The Washington Post just published a piece linking Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's (R) presidential immigration platform to former President George W. Bush. 

The article is titled, What the DeSantis fentanyl plan owes George W. Bush. 

The article begins: "This is not George W. Bush’s Republican Party. It’s Donald Trump’s."

"But," the article continues, "listening to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) sketch out his border policies on Monday, it was clear that the GOP field owes quite a lot to the 43rd president – and specifically to his 'war on terrorism.'"

The link to Bush

It regards the part of DeSantis's immigration plan that looks to address the fentanyl crisis and the Mexican drug cartels that are driving it.

DeSantis's proposal reportedly states:

If the Mexican government drags its feet, DeSantis will reserve the right to operate across the border to secure our territory from Mexican cartel activities. If the Mexican government won’t stop cartel drug manufacturing, DeSantis will surge resources to the Navy and the Coast Guard and block precursor chemicals from entering Mexican ports.

The Post compared this to the "unilateral" military action that Bush took after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The Post writes:

As Bush wrestled with how to respond to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, he and his team decided unilateral U.S. military action on the territory of another country would be justified if that country’s government were unwilling or unable to take on extremists eager to attack America.

The exact specifics of this part of DeSantis's plan remain unclear. But, this aspect of it is generating some controversy.

Background

DeSantis is one of the leading Republican presidential candidates for 2024 whose name is not "Trump."

As such, DeSantis, on Monday, unveiled his immigration platform before an audience of roughly 100 individuals.

ABC News reports:

Texas -- Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis promised to end birthright citizenship, finish building the southern border wall and send U.S. forces into Mexico to combat drug cartels as part of an aggressive — and familiar — immigration policy proposal . . .

"On Jan. 20, 2025, we will be on a mission to stop the invasion at our southern border, to fight the drug cartels that are poisoning our citizenry, to build the border wall, and to reestablish the sovereignty of this nation," DeSantis told those in attendance.

He added, "We are done with promises. We are done with slogans. Now is the time for action. No excuses. We will get the job done."