Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis quipped Wednesday about smuggling Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic into Florida amid a COVID-19 rule blocking him from entry.
"You know, there’s something called natural immunity, which the CDC didn’t want to recognize, but we all know is a fact of life. And so he poses zero risk to the United States, zero risk to the state of Florida," DeSantis said during a press conference. "I would run a boat from the Bahamas here for him. I would do that 100%."
DESANTIS URGES BIDEN TO ALLOW NOVAK DJOKOVIC INTO US: 'LET HIM PLAY'
Djokovic has been stymied from entering the United States due to his refusal to accept the COVID-19 vaccine. As a result, his ability to play in the Miami Open, which runs from March 19 to April 2, is in jeopardy. On Tuesday, DeSantis sent a letter to President Joe Biden requesting that he grant Djokovic permission to enter the U.S.
On Wednesday, the White House noted that the COVID-19 rules remain in place. DeSantis gave Biden a deadline of March 10 to confirm that Djokovic can't enter the U.S. by boat.
"I would refer you to the CDC, they are the ones who deal with that," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday. "It's still in place, and we expect everyone to abide by our country's rule, whether as a participant or a spectator."
DeSantis hailed Djokovic as a talented tennis player and railed against pandemic-era mandates, a position that catapulted him to stardom within the GOP. Djokovic was famously blocked from the Australian Open last year for his refusal to take the vaccine, something that drew an international outcry.
“Number one tennis player, one of the best ever. He is being discriminated against because he didn’t take the m-RNA Covid jab, and he never wanted to do it from the beginning," DeSantis added. "There are people in Florida who never wanted to do it. And we fought for your right to make that choice without losing your job."
WATCH: DeSantis says he'd run a boat to allow Novak Djokovic entry into Florida for the Miami Open after being denied due to mRNA status
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) March 8, 2023
"People get infected anyways [...] He poses zero risk to the United States, zero risk to the state of Florida, and zero risk to Miami." pic.twitter.com/JESlhTXXX1
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In his letter to Biden, DeSantis noted that Biden's Oct. 25, 2021, proclamation on the pandemic travel "governs the entry into the United States of noncitizen nonimmigrants ... by air. "
"Your administration does not appear to have issued analogous restrictions for non-U.S. individuals seeking to enter our country by boat," DeSantis stressed.