Top pro-Trump Twitter personality Bill Mitchell switches to DeSantis supporter
W. James Antle III
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One of former President Donald Trump’s top Twitter influencers has broken with him ahead of 2024, switching allegiances to Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).
Bill Mitchell, a leading pro-Trump voice on Twitter for more than four years, used the platform to announce his change of heart.
“I cannot in good conscience support a man who would tell lies about a great American to defend his own enormous ego,” he wrote Monday as he disembarked from the Trump Train. “I will work with every ounce of my being to help Governor DeSantis win the nomination and the presidency.”
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Mitchell has frequently cited his early support for Trump as evidence of his political clairvoyance.
“In 2016, I was bold and went with the winner early. I’m doing the same thing now,” he continued. “I was hopeful for a Trump/DeSantis ticket but now that that seems unlikely, I believe DeSantis is the only one who can win the general election – and win we must.”
The tweetstorm comes amid questions about Trump’s continued hold on the base, as DeSantis eats into his populist support and some Republicans blame the former president for a disappointing midterm election cycle.
Early in the battle between Trump and DeSantis, conservative social media influencers are already feeling the pressure to pick a side.
Trump has already announced a 2024 presidential campaign. DeSantis has not yet indicated whether he will run, with an announcement possible after the Florida legislative session concludes.
Mitchell was banned by Twitter during the 2020 presidential campaign and reinstated after Elon Musk took over the company.
“Twitter just suspended me for opposing masks. Who knows if I’ll ever be back,” Mitchell said on a rival social media website at the time. “I’m sure their decision wasn’t political at all.”
Mitchell also hosted the YouTube program “YourVoice America.”
Trump was banned from Twitter and other major social media platforms after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot over two years ago but has since been reinstated.
Former Trump aide Sebastian Gorka, a major MAGA Twitter presence in his own right with over 1 million followers, ridiculed Mitchell for claiming to have advised the ex-president’s 2024 campaign against going negative on DeSantis.
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“And I’m sure Mar a Lago took Billy’s call,” Gorka tweeted with a stream of laugh-cry emojis.
Polls have shown DeSantis competitive with Trump in head-to-head matchups, though the former president does better with a crowded field.