A journalist attempted to politicize Hurricane Idalia by asking the Florida Governor. Ron DeSantis, what he thought about Donald Trump’s lack of response to the approaching hurricane, and he quickly shut down the question.
While the reporter’s questions were inappropriate given the time (Idalia had just made landfall), they were also asked on social media, along with other questions such as whether or not it was wrong for Trump earlier this week to attack DeSantis knowing that DeSantis would not be focused on his campaign.
Videos the former President posted to Truth Social Thursday afternoon as DeSantis toured the state and comforted residents will only make those questions grow louder.
In three separate Truth Social postings posted within 15-minute intervals, Trump attacked DeSantis for his poll numbers. What Trump said was DeSantis’s alleged mismanagement in the same state Trump had not commented on before Idalia made landfall.
In this video, Trump claims that “we will no longer ignore the growing problems” the people of Florida face here in their wonderful beautiful home state. He cites an “insurance meltdown”, soaring “electricity costs” and increasing crime in Democrat-run cities. In the same video, Trump predicted that his campaign would win the Florida primaries easily.
Trump suggested that DeSantis “spend more money in Florida”, instead of running for President. DeSantis was again focusing on Florida, while Trump spent his time on Truth Social discussing everything else. Trump compared DeSantis’s campaign with the failed 2016 presidential bid of former NJ Governor Chris Christie. Chris Christie.
DeSantis is “no longer popular” in Florida, Trump said without providing any evidence. He added that “it took some time,” but the “people of Florida finally figured out” DeSantis, though Trump did not mention his historic victory last fall during the gubernatorial campaign for reelection.
In a third video, Trump was furious about the way DeSantis would sometimes refer to the number of votes that DeSantis (the candidate) received in the previous election. He claimed that he had actually received more votes than DeSantis in the state.
He went on to rant that he had allegedly been responsible for DeSantis rising in politics, but DeSantis “forgot about it.” Trump said, “A lot of things in Florida aren’t really working because he is only campaigning.” People chose him as governor and not a campaigner.
Trump predicted that DeSantis would lose his polling numbers because “to win you need to have personality and Ron does not have that.”
Trump said, “But most importantly he lacks loyalty.” He repeated comments he made previously about DeSantis’s presidential campaign and how it would be disloyal if Trump ran as well. “And I think that’s the reason he’s lost.”
Trump may believe that he is helping his cause when he doesn’t let up on DeSantis during a hurricane or its aftermath. However, a recent report indicates that this tactic has already failed:
In Idalia’s aftermath, DeSantis took the national TV spotlight away from Trump, earning $17m in media to Trump’s $10m
DeSantis coverage was favorable while Trump posted about everything but the storm on Truth Social
They noticed in Iowa. So did donors https://t.co/HtEFiIwYpw
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 31, 2023
We might know the answer to this question in the eyes of some voters and donors that could potentially help DeSantis win the White House.
