DeSantis makes refined jab at Trump as he indicators 2024 flee

Florida GovernorRon DeSantis on his maiden voyage to Iowa. I bring greetingsfrom the free state of Florida, riding a wave of lofty expectationas to the state that opens the Republican presidential contestin less than a year. People lined up to catch a glimpse of the governorwho technically is promoting his book. This is the number one bestsellingnonfiction book in the country, but actually is testing a White House bid thathe intends to make official by summer. Welcome to Iowa. This is your first trip.

DeSantis has told advisers he will waituntil the Florida legislative session ends so he can campaign on an even bolderagenda, one that is delighting supportersand alarming critics. I always tell my legislators,you watch Iowa, watch to watch these. Do not let them get ahead of uson any of this stuff. So we've got our legislature herein session now. So buckle up. The next 60 days should be finein Florida. He's stoking the culture wars in schools.

We're also leading on ensuringthat our school system is focusing on educating our kids,not indoctrinating our kids and beyond. We've got to fight. If we see it in medicine,or the universities or the corporations, you can't just say Let it go, because then we're going to be livingunder an oppressive woke ocracy holding up his Florida recordas a blueprint for a national platform and presenting himself as a doer,not a talker. A leader is not captive to polls.

We don't have palace intrigue.We don't have any drama. It's just execution every single day. I'll build the wallmyself. I'll do it this. Let me add him we'll get it done. That was a subtle yet unmistakabledistinction with Donald Trump, who visits Iowa on Monday. The 2024 Republican campaignis intensifying with former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haleyurging Iowa voters to keep an open mind. Whatever the polls tell you today,.

That is not where the pollsare going to be a year from now. But for many Republicans, the Floridagovernor stands as a beacon of hope for those who admire Trumpbut are eager to move on. I would love to have himas our next president. Becky Grist. Bock was among those eager to see DeSantisclose up. PresidentTrump has been an amazing president, but he alienates too many peoplewith what he says. And I think Governor DeSantis.

Is doing a good job at appealing to Americans Now, the Florida governor just finishedshaking hands here and left the room. And Erin, I can tell youRepublican had had high expectations coming into this day and they are leavingit having those expectations met. One Republican voter herewho said they're looking for a change described the Florida governoras very impressive, a straight shooter. Of course, this is probablythe easiest trip he will take to Iowa. He had no arrows coming his direction.

He's heading to Nevada tomorrow,another early voting state. Of course, this is all before he decidesor announces that he's going to run. But I am told that is expected to comein May or early June. Carson, we heard Governor Sanders takea thinly veiled shot at former president say when he talksabout how there's no drama in his administration,something he said before. How long do you think it is before the tension between the two of themactually becomes more direct Well, I.

Mean, obviously, Donald Trumphas been openly attacking him. And the question is how much Ron DeSantiswants to really seriously engage with that. I don't think it's really in his interestto do that because I think we've seen in the past what happens to peoplewho get in the mud with with Donald Trump. You know, they ended up they end upusually not coming out, looking not great. And he's smarter, I think, to stay focusedon whatever issues it is that he thinks are going to help himwin the nomination, which is the if he decides to run, which let's face it,he's in Iowa in early March.

He lives in Florida. He's probably pretty seriousthinking about running for president. That's what he's going to do. Then he should just focus moreon the issues that he has that excite the base. Scott, there was reporting today by Politico about how many of the otherRepublican presidential candidates both declared an undeclared hour,focused on attacking Trump and DeSantis. Their thinking is reportedlythat there's only one viable lane.

For the anti-Trump vote, and thereforethey need to take the fight to dissenters. Do you agree with that? I do. I think in this primary you've got Trump and then there's going to be one other person that emergesand right now, if you look at DeSantis favorability ratings and really look at the factthat he has virtually no detractors inside the Republican Party,every other Republican candidate.

Who wants this thing is going to haveto find a way to drag him down. I don't know how they're going to be ableto do it, to be honest. I'm sure they're going to try. But he is in a different universe,really, than every other person. That's not Trumpthat's seeking this nomination. DeSantis has the right emotionalsort of attachment to the Republican base. And what you see in his favorabilitynumbers is not only good numbers among people who voted for Trump,but also those college educated Republican voters that drifted awayfrom the Republican Party.

And drifted away from Trump. They love DeSantis. And so of everybody in this thingright now, he looks like the one that has the capabilityof putting together the coalition that could possiblypossibly, I say, topple the former president. He's obviouslynever run a national campaign. Kirsten DeSantis, his allies, some of themarguing his successes, not necessarily.

