Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) is widely viewed as the front-runner to challenge former President Donald Trump for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination.

In Florida , however, a growing debate is emerging over a new law that bears relevance to both the economy and immigration.

In early May, draconian penalties directed at illegal immigrants resident in Florida were passed by the Florida legislature and signed into law by DeSantis.

To be clear, DeSantis had a good political rationale for signing the law. The polls show that many Floridians, as well as Americans more generally , are concerned about illegal immigration. People want border controls. Taxpayers are angry about free-riding on social welfare benefits by illegal immigrants. The public is frightened by stories of violent crimes committed by undocumented immigrants.

In addition, communities with substantial illegal immigrant populations incur significant economic costs from the requirement that children who are illegal immigrants are entitled to public education. Finally, workers are angry because an influx of low-skill labor depresses wages.

But small-business owners in Florida are not happy about the new anti-undocumented workers legislation. Successful owners of construction companies, resorts, and agricultural businesses are suddenly missing workers. Laborers without documentation are disappearing overnight. Just a few days ago, my Uber driver, a legal immigrant of Cuban ancestry, told me that the Hispanic community is in a state of panic about rumored raids from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

At the moment, the Florida economy is booming. Migration into Florida from high-tax states continues. Still, Florida business owners worry that the new legislation will lead to labor shortages that will slow economic growth in the state. Will Florida businesses continue to support DeSantis if economic growth suffers from the new legislation? If so, will DeSantis quietly let the whole matter drop?

A few months from now, the illegal immigration legislation will have achieved its purpose, at least from DeSantis's perspective: favorable publicity for his run for the White House. Regardless, we should be wary about going too far down the anti-immigration road.

In the long run, skilled immigration is of benefit to the nation. Moreover, the vast majority of immigrants, legal and illegal, ultimately assimilate. Second-generation immigrants assimilate extremely well. The new Florida legislation will also inevitably lead to violations of basic due process rights that even illegal immigrants are accorded under the Constitution. Law enforcement will target people based on appearance without probable cause. The United States is not a police state where the people have to carry and produce on command their resident or citizenship documentation.

It will be interesting to see how DeSantis squares these varying concerns.

James Rogan is a former U.S. foreign service officer who later worked in finance and law for 30 years. He writes  a daily note  on finance and the economy, politics, sociology, and criminal justice.