Governor Ron DeSantis publicly criticized Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez for refusing to advance legislation addressing medical freedom and an AI Bill of Rights during last month’s congressional reapportionment Special Session.
DeSantis asserted that Perez has acted contrary to what voters expect from public servants in Florida, stating, “He has a personal agenda.” The governor accused Perez of allowing himself to prioritize other concerns over the state’s needs, adding, “You do have people who campaign one way and then they get up to Tallahassee and they don’t think you’re going to follow what they’re doing and they think they can do whatever the h they wanna do.”
DeSantis highlighted that Perez blocked a medical freedom bill—designed to allow parents to refuse childhood vaccines, mandate healthcare providers to inform parents of vaccine risks, make ivermectin available over-the-counter, ban discrimination based on mRNA vaccination status, prohibit financial incentives for vaccine administration by practitioners, and restrict emergency vaccine mandates—which had full support from DeSantis and Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo. He also noted Perez’s refusal to consider an AI Bill of Rights that would ban companion chatbots from speaking to minors without parental consent and require AI systems to remind users they are not human.
The governor emphasized that the Senate passed the medical freedom bill during regular session with a 37-1 vote and that polls indicate strong public support for such legislation, citing a University of North Florida survey showing 86% approval for specific AI regulations. DeSantis stated, “I think it’s about 90% are in favor of having a framework” for protecting individual freedom through AI governance.
DeSantis accused Perez of using the excuse that “nobody filed a bill” to justify inaction, insisting this was misleading. “Now, do you believe nobody filed a bill, or were they told not to file a bill? So, he’s basically throwing his members under the bus,” DeSantis said. He stressed that Florida’s House leadership “just blocked” critical legislation despite having been given the opportunity to lead during the Special Session.