In an interview with Piers Morgan set to air Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he could win the presidency if he decided to run.
“If I were to run, I’m running against Biden,” DeSantis said.
“Like we [him and Trump] are competing for the Republican, 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.”
Piers Morgan asked DeSantis if he believes he can beat Joe Biden.
“I think so,” he answered.
Piers Morgan wrote in the New York Post:
While Trump currently leads DeSantis for the Republican nomination, he loses in the general against Biden because of those very independents, while DeSantis fares much better.
DeSantis is convinced his wildly successful, if divisive, Florida playbook can work for all of America.
“One of the things that was interesting about my election,” he said, “is that 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. 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 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.”
He thinks being Governor has prepared him well for a possible presidency.
“What I’ve been called upon to do as Governor is make the right decisions when it wasn’t easy. A lot of people thought I was dead a few years ago because I was charting my different course and my view is I got elected to save the jobs of the people I represent. It can’t be looking out for my own job.
On Wednesday, President Trump accused DeSantis of campaigning for 2024 without formally declaring his candidacy.
Although DeSantis hasn't formally announced his intentions to run for president, he hasn't ruled out the possibility of launching a presidential bid.
Trump said DeSantis is doing this to "subvert Election Law."
"Ron DeSanctimonious is running—without running! He’s doing this to subvert Election Law. Run Ron, Run! Others have done it before, though, so I can’t really blame him—But he should take a look at his Polls, which are crashing like few people have seen before. That’s because he’s merely an average REPUBLICAN Governor who has great Public Relations, far better than deserved. When you look at the Florida #’s compared to other States, you will not be impressed—I will release them later in the day!" Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday afternoon.
Trump also commented on the Piers Morgan interview:
"While I am fighting against Radical Left Lunatics, Persecutors, and unfair Prosecutors who want to destroy us all, Ron DeSanctimonious is not working for the people of Florida as he should be, he is too busy chatting with a Ratings Challenged TV Host from England, desperately trying to rescue his failing Campaign—But it’s my fault, I put him there," Trump wrote.
In a Florida 2024 GOP Primary poll, Donald Trump won with 47% of the vote.
Gov. Ron DeSantis finished second with 44%.
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!