Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has long positioned himself as a champion of “parents’ rights,” and that pitch is a huge part of his broad appeal to the public. But the Florida Republican just signed a bill into law that betrays those promises. 

The new law is supposed to protect children from the alleged harms of social media. It does this in two major ways: by outright prohibiting Floridians under age 14 from having social media accounts and requiring that 14- and 15-year-olds obtain parental permission before they can have a social media account. 

“Social media harms children in a variety of ways,” DeSantis said in a statement. “HB 3 gives parents a greater ability to protect their children.”

If all he’d done was mandate that companies require parental consent, DeSantis could still credibly claim to be upholding parental rights. But the other part of the bill, prohibiting children 13 and under from using social media no matter their parents’ wishes, actually tramples all over parents’ rights. 

(Technically, most social media platforms already prohibit users 13 and under from using their platforms, but this is rarely enforced, and usage of platforms such as Instagram by minors under 13 is widespread.) 

Newsflash to “parental rights” champion Ron DeSantis: The government should not be micromanaging people’s parenting decisions.

Like many things in life, social media can be harmful, both for minors and for adults. However, some young people have very healthy relationships with social media. Parents can better decide what level, if any, of social media usage is appropriate for their specific child than any government can via one-size-fits-all mandates and rules. 

In fact, as author Robby Soave points out in his book Tech Panic, some data suggest that teenagers who don’t use social media at all are the least happy, worse even than those with social media addictions. (The best faring seem to be those teenagers who use social media a moderate amount.) 

This new law also raises serious questions about enforcement. How are companies going to know who is 14 and who isn’t? Are all Floridians going to have to submit their ID or other identifying information? And what protections are going to be in place to make sure that these sensitive data aren’t compromised, leading to identity theft?

It could also ultimately get struck down in court. Similar bills have been blocked under the First Amendment by the courts. 

More fundamentally, it’s yet another example of DeSantis’s fluid commitment to his principles. 

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

The governor has proudly declared, “In the state of Florida, parents have a fundamental role in the education, healthcare, and wellbeing of their children. We will not move from that.”

Well, he just did. 

Brad Polumbo (@Brad_Polumbo) is an independent journalist, YouTuber, and co-founder of BASEDPolitics.