Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently flaunted his 2022 midterm election victory margin when he was asked about former President Trump’s latest line of attack against him. It has been noted that the rising conservative star has dodged responding directly to Trump’s attacks that have mounted since the midterms, which triggered an internal reckoning over who might be best positioned to lead the party.
Trump’s influence as a GOP kingmaker came into question after the midterm elections, while DeSantis had a resounding victory. DeSantis is unlikely to make a final decision about a potential 2024 presidential bid until at least May, Axios’ Josh Kraushaar reports. Trump recently slammed Ron DeSantis on Saturday. Trump claimed that the Florida governor and his team are “trying to rewrite history” regarding their public health pandemic response. The former President went on to call the potential presidential run by his GOP rival “very disloyal.”
DeSantis during a Tuesday news conference in Florida did not directly name Trump while touting his own re-election.
“I roll out of bed, I have people attacking me from all angles, it’s been happening for many, many years,” “When you’re an elected executive, you have to make all kinds of decisions. You got to steer that ship.”
“And the good thing is, is that the people are able to render a judgment on that — whether they re-elect you or not,” DeSantis said, as he won his re-election and Donald Trump did not.
“And I’m happy to say, you know, in my case, not only did we win re-election, we won with the highest percentage of the vote that any Republican governor candidate has in the history of the state of Florida,” he added.
The rivalry with Trump hangs over every move DeSantis makes. Their relationship dates back to the governor’s 2018 primary campaign, when an endorsement from Trump helped the little-known congressman win the nomination. A viral ad featuring DeSantis and his family, including two young children, highlighted his allegiance to Trump.
But as talk of 2024 stirred in recent months, as Trump again declared his presidential candidacy, and DeSantis won re-election in a 19-point landslide in November, the pair grew increasingly at odds. Before and after the midterm election, Trump derided DeSantis as an “average governor” and mocked him with the would-be nickname, “Ron DeSanctimonious.”
