Senator Greg Steube hit the ground running upon entering his first year in the Florida state senate. He came in with a clear ambition to make meaningful reform to gun policy, and many pro-gun constituents support his agenda, especially the National Rifle Association (NRA). However, he now faces Senate President Pro Tempore Anitere Flores (R-Miami-Dade) who is the opposite of a first-year, and she has come out in clear opposition of nearly all of Steube’s legislation.
Sen. Steube has proposed 11 gun bills all aimed at attacking individual parts of Florida’s gun-free zones. Looking at the bills collectively, it is obvious that Steube’s intention was to repeal as many of these zones as possible. For example, one bill attempts to repeal airports as a gun-free zone while another aims to turn school zones into carry zones. At present, state law mandates that these and many other places remain gun-free zones.
Sen. Flores has never been anti-gun, but she is a strong proponent of gun-free zones. In 2010, the NRA endorsed Flores in her first run for the Miami-Dade seat, and as late as 2015, the NRA gave her the highest possible rating for her advocacy of guns. By this time, she had already proven a very consistent track record on her support of guns as well as where she draws the line. As such, when she publicly vowed to oppose Sen. Steube’s legislation, she said no one should be surprised by her actions.
