Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote a letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday, urging him to allow a tennis player permission to enter the country for an upcoming tournament.
In the letter, DeSantis said that Serbian tennis pro Novak Djokovic formally applied and was denied permission to enter the U.S. for the Miami Open tennis tournament due to not receiving the vaccine for COVID-19.
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“While Mr. Djokovic is surely a supreme competitive threat to his fellow tennis professionals, his presence in our country poses no meaningful health or public safety risk,” the letter reads. “I note that since the onset of COVID-19, Mr. Djokovic has visited the United States at least twice — including once during your presidency — without any apparent health incident.”
While a 2021 proclamation prevents noncitizens visiting the U.S. to travel to the county by air, DeSantis’ letter said that there are no such restrictions in place for those seeking to enter the U.S. by boat. In addition, the letter criticizes U.S. border policy in relation to federal COVID-19 travel procedures.
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“Even as you enacted the proclamation on air travel that remains in force to this day, your administration pointedly allowed thousands of unvaccinated migrants to enter our country through the southern border,” DeSantis wrote.
The letter also criticizes the requirement of COVID-19 vaccines, claiming that natural immunity is equally effective at combatting the virus and pointing out that such vaccinations carry rare “potential health risks.”
The Miami Open is scheduled to begin on March 20. As part of DeSantis’ letter to the president, he asked for confirmation by March 10 about whether Djokovic could enter the U.S. via boat.
The full text of the letter can be read below.
Governor DeSantis 03.07.2023 by Anthony Talcott on Scribd
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