FACT CHECK: Did CNN Report That Ron DeSantis Ordered State Officials To Cease Cooperation With Federal Agencies?
An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows a tweet from CNN stating that Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an order directing state officials to cease cooperation with federal agencies.
Verdict: False
The image is digitally fabricated. A spokesperson for CNN denied the outlet sent such a tweet.
Fact Check:
Republicans have flocked to the defense of former President Donald Trump following an Aug. 8 FBI raid on his home in Florida, according to The New York Times. DeSantis likewise defended Trump in the aftermath of the raid, calling the event “another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies against the regime’s political opponents,” Politico reported.
An image shared on Facebook claims DeSantis has now taken steps to protect Trump from future federal law enforcement raids. The image shows what appears to be a screenshot of a tweet from CNN about the situation.
“Florida’s Ron DeSantis has reportedly signed an executive order demanding all Florida officials refuse to cooperate with any federal agency, and which grants former President Donald Trump protection of armed state officials,” reads the alleged tweet. “Senior Democrats have warned that this could potentially lead to treason.”
The tweet is digitally fabricated. Check Your Fact reviewed CNN’s verified Twitter account and found no record of the alleged tweet. CNN’s website does not yield any results for any report about the purported executive order.
“This is fabricated,” said Bridget Leininger, a CNN spokesperson, in an email to Check Your Fact. (RELATED: Did CNN Report The Russians Gave Brittney Griner A DNA Test To Determine Her Gender?)
The claim regarding DeSantis is also false. No such order appears on the state’s executive orders webpage. None of the existing executive orders feature such language as the one described in the post. There are no credible news reports suggesting any such order has been signed or is planning to be signed.
Bryan Griffin, DeSantis’ press secretary, confirmed the claim was false in an email to Check Your Fact.
