Ron DeSantis doubles down on call to ban first-cousin marriages

Gov. Ron DeSantis is continuing his crusade against first cousins entering wedded bliss, urging a ban on the practice in his latest cable news interview.

Fox News host Sean Hannity expressed surprise on Tuesday that first cousins were free to wed in the Free State of Florida, driving DeSantis to again condemn the practice and call for legislative action.

“In a lot of states, it’s not. Florida needs to get with the program on that one. It’s obviously part of cultures that are antithetical to American values,” DeSantis said.

The cable news condemnation was the second time in as many days that America’s Governor groused about the practice as being anti-American.

Using a baseball metaphor Monday, he described such a prohibition as a “hanging curveball” that a properly engaged legislative branch could knock out of the proverbial park.

HB 733, a wide-ranging Department of Health (DOH) bill that would have stopped Florida from recognizing marriages between first cousins after July 1, died in the Legislative Session.

Disputes during floor sessions involved a lot of other issues within the bill, including medical marijuana, neonatal nutrition and best practices for dental hygienists.

If the DOH bill had become law or if the provision had been part of stand-alone legislation, Florida could have joined the majority of states banning the practice that is considered to be taboo in the West but a more traditional practice in the developing world. Still, roughly 1 in 500 marriages results from a union of first cousins.

Given that this was DeSantis’ last Legislative Session, the only way he could effect change would be to add a bill to a Special Session call.

Rep. Dean Black, who introduced the amendment adding the cousin marriage ban to the bill mentioned above, said he’s going to push to have this issue considered again as soon as he can.