On Balance | People’s Republic of Florida? How Republicans’ rhetoric echoes that of Russia and China

Much like Kremlin-friendly elements in the Ukrainian occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk, Florida’s Republicans – who dominate the state’s leadership – align more with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s world view than the post-World War II international order he is trying to dismantle.

In a move that would warm the hearts of policymakers in Moscow – not to mention Beijing, which has been working overtime to enforce a conservative mindset – the state’s House of Representatives passed a bill last week that would prohibit “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” in Florida’s primary schools.

Florida resident and best friend to autocrats worldwide Donald Trump called Putin “smart” and “savvy” when the Russian president announced his official recognition of what he called the “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk. Much of these areas have been occupied by Russia since it annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014.

The two men have a knack for lies capable of giving far-right causes legitimacy that leads to consequences for everyone. For example, Trump’s evidence-free narrative about how the 2020 election was stolen is every bit as stupefying as Putin’s allegation that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, has unleashed genocidal Nazi tactics in the two breakaway regions.

Trump’s lie led to new laws in many Republican-controlled states that add levels of complexity to the voting process and restrict absentee balloting, which Democratic constituencies are more likely to use. Meanwhile, Putin’s lie led to the carnage we see unfolding in Ukraine.