• Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed $35 million set aside for a new training facility for the Tampa Bay Rays. 
  • The Rays last week posted statistics on gun violence after the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. 
  • DeSantis said he opposed using taxpayer dollars to "subsidize the political activism of a private corporation."

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a $35 million proposal to build a training facility for the Tampa Bay Rays, a week after the team shared tweets pushing for gun control.

In the wake of the May 24 deadly mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, the Rays were one of a handful of teams that took to social media to promote gun control legislation. 

Throughout a May 26 game against the New York Yankees, the Rays posted a series of tweets highlighting various gun violence statistics, including links to the data. 

 

On Thursday, DeSantis signed a $109.9 billion budget for the fiscal year, set to begin July 1. DeSantis issued $3.13 billion in vetoes, however, including the $35 million sports complex project.

 

According to local radio station WUSF, the site was expected to be used by the Rays as a spring-training facility.

"I don't support giving taxpayer dollars to professional sports stadiums, period," DeSantis said at a press conference on Friday.

He added: "Companies are free to engage or not engage with whatever discourse they want, but clearly, it's inappropriate to be doing tax dollars for a professional sports stadium and it's also inappropriate to subsidize the political activism of a private corporation."

The Rays declined to comment on the veto to Insider. 

DeSantis, who had touted his pro-gun stance, promised in April to sign "constitutional carry" legislation to allow people to carry handguns without concealed weapons permits or licenses before he leaves office, the Orlando Sentinel reported at the time.  

The DeSantis veto is the latest move affecting a corporation after it made public statements that went against his political beliefs.

The Florida governor previously targeted Disney over its opposition to the state's controversial so-called "Don't Say Gay" legislation, teaming up with the state legislature to strip the company of its ability to essentially self-govern Walt Disney World. 

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