'Indistinguishable from QAnon': First Lady of Florida slammed over 'Mamas for DeSantis' video

The First Lady of Florida, Casey DeSantis, announced the launch of "Mamas for DeSantis" Thursday, as a part of her husband, Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis' 2024 presidential campaign.

Casey shared a two-minute launch video via Twitter, writing, "We will not allow you to exploit the innocence of our children to advance your agenda. When you come after our kids, we fight back. We are no longer silent. We are united. We are Mamas for DeSantis. ...and we will elect @RonDeSantis President of the United States. Join our historic movement today: http://mamasfordesantis.com"

The video claims parents across the country have been "forced into silence," and complains we were "told to trust the science" and forced to mask children at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed millions, according to the World Health Organization.

READ MORE: 'A clown show': Steve Bannon lambastes DeSantis’ 'historic screwup' of a campaign launch

Regarding DeSantis' handling of the pandemic in The Sunshine State, according to a Columbia Law School report, The Florida Department of Health has said, "Governor DeSantis and members of his staff repeatedly questioned the accuracy of the COVID-19 death rates, with his press secretary Fred Piccolo Jr. tweeting: 'we can tell you definitively that Florida is counting deaths that were not directly caused by COVID-19," adding, "Mr. Piccolo has also sought to downplay the COVID-19 pandemic in other ways. On one occasion, he erroneously tweeted: 'we had one COVID death in Florida yesterday . . yes you read that right. One.' In fact, on the day in question, there were 47 deaths."

However, when it comes to the health of children, the narrator of the "Mamas for DeSantis" video insists, "We have finally found our fighter [in Ron DeSantis]. We're doing for America what he did for us."

The spiel emphasizes that if the GOP governor is elected in 2024, America will look like: "Schools, open. Parents rights, defended. School choice, universal. Critical race theory, prohibited. DEI, stopped. Child mutilation, illegal. Girls' sports, saved. Communities, protected. Our economy, growing. And freedom, guaranteed."

Then, the camera pans to Casey, who says, "But winning the fight in Florida is just the beginning. We must protect parents' rights and the innocence of our children. We must restore sanity in our society. We need every mama, and every grandmama, in every corner of the country to stand up and fight back by electing Ron DeSantis president of the United States of America."

READ MORE: Ex-DeSantis staffers sharpen their knives against his 'vindictive' wife Casey ahead of presidential run

Earlier this week, The New York Timesreported:

But Mr. DeSantis, who has not shown that he is a natural campaigner, has failed to take off in the polls, and his carefully choreographed public events have offered few headline-generating moments, as his campaign, until recently, has worked to shield him from potentially awkward unscripted interactions with voters and the news media.

Several journalists and political experts blasted the "bizarre" ad.

Kimberly Leonard, politics correspondent for Business Insider said, "This video reveals something I've emphasized for a while: The DeSantises are in lockstep. She is fully engaged and supportive in her husband's political rise, and when it comes to policy they agree."

MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan wrote, "Imagine thinking in 2023 that the threat to our kids is from…masking in a pandemic? The actual threat to our kids, missing from this video, are mass shooters in schools, who are able to exist of course with the support of GOP gun laws."

Former President Barack Obama staffer Tommy Vietor commented, "A couple weeks ago, the DeSantis campaign was pitching stories about how his wife was the secret weapon to help sand off his weird, rough edges. Now she's releasing insane agitprop videos. Bizarre choice!"

READ MORE: Florida Republican lawmakers fear DeSantis will 'chop off heads' if they go against him: report

Peter Schorsch, publisher of Florida Politics, added, "The more it becomes clear @RonDeSantis will not win in 2024, the more you’ll see them position @CaseyDeSantis for 2026."

Deputy Political Ediotor at Courier Newsroom Keya Vakil, wrote, "This is utterly indistinguishable from QAnon."

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: 'Walmart Melania': Casey DeSantis loudly backs her husband’s message of 'division and dehumanization'

The New York Times' full report is available at this link (subscription required). The World Health Organization's report is here.