Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has fired back at President Joe Biden after the commander-in-chief took a dig at the governor, who previously banned public school districts from issuing mask mandates.

During a press conference on Wednesday, DeSantis responded to Biden’s comments suggesting the Florida governor should “get out of the way” of those attempting to stop the spread of COVID-19.

“Joe Biden also believes that vaccination should be mandated by force of government and that you should have to show vaccination status to be able to participate in society,” DeSantis said.

“We said from the beginning, we’re going to make it [vaccines] available for all, but we’re not gonna mandate it on anybody. That’s ultimately an individual’s choice to be able to do it,” he said.

DeSantis claimed Florida would continue to fight against mask and vaccination mandates. “And so, I think the question is, we can either have a free society or we can have a biomedical security state. And I can tell you, Florida, we’re a free state,” he said.

The governor also accused Biden of failing to stick to his word to stop COVID-19 during his 2020 presidential election campaign.

“This is a guy who ran for president saying he was going to, quote, ‘Shut down the virus.’ And what has he done? He’s imported more virus from around the world by having a wide-open southern border. You have hundreds of thousands of people pouring across every month,” he added.

DeSantis insisted he wouldn’t allow Biden’s beliefs concerning mask mandates and vaccinations to affect the lives of Florida residents.

“If you’re coming after the rights of parents in Florida, I’m standing in your way, I’m not going to let you get away with it. You’re trying to deny kids a proper in-person education. I’m going to stand in your way and I’m going to stand up for the kids in Florida,” he continued.

“If you’re trying to restrict people, impose mandates, if you’re trying to ruin their jobs and their livelihoods and their small business, if you are trying to lock people down, I am standing in your way and I’m standing for the people of Florida.”

Ultimately, Desantis suggested Biden should focus on border control rather than criticizing his decisions surrounding mask mandates.

“So why don’t you do your job? Why don’t you get this border secure? And until you do that. I don’t want to hear a blip about COVID from you,” he said.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has come under fire for his handling of the public health response to COVID-19
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has come under fire for his handling of the public health response to COVID-19. GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / JOE RAEDLE