Is Trump a fiercer culture warrior than DeSantis?
Hudson Crozier
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There are plenty of theories for why Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) presidential campaign is struggling against that of former President Donald Trump. CNN analyst Bakari Sellers’s assessment is doubtful.
“One of the things has to be said about this direction of the campaign, like you’re not going to out-racism or out-xenophobia Donald Trump,” Sellers said on Wolf Blitzer’s show. “And a lot of his ultra-conservative, far, far right-leaning policies that he’s trying to put forth, these culture wars, you’re just simply not going to outdo Donald Trump.”
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“He has that part of the market cornered,” Sellers added. “And so now [DeSantis is] left flailing.”
Ignoring the not-so-subtle rhetoric about right-wing politics, Sellers is basically claiming that DeSantis will never be as culturally conservative as Trump. But a deeper look at the issues indicates that he already is. In some ways, Trump is following the lead of DeSantis and others.
DeSantis easily has a more conservative history on LGBT issues. Trump said in 2016 that there were “very few problems” with letting transgender people into whatever bathrooms they choose and that separate bathrooms for them would be “discriminatory,” earning the criticism of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Trump also recognized Pride month during his presidency and hosted LGBT-themed events. Only now does Trump have a plan to crack down on “gender insanity” in the medical field for children after DeSantis banned it at the administrative and legislative levels.
No one can dispute that DeSantis has led the charge against woke ideology in education. Trump’s Education Department merely rolled back some transgender guidelines for schools and did little else. He now proposes much stronger action to limit “inappropriate racial, sexual, or political” teaching, largely echoing DeSantis’s parental rights agenda. One could argue that Trump sparked the national conversation about critical race theory, but if anyone is closer to holding a monopoly on the Right’s education culture wars, it’s DeSantis.
Beyond the identity-based issues, Trump has made the pro-life movement painfully aware that he thinks DeSantis is “too harsh” on abortion.
In the end, Trump borders on being socially liberal compared to DeSantis, for which the DeSantis campaign has attacked him. He simply has enough sense to know where the political winds are blowing on certain issues. Whether you support either candidate or a Republican at all, CNN’s liberal bubble is not the place to get informed about the dynamics of the coming GOP primary or conservative politics.
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Hudson Crozier is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.