Because of how he campaigns,but how he governs. I don't know if that'ssort of laying groundwork for saying he's not maybe a great national campaigner,but that obviously remains to be seen. Is that going to be enough in a statelike Iowa where retail politics are so important? Well, we don't really know whether he's going to be a goodgo to national politics or not. Obviously, there are plenty of people who haven't done it beforeand have been successful.

So, I mean, Donald Trumpnever had ever held office at all. So I think we have to wait and see how hehe does on a national stage. And the fact is,I think if the vote was taken today, most of the parties is with Donald Trump,but his numbers are on the downswing. I mean, they're definitely they used to be And so there is an opening for a Trumpplus not. Know, I think there's this idea of alsothe people who are a little bit of less of of the Trumpian US I don't think there's much appetitefor that in the Republican Party.

They're looking for either a Trump ora Trump plus a DeSantis is a Trump plus. It's got you know, I think Democratsare kind of betting that Governor DeSantis, his focus on culture warswill turn off women working class voters. Do you think moderate swingstate voters care very much when he boasts that Florida is where vote goes to die?You think that plays well? Well, I mean, the only evidenceI have to look at on this is what happened in his reelection campaign in Florida,that he won by 20 points. Urban, suburban rural, exurban people with college degrees, peoplewithout college degrees, independents.

I mean, women, men. I mean, any way you slice and dicehumanity, Ron DeSantis did a pretty darnedgood job of racking up votes in Florida. So I think the message he's been runningon, you know, we've had one test case for itand it seemed to work. I'll tell you, Anderson, the averageRepublican feels surrounded right now. They feel like every large informationdistribution information hub in our societyis really at odds with their worldview, whether it's corporations,universities, media,.

You name it, politicians,government institutions. And they feel like DeSantis is the personwho does more than just complain about it. He actually finishes the fights. I think that's the line of demarcationfor him. Everybody in this field can complain. I can finish it. You know,I ask the security and I just want to I wanted to ask you, Scott,do you think these candidates know?.

I mean, do you think the world knowshow to campaign against Donald Trump from a Republican standpoint? Because, I mean, here we are all these years laterand we're still talking about Will. Should Ron DeSantis directlyattack him or not? We have a whole field of defeatedcandidates. You know, Jeb Bush among them,Marco Rubio, who tried all differentways and none of it worked. Now, I think all the.

Republicans from 2016 forward are likethe Will Smith character and I am legend. They're in the lab and they're liketesting all the theories, the serums out and the rats keep dying likethey can't figure out how to solve it. Maybe, maybe RonDeSantis is the one to solve it. But we don't know yet because the theoryhe's going to test out is to put results up against rhetoric and to put a youngergeneration up against an older generation. We just haven't seen thisparticular concoction yet. Maybe we'll put it in the lab in Iowa or New Hampshire or other places,and it will work.

But but no, no one hassuccessfully campaigned against him yet except one person. And that was Joe Bidenwho defeated Donald Trump. And we know what will happen. I think as a Republican,I know what will happen if we nominate Donald Trump again. Kirsten,if my memory of the ending of I Am Legend, I don't want to give away for anybodywho might want to watch it on television, but it doesn't end well for Will Smithat the end of the movie.

Is there a right way for DeSantisto respond to Trump when he decides to? I don't think it's a good ideato get into it with Donald Trump. I think you know, don't let Donald Trumpsay what he's going to say. But trying to get, as I said,trying to get into the mode with him is not ever going to workwell for anybody. I think it's better for him toyou know, to respond based on the issues that that concern him,but not get into these petty little name gamesand all these other things, which even the people who like Donald Trump saythey don't really like that much.

Right. A lot of times they're like this. We don't really need this.Not really adding a lot. All the little nicknames that you giveeverybody so, you know, but he's going toyou know, he's already going after him. He needs a better nickname. Let's be honest. I don't think the sanctimoniousis probably going to do it, but he's he'sgoing to continue to go after him. But I do think that Ron DeSantisis qualitatively different.

Than the other people that I don't knowwhat Scott thinks about this. But then from the other people that ran the last time, I thinkhe's a different kind of politician and it is a little more connectedwith the base. Yeah. Scott Jenningscan totally agree with that. Yeah. Yeah,she what she what she just said, Anderson. 100% correct. People are trying to compare himto the candidates in 2016. His numbers and his connectionwith Republicans is vastly different.

Than anybody Trump faced before. That's why Trump, I think, is already insort of many freak out mode about.

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