If you were one of those people hoping that the presidential primary season would hold off a few more months, I regret to inform you that the gloves are good and fully off.
Donald Trump has been savaging Ron DeSantis (up to and including suggesting he’s a pedophile) for months, but up to this point, the Florida governor had held his fire. That is no more after DeSantis did an interview with Fox Nation in which he finally responded to some of Trump’s jabs.
It’s only March, so I’m going to do my best to not get in the weeds yet. There will be a time for choosing eventually, but for now, here’s how the interview went down.
When I asked DeSantis to cite specific differences between him and Trump, he said: “Well I think there’s a few things. The approach to COVID was different. I would have fired somebody like Fauci. I think he got way too big for his britches, and I think he did a lot of damage.”
DeSantis also slammed Trump’s chaotic, self-obsessed, and divisive management style, saying:
“I also think just in terms of my approach to leadership, I get personnel in the Government who have the agenda of the people and share our agenda. You bring your own agenda in you’re gone. We’re just not gonna have that. So, the way we run the Government I think is no daily drama, focus on the big picture and put points on the board and I think that’s something that’s very important.”
I will say this before we continue. I think Piers Morgan is being a bit hyperbolic by describing DeSantis’ answers as “slams.” They are as measured as the governor normally is. That’s his thing. He thinks everything through three times before saying it and doesn’t lash out. Some people like that. Others like a more sharp-edged style, though DeSantis does plenty of rhetorical thrashing of the press when necessary.
When pressed on Trump giving him silly nicknames, here’s what the Florida governor had to say.
“I don’t know how to spell the sanctimonious one. I don’t really know what it means, but I kinda like it, it’s long, it’s got a lot of vowels. We’ll go with that, that’s fine. I mean you can call me whatever you want, just as long as you also call me a winner because that’s what we’ve been able to do in Florida, is put a lot of points on the board and really take this State to the next level.”
Until now, DeSantis has never engaged with any of Trump’s regular attempts to provoke him and he doesn’t intend to make a habit of it.
“To me, it’s just background noise,” he said. “It’s not important for me to be fighting with people on social media. It’s not accomplishing anything for the people I represent. So, we really just focus on knocking out victories, day after day, and if I got involved in all the under tow I would not be able to be an effective Governor. So, I don’t think it’s something that makes sense for me.”
DeSantis and Morgan also got into the “break-up” that happened with Trump, with the former putting the blame on his resounding 2022 election victory. In other words, his popularity became a political threat, and the former president didn’t take too kindly to that.
But what I found most interesting about this DeSantis interview wasn’t the interview itself. Rather, it was the absolute meltdown that happened among Trump’s paid influencers.
Those are the same people who have been spreading lies about DeSantis for months, calling him stupid names and suggesting he’s a globalist RINO cuck who is bought and paid for by George Soros. So forgive me if I don’t think their whining is justified. If you throw punches, expect to get punched back. Crying foul is just weak and pathetic.
Let me make this simple for those losing their minds. This is a presidential primary and one that DeSantis is going to join very soon. The idea that Trump was going to be able to lash out and smear other candidates without any pushback was always farcical. There will be blood. Instead of lamenting that, enjoy the show and know that primary battles are often a good thing for whoever comes out victorious.
There’s no reason to get that upset at this point. Trump is going to keep hitting DeSantis and DeSantis is going to hit him back. Meanwhile, the other has-been candidates will sit in the corner because no one cares what they do.