‘They couldn’t win at the polls’: DeSantis says corporations seek to make a Constitution to ‘end tax evasion’

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida accused big corporations of trying to “flip” the Constitution in a speech Saturday in Iowa, a state that is ahead of the Republican primary.

“We also need to restore the integrity of our business operations, particularly large corporations. They’ve bought into the idea that waking up is somehow their responsibility,” DeSantis said at the Feenstra family picnic near Sioux City, Iowa. “They’ve bought into concepts like ESG, environmental, social, governance. Make no mistake, however, what they are trying to do. They are trying to change politics in this country. They are trying to change our society without having to stand for election.” (RELATED: ‘It Could Kill Our Economy’: Democratic Senator Sounds Alarm Over Biden Admin Climate Rules)

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Environmental, Social and Governance, also known as “sustainable investing”, according to the Institute of Corporate Finance, may take into account corporate policies on gun control, environmental issues, abortion, or other issues in addition to or instead of strictly looking at a corporation’s profitability

DeSantis signed legislation on May 2 that prohibited state agencies and local governments from considering ESG when issuing bonds, prohibited banks from considering “social credit” when making lending decisions, and prohibited discrimination based on political, social, or religious ideology.

“The policies that they are proposing through these things couldn’t win at the polls in Iowa, couldn’t win at the polls in Florida,” DeSantis continued. “They are trying to end our constitutional system and impose a leftist agenda through corporate power.”

Critics of ESG pointed to crises in Sri Lankawhich banned chemical fertilizers that resulted in a 50% drop in crop yields in 2021, and Ghanawhich suffered blackouts.

“I think we need to say very clearly that there is no social or economic transformation without representation,” DeSantis said. “We will not let them bypass our constitutional system to force this on our country.”

DeSantis is a potential candidate for the Republican nomination in 2024, and he has the support of Never Back Down, a super PAC that Announced in April he would send a mailer to voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Michigan to promote it.

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