The Florida Governor’s Obeisance is not the Same as the Ones That Payed for Donald J. DeSantis
The sort of obeisance to Trump that he is used to receiving from GOP politicians has not been paid by DeSantis. DeSantis did not seek Trump’s endorsement for his 2022 reelection bid and, over the weekend, the two men held dueling rallies on the eve of the general election in Florida. At his rally on Sunday, Trump did not mention DeSantis.
The third stop in a four-city tour that has effectively made Trump a leading player in his party’s fight for control of Congress, the former president will welcome his supporters in Miami. On the opposite coast, the Florida governor is steering clear of Trump while trying to win over conservatives during his re-election campaign.
One Republican official who asked to not be named said that there are two very stubborn, type A politicians in Florida that are at the forefront of the GOP. You can see that they have their own political operations, but they both command attention. It is already too much to talk about.
While on the campaign trail, DeSantis does not talk about Trump but his remarks are filled with references to President Biden in a preview of what a presidential campaign against the incumbent Democrat might look like.
If Ron DeSantis challenges Trump in a Republican presidential primary, a clip from Megyn Kelly predicting that GOP voters would stay with the president was shared by Trump. CNN reported that Trump could launch his next candidacy this month.
In a riff on his lead over the other potential Republican 2024 contenders at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, Trump referred to the Florida governor as “Ron DeSanctimonious.”
DeSantis described himself as a fighter who stood up against medical experts and criticism during the pandemic to reopen the state and ban coronavirus vaccine mandates, echoing a sentiment in a campaign ad in which DeSantis suggests he was created by God to fight for Florida.
The biggest cheers the Florida governor received, however, came when he recounted how he arranged for Florida to send nearly 50 migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, a stunt that has faced intense scrutiny and legal challenges.
On the history of Florida, Donald Trump has made a positive impact on the First-In-the-Nation caucus state
With his expected win on Tuesday, Ron DeSantis is going to use the increased enthusiasm to launch a White House bid. He released a video last week that could have doubled as an announcement for a presidential candidacy and had enough cash for his reelection bid.
Trump’s pre-election travel is motivated at least in part by his desire to launch a third campaign for the White House, CNN reported this week. Indeed, during a visit to Iowa on Thursday, Trump told voters in the first-in-the-nation caucus state to “get ready” for his return as a presidential candidate. The Senate race in Pennsylvania is a toss up between Republican Mehmet Oz and Democrat John Fetterman, and on the eve of the election, the former president will be in Ohio to support the Republicans.
The decision to hold the rally in Miami-Dade County came as Republicans are optimistic that they will win the election for the first time in two decades. The Republican party has made inroads into the Hispanic neighborhoods of the area, which has paid off in recent elections as the party is seeing a wave of enthusiasm. Republicans will have an advantage on Election Day for the first time in modern political history of Florida.
“President Trump delivered a historic red wave in Florida in the 2018 midterms with his slate of endorsed candidates up and down the ballot and molded the Sunshine State into the MAGA stronghold it is today,” the announcement from Trump’s Save America PAC said. Florida is no longer a purple state thanks to President Trump.
“Biden touches it and turns into something much worse than (gold),” DeSantis said. “It’s frustrating and a lot of people, the vast majority of Americans, they think that the country has seen its best days. They think we are on the wrong track. But you know, I think Florida provides the blueprint that other states can follow.”
Trump told Yahoo Finance in October of last year that he would beat everyone else, if he faced him. “I think most people would drop out, I think he would drop out.”
The nickname “DeSanctimonious” came from how Trump tried to bring down Ted Cruz in the GOP race.
Trump insisted that Cruz was not actually a man of God because he did not portray himself as an honest broker.
This is a description of the man, who would never think that he is better than anyone. (That Trump has a super-sized ego and routinely casts himself as special seems to go unnoticed in this equation.)