but declined to comment on allegations that the migrant flights amount to kidnapping or false imprisonment. 

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Florida's migrant relocation program Wednesday, calling it "dangerous" and "unacceptable." 

However, Jean-Pierre would not comment on whether Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is guilty of kidnapping, as California's governor and attorney general have suggested.

The Florida Division of Emergency Management confirmed to Fox News that Florida flew dozens of migrants to California in recent days who had volunteered to relocate. The migrant flights are part of the $12 million "unauthorized alien transport program" that DeSantis, a Republican candidate for president, signed into law in February.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta, both Democrats, have accused Florida of exploiting the migrants. Newsom lashed out against DeSantis in a tweet, calling him a "small, pathetic man" and suggesting he was guilty of kidnapping under California statutes.

FLORIDA OFFICIALS CONFIRM STATE BEHIND MIGRANT FLIGHTS TO CALIFORNIA AS NEWSOM THREATENS ‘KIDNAPPING CHARGES’

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., June 7, 2023.  (Andrew Caballero-Reyonolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Reporters asked Jean-Pierre Wednesday whether the White House agreed that Florida sending migrants to California amounts to false imprisonment or kidnapping those migrants.

Jean-Pierre declined to weigh in on the kidnapping allegation, citing federal law that prohibits her from discussing presidential campaign issues from the White House podium. However, she repeated the White House's earlier statements calling the flights "political stunts" and said they are "dangerous, and they're unacceptable." 

NEWSOM THREATENS DESANTIS WITH ‘KIDNAPPING CHARGES’ OVER MIGRANT FLIGHTS TO SACRAMENTO

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks at a political roundtable May 19, 2023, in Bedford, N.H. (Robert F. Bukaty/AP Photo)

"I just don't understand what are these governors doing? Why are they causing chaos? Why are they causing confusion?" Jean-Pierre said. "What does that actually do for their constituency or for the people who are being put on these planes or on the buses? And it just doesn't make sense.

"Their playing games and political strategies are not going to actually deal with the issue at hand," she added, suggesting that Republicans should "meet us at the middle" and come up with bipartisan immigration reform. 

CALIFORNIA OFFICIALS INVESTIGATING MIGRANT ARRIVALS IN SACRAMENTO: ‘WITHOUT ANY ADVANCE WARNING’

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Republicans have argued that sanctuary policies draw migrants to the border, and therefore it is right that migrants go to those areas as well as border towns and cities. Texas has been at the forefront of the transports, sending thousands of migrants to New York City, Denver, Chicago and Washington, D.C. 

In the email Tuesday, Florida officials told Fox News Digital mayors in Colorado and Texas had also transported migrants across the country.

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"From left-leaning mayors in El Paso, Texas, and Denver, Colorado, the relocation of those illegally crossing the United States border is not new. But, suddenly, when Florida sends illegal aliens to a sanctuary city, it's false imprisonment and kidnapping," they said.

Neither DeSantis nor his political campaign have commented on Newsom's kidnapping accusation. 

Fox News' Adam Shaw, Bill Melugin and Landon Mion contributed to this report.