“Instead of actually campaigning and trying to turn around his dismal poll numbers, DeSanctus is now so desperate for attention that he’s debating a Grade A loser like Gavin Newsom,” his campaign spokesman, Steven Cheung, said in a statement Thursday. The statement also accused Mr. DeSantis of being a “wannabe model” and implied he’s too short.
It added that the Florida governor, who is running against President Trump for the 2024 nomination, “doesn’t have his eye on the ball” during his campaign, and “despite falling to FIFTH PLACE in New Hampshire and failing to gain any ground in Iowa for months, DeSantis appears to already be auditioning for a career in reality television” with the Newsom debate.
Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, has repeatedly said that he is not running for president and has backed the incumbent, President Joe Biden. However, with the debate and his recent visit to China, as well as talk of President Biden dropping out of the race due to his age, there has been debate that the governor is secretly vying for his party’s nomination.
Meanwhile, the polls show Mr. DeSantis has 13.6 percent, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley has 9.6 percent, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy has 4.8 percent, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has 2 percent, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has 0.6 percent.
DeSantis Campaign Response?
As of Friday morning, the DeSantis campaign hasn’t specifically responded to President Trump’s statement. The Epoch Times contacted the campaign for comment Friday.The 45th president has not appeared at any of the Republican primary debates, citing his significant lead in the polls. His campaign has also called on the Republican National Committee to end all primary debates, throw their support behind President Trump, and focus on defeating the Democrats in 2024.
Earlier this week, the DeSantis campaign accused President Trump and Ms. Haley of working together.
“In the final push for the Iowa Caucus victory, this campaign will proudly fight alongside NBD’s impressive ground game, and Fight Right’s television team, to show the people of Iowa that this is a time for choosing, and Ron DeSantis is the candidate that can WIN!”
Debate
During the debate, the big-state governors were eager to represent their parties on the national stage as they battled over the economy, pandemic restrictions, and President Biden’s leadership in a Fox News faceoff peppered with policy disputes and personal insults.“This is a slick, slippery politician whose state is failing,” Mr. DeSantis said of Mr. Newsom.
The California Democrat defended his state, but was equally eager to shift the discussion to Mr. DeSantis’s stagnant 2024 presidential bid.
“How’s that going for you, Ron? You’re down 41 points in your own home state,” said Mr. Newsom, who said he is backing President Biden’s reelection. “Neither of us will be the nominee for a party in 2024.”
Mr. Newsom, California’s 56-year-old term-limited Democratic governor, has positioned himself to seek the presidency someday, but like the rest of his party’s most ambitious leaders, he declined to challenge Biden for the Democratic nomination in 2024. Instead, he’s emerged as a leading defender of the incumbent president and a formal campaign adviser.
“I’m proud of the work Biden and Harris have done,” the California governor said, responding to criticisms that President Biden, at age 81, is too old to run again. “I will take Joe Biden at 100 rather than Ron DeSantis any day of the week at any age.”
