Though Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) endorsed former President Donald Trump after dropping out of the 2024 presidential race, he has taken several opportunities to snipe at his former rival.
DeSantis, first seen as the most viable alternative to Trump, fought a savage campaign against the former president, who focused much of his attention and attacks on the governor. Following DeSantis dropping out amid a floundering campaign, Trump extended an olive branch, one that the governor doesn’t seem keen on accepting.
Here are three times DeSantis has slighted Trump since endorsing him.
Legal bills bill
Just days after DeSantis dropped out and endorsed Trump, observers speculated the two agreed to a ceasefire, especially after Trump declared he was retiring his diminutive nickname for the governor, “DeSanctimonious.”
Those speculations were quickly put to rest when DeSantis took a shot at the former president, announcing his opposition to a bill that would have Florida taxpayers pay his legal bills.
“But not the Florida Republican who wields the veto pen,” he said in a post on X, responding to a Politico story captioned, “Some Florida Republicans want taxpayers to pay Trump’s legal bills.”
The post was the first statement DeSantis made about Trump since dropping out, signaling the bitter tone he would maintain about his former rival.
“We’ll see … if we have a country left by 2028”
Soon after his shooting down of the bill to help Trump pay his legal bills, DeSantis blasted the former president in a radio interview on the Steve Deace Show.
In the interview, DeSantis alleged a conspiracy on the part of media networks, claiming they had positioned Trump as a “juggernaut” to take the governor down. He blamed his loss on an induced feeling of hopelessness from his supporters due to this messaging.
DeSantis revived an attack point from his campaign — criticism of Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This was one of the biggest events in our life,” he said. “And yet we had one candidate who was the president at the start of it, and when he’d get interviewed, no one would even ask him questions about it!”
In a more subtle attack, the Florida governor suggested that the United States might not survive four years under Trump or President Joe Biden.
“We’ll see what kind — if we have a country left by 2028,” he answered when asked about possible plans to run in 2028. “I viewed ’24 as really a hinge point in American history, and if we don’t get it right, I don’t know what it’s going to look like in the future.”
Rebuffing vice presidential talk
In a move that drew a direct response from Trump’s team, DeSantis swatted down suggestions that he might become Trump’s vice president after he appeared as part of a possible short list.
“People were mentioning me,” DeSantis said in a private call with supporters. “I am not doing that.”
He derided those “auditioning” for the role and blasted Trump’s criteria for a vice presidential pick, contrasting it with his own criteria by saying Trump should prioritize competence. He also said Trump’s camp was looking at leaning into “identity politics.”
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The remarks drew the ire of Trump’s team.
“Ron DeSantis failed miserably in his presidential campaign and does not have a voice in selecting the next Vice President of the United States,” Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “Rather than throw cheap shots from afar, Ron should focus on what he can do to fire Joe Biden and Make America Great Again.”