Andrew Tate Arrives in Florida and Florida Already Wants Him Gone

Despite Donald Trump’s constant claims that other countries are sending their criminals to America, it appears that he’s helped import a couple of alleged human traffickers. Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan, the real-life Disgusting Brothers, left Romania despite facing ongoing criminal charges and touched down in Florida this morning thanks to some apparent prodding from the Trump administration. And while Tate’s arrival is sure to thrill the worst person you know, even Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is trying to figure out how to get rid of the guy.

Tate and his brother—who are accused of human trafficking, sexual misconduct, money laundering, operating an organized crime group, and committing rape—boarded a private jet Thursday morning that took them from Romania to Fort Lauderdale, Florida after previously being banned from travel while their case was still pending. It’s believed that travel restriction got lifted thanks to pressure from the Trump administration, per previous reporting from the Financial Times—an apparent example of how buddying up to Trump and his circle can get you special treatment.

However, while Tate might have some favor with Trump and far-right social circles, even some typically Trump-y people are not exactly thrilled to have the Tates on this side of the Atlantic. Ben Shapiro, presenter of his own form of toxic masculinity that is somehow more performative than Tate’s, tweeted “America does not need more self-proclaimed pimps and terror supporters with outstanding criminal allegations of sex trafficking and a history of pornographic distribution” in response to the news of Tate’s arrival. Republican Senator Josh Hawley told reporters, “I would hope our government wasn’t involved in any way. My view is that charges against him are very serious…I don’t think conservatives should be glorifying this guy at all.”

And then there’s Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who has to figure out what to do with Tate now that he’s apparently posted up in his state. During a press conference, DeSantis said, “Florida is not a place where you’re welcome with that type of conduct in the air, and I don’t know how it came to this. We were not involved, we were not notified. I found out through the media that this was something that was happening.” DeSantis also said that Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is actively looking into “what state hooks and jurisdiction we may have to be able to deal with this.”

Though the right-wing splintering over just how much misogyny everyone is willing to tolerate offers a little schadenfreude, the whole situation is frankly pretty bad for the victims of the Tates’ alleged crimes.

Per CNN, prosecutors in Romania are now unsure if their case can move forward as it’s unlikely the brothers will ever return. The women who were pressing charges against Tate and his brother issued a statement that they are “in disbelief and feel re-traumatized” and now fear Tate will “continue to spread a violent, misogynistic doctrine around the world.”