Ron DeSantis, a former presidential candidate and governor of Florida, was singled out by Donald Trump’s team on Wednesday for making the absurd and careless prediction that Trump will win the Sunshine State handily this November via Mediaite.
The governor was questioned about whether he planned to accompany his former opponent on the campaign trail during a press conference on Wednesday.
In response, DeSantis stated that he didn’t think Florida would be a contender for the presidency but added that he would still “want” to “help nationally.”
“So I think one of the interesting things about is, this state before I came on the scene was a one-point state. It is no longer a one-point state and that’s just the reality. This is not going to be a state that’s competitive in November and that’s just the reality,” said DeSantis. “So I don’t anticipate there being much campaign here for the top of the ticket. I do think there’s going to be some local races that are going to be very important that we’ll be involved with. And then how I can help nationally, I want to be able to do that.”
It was quite bizarre that Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung took this as a slight, responding to DeSantis’s remarks by telling NewsNation’s Libbey Dean that “Ron really shouldn’t flatter himself by assuming we’d want him on the campaign trail. We’re actually trying to win.”
The unprovoked onslaught on DeSantis is even more bizarre given the fact that DeSantis went out of his way to defend Trump’s performance in Tuesday’s primary race in Florida, where Nikki Haley picked up almost 14% of the vote despite having already dropped out of the race.
Q&A pic.twitter.com/ExAzAagxcC
— Libbey Dean (@LibbeyDean_) March 20, 2024
WATCH: DeSantis defends Trump's primary margin in Florida
"Haley was a live candidate [for] when [many] people sent in mail ballots […] It wasn't that he was uncontested."
"I don't think that's a ding on Trump." pic.twitter.com/YKJScl1UXK
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) March 20, 2024
