DeSantis 2024: "Stay tuned"

The Florida governor gave an interview to Fox, to be aired Thursday, in which he discusses his possible presidential candidacy and responds to Trump.

Ron DeSantis says he has not yet decided whether he will run for the 2024 presidential election as the champion of the Republican Party. However, his gestures and statements seem to bring him closer to that point, which would lead to a primary train wreck with Donald Trump, whose chaotic, self-obsessed and divisive management style he criticized. However, the Florida governor assured that if he were to jump into the arena, his rival would be President Biden and his woke agenda because of the damage they are causing to the country.

"Biden has failed the country"

This is a preview of an interview that DeSantis granted to Fox´s, Piers Morgan uncensored - to be aired on Thursday 23 - and which the author author breaks down in The New York Post. During the conversation in which they both share, the Florida governor pointed out that should he run, his rival would not be Trump, but Biden, whom he believes he could defeat:

If I were to run, I’m running against Biden. Like we [him and Trump] are competing for the Republican candidacy, potentially, I get that, but ultimately you know the guy I’m gonna focus on is Biden because I think he’s failed the country. I think the country wants a change. I think they want a fresh start and a new direction and so we’ll be very vocal about that. I can tell you a lot of people realize the country is not going in the right direction and believe that what we’ve been able to do in Florida, if we can apply that nationally, we can get America back on track and back on our foundations.

The woke agenda caused the decadence of societies

DeSantis assures that what happened in Florida could be extrapolated to the Federal Government. In this regard, the governor highlights the results of the midterms: "Voters in Florida overwhelmingly thought the country was on the wrong track, but they thought Florida was on the right track. So, they saw the difference in terms of how things are governed." In this regard, DeSantis elaborated on the main differences: "We run big budget surpluses, the federal government’s $31 trillion dollars in debt. We’re very tough on crime, the policies in Washington are to be more weak on crime. We believe in being good stewards of the environment, but I don’t want to control everyone’s behavior with some of the stuff that’s going on."

And, above all, DeSantis highlights the fight he has led from the sunshine state against the woke culture. The governor points out that elected officials who follow this ideology have brought about the decline of their respective societies.

We have really fought against the woke ideology. People know we cannot be governed by a woke agenda and some of these mayors and prosecutors that have gotten elected around the country on that agenda, their societies have decayed as a result of it. So, I think just some common sense, some leadership, some courage and being right on the issues I think could go a long way.

Florida and her family, their doubts about the candidacy

Despite being clear about what the country needs, and that he could do it, there is something that still holds him back before adding his name to the list of candidates: “I haven’t made a final decision on it. I’ve told people that I’ve got a lot to do over the next few months in Florida. We’re gonna put a lot of points on the board. And then we’ll see how the dust settles after that." The second reason is his family: "Well because I’ve got a young family. I’ve got different obligations and it’s not the easiest thing in the world to go through and I also want to make sure that I have a very clear rationale for doing what I’m doing."

Nonetheless, DeSantis ended with a nod to those hoping to see him run for the White House: "And so, I take that very seriously, it’s humbling that people have come to me and asked me to do it or urged me to do it. So, stay tuned." To which the presenter noted, "That sounds almost like a yes." But DeSantis insisted again on the ambiguity: "It's a stay tuned!"

Trump, from mentor to rival

In the interview there is mention of the other name that could not be avoided: Donald Trump. Throughout the talk with Morgan, DeSantis reviewed the attacks that the former president has been launching against him, although he described them as "background noise." He also recalled the times when he and the former president were on the same page. He even recalls that Trump endorsed him as a candidate for governor of Florida. But, above all, he made clear the differences between the ways of one and the other, pointing out that Trump has a chaotic, self-obsessed and divisive character and management style:

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.

Difference in the way of managing

In fact, the Florida governor stresses that one of the reasons for his electoral success, is due to his approach to independents and Democrats who do not subscribe to the woke ideology and want the best for their people in terms of security, education and other issues that affect their day to day life.

I won with independents by 18 points,” he said, “and so that will be the same formula that we would take, and honestly forget about me, I think anybody should take the formula like that nationally. You can’t win with just Republicans. You’ve gotta win with independents and you need to convince some of these Democrats, which I was able to do in Florida, because they’re not woke, they don’t like some of the nonsense going on. They want their streets safe, and they want quality education. So I think you could appeal to people across the canvas.

Instrumentalization of Justice

His differences with Trump do not prevent DeSantis from lashing out harshly against the "instrumentalization" of Justice being carried out from Democratic offices. An example of this would be what is happening with the former president. However, the governor declined to go deeper into the facts themselves: "There’s a lot of speculation about what the underlying conduct is. That is purported to be it, and the reality is that’s just outside my wheelhouse. I mean that’s just not something that I can speak to."

DeSantis: "I like The Santimonius"

Asked about his former mentor's nicknames for him, such as "Ron The Santimonius" or "Ron Meatball," the governor even mocked about them:

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.