Former President Donald Trump gave rival Ron DeSantis another nickname on Saturday: mocking the Florida governor as a “wounded falling bird” at a Republican event on his own turf.
Trump, 77, claimed responsibility for launching DeSantis, 45, during his 2018 campaign for head of state, alleging that the Navy sailor begged for his endorsement.
“I supported him and he became a rocket in 24 hours. … Now it’s like a wounded bird falling from the sky,” the 45th commander in chief scoffed in a speech at the Florida Republican Party Freedom Summit.
Standing beneath graphics that read “Florida is Trump Country,” Trump reiterated his long-held belief that DeSantis is disloyal for daring to run against him for the highest office in the land.
As an example of DeSantis’ just punishment, Trump pointed to poll results that suggest he is demolishing DeSantis, 45, in the 2024 race.
Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during the Florida Freedom Summit at the Gaylord Palms Resort in Kissimmee, Florida, on November 4, 2023. CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The Sunshine State governor has consistently performed poorly since announcing his candidacy, with a recent poll indicating he is 27 percentage points behind Trump and tied for second place with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
Trump has repeatedly targeted DeSantis, who was once thought to be Trump’s strongest opponent for the Republican nomination, and gave him several degrading nicknames, such as “Ron DeSanctimonious” and “DeSaster.”
“We are going to win the Florida primary for the third time in a row, and we are going to win the state by a landslide next November,” Trump told a boisterous crowd.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at the Florida Freedom Summit at the Gaylord Palms Resort in Kissimmee, Florida, on Saturday, November 4, 2023.Joe Marino/UPI/Shutterstock
He also boasted that he was able to convince several Florida lawmakers to change their support for DeSantis in the days leading up to the summit.
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DeSantis, who spoke earlier in the day, made subtle attacks on the former president but never said his name.
He accused Republicans of having “wasted winnable elections” in the last three cycles and argued that the Republican brand is “toxic” outside of Florida, a direct criticism of Trump’s poor record leading the party in recent elections.
However, he mostly stuck to his usual argument: that his results in Tallahassee demonstrate his conservative mettle.
“Florida has shown the way forward for the Republican Party,” DeSantis told the crowd, drawing applause for a litany of conservative political victories in the state.
“No state has done more to defeat the left at an institutional level than the state of Florida.”
Offstage, he downplayed Florida’s latest show of support for Trump.
“These things happen,” he told reporters, flanked by top legislative leaders, Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez and several sheriffs.
“We have had changes in the opposite direction in other states. It’s something dynamic. Politicians do what they are going to do.”
With postal cables
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Source: vtt.edu.vn