Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ripped governors on Thursday whose states are still on "draconian" coronavirus pandemic lockdown, during an interview with Fox & Friends.
Republican DeSantis was asked whether he thought other governors are "being too strict and going too far" with their "one-size-fits-all for the entire state" approaches.
"You're not a dictator, you don't have unlimited authority, and people do have rights," DeSantis said. "I don't think any governor has the authority to restrict anyone unless there's a direct relationship to combating this virus.
"If you look around the country, clearly there have been examples of really draconian, arbitrary restrictions that have nothing to do with public health, like you can't plant a seed in your front yard in your garden, you can't walk around the neighborhood with your daughter or something like that," DeSantis said.
DeSantis contrasted the lockdowns employed by other governors with his own, saying "we did not do that." Florida's stay-at-home order allowed golf courses to remain open and boating activities to continue.
The Florida governor began phase one of his three-part reopening strategy on May 4, which allows libraries, museums and restaurants to open if they keep capacity at 25%.
All beaches in Florida were reopened, except those in south Florida where coronavirus numbers are highest.
Then DeSantis lifted more restrictions on May 8, giving barbershops and salons throughout the state except the Miami area the greenlight to open.
"Some of this stuff I think has devolved into social control. I think absolutely it's gotten out of hand," DeSantis said.