People had already started panic-buying at the grocery stores on the East Coast within the first couple of days of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) going on strike. They had good reason to. Americans have little reason to trust the Biden-Harris administration when it comes to unraveling supply chain issues. What surprised everyone, however—and which no one is talking about—is how Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) was able to break up the strike in a matter of hours.

The ILA waited all year long so they could go on strike and hold the American economy hostage just a month before a presidential election. Sure, longshoremen already make more money than your doctor. But it was worth it to them to go on strike at the worst possible time after one of the most devastating hurricanes in American history was already causing a national emergency to demand more money.

Gov. DeSantis announced that he was sending the National Guard in to guard the ports and keep the freight moving from Florida ports. Within a few hours, the two sides that supposedly hadn’t even set a date to begin negotiations announced they had a temporary deal and the strike is now on hold until January 15th.

What the heck happened?

DeSantis called their bluff. Longshoremen don’t have mystical knowledge that ordinary people couldn’t do at the ports. If the National Guard could come in and keep the ports open and the freight moving—with little to no training—it would have made the ILA look like a bunch of greedy buffoons asking for sky-high salaries for jobs anyone could do.

Kudos to Gov. DeSantis for preventing a massive economic crisis right before the election.

Are people already panic buying because of the Port Strike? Here are the grocery shelves in the water section at my local Kroger this morning. I realize that we are probably also low on water due to the Helene aftermath in East Tennessee, but still not great to see this already… pic.twitter.com/bxP0QgygnC

— Denise Van Patten (@DeeVP) October 1, 2024