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Here's the full court decision explaining why the state is not allowed to institute such a broad restriction of speech against public universities. Read it for yourself if you want.
Explain this to me:
If Republicans want to restrict what professors can teach, and Democrats do not, how does that make the Republicans the MORE free-speech party?
The issue was that the Florida law extended to universities, which receive public funding but are privately incorporated. Besides, even if it isn’t a direct “First Amendment” issue, prohibiting professors from saying anything that might make someone feel discomfort because of their race is a HUGE abridgement of speech and academic inquiry.
Besides which, it’s definitely overreaching for the state to force all of its employees to pledge not to support a boycott of Israel in their private life.
Besides which, the Democrats aren’t doing anything to abridge the First Amendment, as far as I can see. >

No, public universities are part of the state. They’re not private anything.