Just two days after the midterm results continue rolling in, many political observers are shifting their sights to the 2024 presidential election. While control of the U.S. Senate is still undetermined, the next big race is on the horizon now that the midterms are out of the way, so to speak.
On Thursday, following a day or two of gushing over Florida’s midterm results by conservative pundits and media personalities, former president Donald Trump lashed out at Gov. Ron DeSantis in a lengthy tirade. In the statement, released on Truth Social, Trump takes credit for DeSantis’ win back in 2018 and calls him an “average” Republican Governor who did well during Covid because Florida has sunshine.
Trump also turned his ire on Fox News for appearing to favor and elevate DeSantis due to his 20-point victory over Charlie Crist. Here is the full statement:
NewsCorp, which is Fox, the Wall Street Journal, and the no longer great New York Post (bring back Col!), is all in for Governor Ron DeSanctimonious, an average REPUBLICAN Governor with great Public Relations, who didn’t have to close up his State, but did, unlike other Republican Governors, whose overall numbers for a Republican, were just average—middle of the pack—including COVID, and who has the advantage of SUNSHINE, where people from badly run States up North would go no matter who the Governor was, just like I did!
And now, Ron DeSanctimonious is playing games! The Fake News asks him if he’s going to run if President Trump runs, and he says, “I’m only focused on the Governor’s race, I’m not looking into the future.” Well, in terms of loyalty and class, that’s really not the right answer.
This is just like 2015 and 2016, a Media Assault (Collusion!), when Fox News fought me to the end until I won, and then they couldn’t have been nicer or more supportive. The Wall Street Journal loved Low Energy Jeb Bush, and a succession of other people as they rapidly disappeared from sight, finally falling in line with me after I easily knocked them out, one by one. We’re in exactly the same position now. They will keep coming after us, MAGA, but ultimately, we will win. Put America First and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
Needless to say, an attack of this magnitude against a fellow Republican, one that has worked to advance and support Trump’s “America First” agenda, didn’t go down well with several of Trump’s backers on the right and many conservatives in general. Rather than celebrate GOP victories in Florida, Trump seems bothered by it and bothered that DeSantis is getting attention for letting Florida voters make a glowing judgment on his four years as governor.
The line about being “in exactly the same position now” as in 2016, where Trump fought a dozen other Republican candidates who eventually withdrew, is a threat to DeSantis that he needs to “fail in line” and get behind Trump as the 2024 nominee.
The question of Covid-19 policy has been a simmering point of contention between Trump and DeSantis. While DeSantis was opening Florida back in April and May of 2020, Trump was on the record blaming Sweden at the time for opening too quickly. This argument hasn’t spilled into the public, yet, but it undercuts some of Trump’s criticism that DeSantis somehow failed in handling Covid in his state.
While Trump has previously blamed the media for ginning up controversy between the two potential 2024 rivals, this shot was fired exclusively by Trump himself on his Truth social platform against DeSantis. The Governor hasn’t responded, which is probably a wise move right now, and maybe things will cool down in the coming days.
Reports indicate that Trump is still on track to make a likely presidential announcement on Nov. 15.
UPDATE
In an effort to leave no potential 2024 Republican rival out of the friendly fire attacks, Trump launched a shot at Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin by making fun… of his name:
Trump now attacking Glenn Youngkin .. pic.twitter.com/eEEPcAMplX
— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) November 11, 2022
That’s quite an “interesting take” in itself to point out that a name “sounds Chinese” as a means to disparage a fellow Republican. Virginia in 2021 was one of the first opportunities where Republicans were able to defeat a Democratic machine politician without directly involving Trump in the race. Youngkin played an “arms-length” relationship with Trump during the campaign, giving him credit for a good presidency and pledging to support him in 2024, but not campaigning with him in the state.
If Trump is confident in his grip on the Republican base, why the need to attack fellow Republicans? Just congratulate, move on, and get ready to battle for the 2024 nomination on the merits.
