Note: This “Moore to the Point” commentary aired on NewsTalkSTL on Friday, August 5th. Audio included below.

I mentioned “walking the walk” in my previous Moore to the Point commentary hearkening back to Teddy Roosevelt’s “Big Stick Diplomacy.” It’s a good measure of leadership. Politicians – at least the more successful ones — excel at talking the talk. The problem is, more often than not, that doesn’t translate into concrete results – promises frequently are empty and the lack of results is readily and easily blamed on political opponents and/or circumstances beyond their control. Rare is the elected official willing to stick his or her neck out and risk re-election, even for principles they claim as their core.

And then there’s Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who seems to have found the secret to balancing playing offense and not blinking — with disciplined messaging. DeSantis demonstrated this again Thursday morning, announcing that he was suspending a leftist, George-Soros-backed State Attorney for refusing to enforce Florida laws, in particular, those regarding child sex-reassignment surgeries and abortion restrictions.

Noting that Florida’s constitution vests veto power in the governor, rather than state attorneys, DeSantis declared: “We are not going to allow this pathogen of ignoring the law get a foothold in the state of Florida.”

That’s leadership, folks. Let’s hope more elected Republicans adopt and follow that template.