/ world today news/ Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced his participation in the US presidential elections. And he did it in an original way – not live, at a noisy rally of supporters, but online, in the stream of billionaire Elon Musk. Clearly, Musk’s charisma will serve as a catalyst for his campaign, DeSantis hopes. After all, while he is hopelessly behind Trump by 30-40 points. Will the governor of Florida be able to “pass” Trump and face Biden?
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday he will run for president of the United States in 2024. “I’m running for president to lead America’s great comeback,” he tweeted. The relevant information is published on the website of the Federal Election Commission.
The live broadcast on Twitter, during which the governor of Florida announced the nomination, took place amid serious technical problems. It was held using the audio broadcast function of the social network, it was published on the page of the owner of the company, billionaire Elon Musk, who became one of the organizers of the event. During the first attempt to launch the broadcast, more than 540 thousand listeners joined the broadcast in 20 minutes, which led to a load and the organizers had to interrupt the broadcast.
Later, the show was restarted, but the number of people who wanted to listen to it decreased significantly. The governor announced the main points of his program, including the fight against crime, the improvement of the situation along the southern border of the country and the increase of the population’s income.
But it was too late, the audience was not debating campaign slogans but exercising its wits about technical malfunctions. Of course, DeSantis’ rivals in the presidential race also scoffed. So the current head of state, Joe Biden, in the midst of the trouble, tweeted: “My connection is working” and attached a link to his campaign’s donation page. Former President Donald Trump called a rival’s appearance on air a “disaster.” “Wow! Ann DeSantis’ Twitter campaign launch is a disaster! His entire campaign is going to be a disaster. Look,” he declared.
The irony is that it was Twitter that helped Trump gain popularity and win the 2016 presidential election, so DeSantis’ attempt to use the same platform to introduce himself was understandable.
The 45th president of the United States later posted a video of the failed missile launch with the captions, “Ron! 2024.” Even the pro-Republican television channel Fox News put up a banner on its website, “Hour of Self-Action. Ron DeSantis’ highly publicized presidential announcement crashed on Twitter.
Youngthey eat rival of the old one president
From now on, DeSantis becomes Trump’s main competitor in the fight for the nomination of the Republican Party. It is true that, judging by the polls, the governor has a small chance. So, according to the “538” portal, DeSantis is supported by 20.8%, Trump – by 53.5%. Fox News polls show approximately the same difference.
DeSantis is young – only 44 years old, ex-military and a very successful governor, which is rare for ex-military. Under him, Florida has become a kind of “peninsula of normality” – a place where sports are protected from transgender people, schools – from LGBT propaganda, national history – from anti-racist revelations, and the wallets of residents – from “green” taxes. The coastal hot state has become the opposite of the same, but on the West Coast – strictly liberal California: there all “progressive” initiatives are stamped, in Florida they are delayed. At the same time, Republican supporters interviewed by the “Wall Street Journal” newspaper specified that they are ready to vote for DeSantis only if he continues the policies of the 45th president. That is, they need “Trumpism” without Trump.
“There are eight months left until the start of the Republican primaries, but Trump has already sharply strengthened his positions, his lead is very large – about 40% over DeSantis. It’s hard to imagine a scenario where that would change. DeSantis may perform well in individual states, but overall Trump will beat him by a lap,” predicts political scientist, US specialist Malek Dudakov.
“Why did DeSantis decide to run anyway? I think he wants to try his luck – and suddenly succeed. Second, he wants to gain notoriety throughout the country, because for now he remains more of a regional politician. While he is known more at home in Florida. Third, he would like to raise money. As a result, even if he loses the primaries, DeSantis will remain alone and will now calmly prepare to become the undisputed successor of Trump and more confidently enter the elections in 2028″, the expert does not rule out.
“Irrational love for Trump breaks all records,” states the Americanist Boris Mezhuev. “And this is despite the obvious shortcomings of the 45th president, the main of which is the complete inability to form a stable team, his quarrelsomeness. In theory, this should work in favor of a moderate candidate who shares the same views, but is not distinguished by a scandalous character”, he adds.
