In a recent turn of events, Jordan Klepper from The Daily Show extended some unexpected commendation towards Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for signing a bill prohibiting social media access for children under 14. Expressing his reaction to the news, Klepper, albeit begrudgingly, admitted, “This a**hole Ron DeSantis might have done something I agree with,” as per Mediaite .
As per the recently enacted legislation, social media applications such as TikTok require parental approval prior to being utilized by anyone below the age of 14. Klepper remarked, “This makes me…so mad. This asshole Ron DeSantis might have done something I agree with.” Concerned about what it ‘said’ about him that he agreed with DeSantis on a particular issue, Klepper stated that the law ‘maybe isn’t a bad idea.’ The host added, “I think we can all agree that social media is a nightmare for kids.” He shed light on the fact that it puts them at risk for depression, exposes them to predators, impairs their ability to focus, and he added comically that it creates outrageously inflated expectations about how simple it is to prepare meals.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signs a bill that would ban children under the age of 14 in Florida from joining social media platforms. pic.twitter.com/rtLHFeZjaW
— The Recount (@therecount) March 25, 2024
“Just throw in the potatoes, some scallions, some boiling water, a couple of fast edits, voila, beautiful dinner and your entire family loves you, you’re a great father! No, it’s not that easy! Turns out, there’s a lot of prep work! The videos don’t show you that, that you got to blanch the onions, julienne the carrots, now it’s 10:00 p.m., your kids are starving, they hate you. Why am I supposed to be all the cooking anyway? I was at work all day! I’m not a failure! I’m on TV, goddamn it! Hypothetically,” Klepper joked.
On CBS, Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper says Florida under Ron DeSantis is becoming an autocracy much like Hungary & Viktor Orban, who’s “mak[ing] voting harder, there’s a lot of gerrymandering, they control the media…and they vilify certain minority groups — the LGBTQ community.” pic.twitter.com/huQXkVqVti
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) April 20, 2022
While taking a few jabs at DeSantis, Klepper suggested that if the GOP governor decided to run for president once more, he should use a platform similar to banning children from using social media. Klepper remarked, “Honestly, I wish Ron DeSantis had run on this when he was a presidential candidate… This is a much better message than his platform of wearing high heels and smiling like a demon in a horror movie.”
Both of Florida’s legislative chambers easily approved the law, with a few Democrats joining the majority of Republicans who had backed it. The government shouldn’t meddle in decisions parents make for their children, according to its critics, who claim it is unconstitutional. In a press release, Democratic state house lawmaker Anna Eskamani stated, “This bill goes too far in taking away parents’ rights.” “Instead of banning social media access, it would be better to ensure improved parental oversight tools, improved access to data to stop bad actors, alongside major investments in Florida’s mental health systems and programs.” Speaker of the State House, Paul Renner, a Republican, stated that the new law was his top legislative priority. It becomes operative on January 1st, as per The Guardian .