Driven by a desire to look presidential among a Republican base that hates the idea of all power emanating from Washington, D.C., Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis convened a 90-minute discussion Monday of 10 doctors and researchers who rejected the benefits of coronavirus mitigation such as vaccine mandates, masks and school closures.

During the discussion, Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo and other panelists cited studies suggesting the vaccine gives limited or rapidly waning protection against the coronavirus to children, who have lower infection rates than adults anyway.

At the end of the roundtable discussion, contradicting guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Ladapo announced that Florida will recommend that healthy children not get vaccinated against covid-19. The surgeon general’s appointment was confirmed by DeSantis in February.

“The Florida Department of Health is going to be the first state to officially recommend against the Covid-19 vaccines for healthy children,” said Dr. Ladapo, who has voiced skepticism about the vaccine‘s effectiveness.

The CDC approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children ages 5 and older and recommends vaccinating children. Vaccines for children younger than 5 have not been approved.

The Pfizer vaccine was on track in 2021 to be the bestselling pharmaceutical product ever, with an expected $36 billion from worldwide sales, NPR reported in November 2021.

“I think what Florida’s guidance reflects is the latest research,” DeSantis told reporters at a news conference at Plant City Monday. He said healthy children are at low risk for the virus and that he’s seen studies showing there’s “very little benefit” for them.

Covid-19 is one of the top 10 causes of death for children aged 5 to 11, according to the CDC, which urges parents to get their children vaccinated. “Covid-19 can make children very sick and cause children to be hospitalized,” the CDC said. “In some situations, the complications from infection can lead to death.”

Vaccinating children can also protect family members who are not eligible for vaccination, including children younger than 5 or those at increased risk for serious illness if infected. More children were hospitalized during the omicron surge than at any other point in the pandemic.

This isn’t the first time DeSantis has moved to distance Florida from the federal government. In December 2021, he proposed reestablishing the Florida State Guard — a World War II-era civilian-military force that he would control.

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DeSantis said the proposed military force would “not be encumbered by the federal government,” and would give him “the flexibility and the ability needed to respond to events in our state in the most effective way possible.” DeSantis asked for $3.5 million from the state legislature to establish the unit.

“Ron DeSantis wants to be president of Florida” was part of a CNN headline at the time.

More than 71,320 people have died in Florida from the coronavirus — more, even, than New York state. New York City was the epicenter of the initial outbreak. Most public health experts disagree with Florida’s rapid discarding of virus mitigation measures, New York Times reported.

“It’s deeply disturbing that there are politicians peddling conspiracy theories out there and casting doubt on vaccination when it is our best tool against the virus and the best tool to prevent even teenagers from being hospitalized,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at a news conference on Monday afternoon.

Photo: Dr. Rhonda Achonolu comforts her son Amechi, 7, as he receives the Pfizer-BioNTech covid-19 vaccine for children 5 to 12 years at The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Nov. 3, 2021, in the Bronx, New York. The vaccine is now available to millions of elementary-age children in what health officials hailed as a major breakthrough after more than 18 months of illness, hospitalizations, deaths and disrupted education. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)