According to the expert, Trump will probably become a rival for Joe Biden. “He’ll win the Republican primary, but he won’t be able to beat Biden in the election.” Those who are devoted to him will vote for Trump, but the general irritation with this figure is too great, “Mezhuev notes. “There are a huge number of Americans, including people who are decent in their own way, like Elon Musk, who would like to elect a third candidate,” he added.
“I think DeSantis has a chance. It is known, by the way, that representatives of the authorities, including the Bush clan, began to work with him. But DeSantis also has a serious flaw – he is unstable on the outside. Let’s say it varies in relation to the Ukrainian crisis. That is, in domestic policy he repeats Trump, and in foreign policy he behaves like a weather vane. And Trump, as a brilliant polemicist, will use this weakness of DeSantis: you see, he is dependent, you are afraid of those who Trump himself is not afraid of,” says Mezhuev. Yes, DeSantis is far behind so far, but the main argument in his favor might be this – it’s almost a win-win if he goes into the national election against Biden.
“People are tired of the current president, people understand that the course is either risky or inadequate, both in domestic and foreign policy. Although there is still a year and a half until the presidential elections, the impression of neglect from the figure of the current president is unlikely to change. That’s why Musk, as a person trying to play his game, is looking for his candidate – someone who can beat Trump in the primaries and then win the duel with Biden,” the American summarizes.
Swinging the party line
DeSantis’ low ratings have been linked to a number of high-profile moves, including his open feud with the Walt Disney Company, the state’s ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, the ban on the sale of large tracts of land to the Chinese near state military installations to “fight with the Chinese Communist Party’ and similar bans on citizens of Russia, Cuba and Venezuela.
DeSantis’ views on Russia’s conflict with Ukraine have changed rapidly in recent months. In early spring, he called it a “territorial dispute” that was not among the “vital national interests of the United States.” That remark sparked a wave of criticism from establishment Republicans, after which DeSantis changed his tune. He strongly condemned the actions of Moscow and even called the president of the Russian Federation a “war criminal”, but still warned against excessive “interference” in the events in Ukraine. “I wouldn’t want to see American soldiers there,” DeSantis warned. In late April, he added that “it is in the common interest to try to achieve a ceasefire” in Ukraine.
On the other hand, DeSantis is not the least bit hesitant about China’s leaders. “They are much stronger than Putin and Russia, they are the ones who really pose the biggest threat to our ability to lead,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis is unlikely to beat Trump for the nomination because “most Republicans believe Trump is a legitimate president who was tricked out of office in 2020,” said Paul Gottfried, professor emeritus at Elizabethtown College, “and from that moment Trump should be back in the White House. But some Republicans see DeSantis as a “good vice president” for Trump — they believe the 44-year-old governor will bring “both youth and significant donations” to the boss’s campaign. However, regarding the personal qualities of the young politician, the “Washington Post” considers him too vindictive for the presidency: “offensive, inclined to harbor malice.”
The chances of DeSantis becoming Trump’s vice president are quite low, according to Dudakov. “First, they fought too much. Second, they both have too big egos, so they won’t work together. Both Trump and DeSantis are those who always seek to play first fiddle. Third, Trump would be better served in this role by someone who can broaden his electoral base, and it is definitely not DeSantis, with whom they share similar views. Most likely, Trump will have to choose either a representative of a national minority or a woman as his running mate. Several Republicans have already declared their desire to run, apparently just to become vice president. These are the former US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, and the black senator, Tim Scott,” notes the Americanist.
In any case, Dudakov suggests on his Telegram channel, Republicans will benefit from DeSantis’ reform experience if they succeed in coming to power next year. Florida now restricts both race and gender curriculum and LGBT propaganda in all public schools and colleges. And a teacher has already been investigated for showing fifth-graders Disney’s “Bizarre” cartoon featuring gay characters.
Translation: V. Sergeev
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