Things are already starting to get ugly when it comes to the potential battle between President Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and their aspirations for 2024, except the ugliness has really only been coming from one side so far.

President Trump made a strong statement in support of his own potential 2024 Republican presidential candidacy by publicly criticizing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Trump has accused the popular two-term governor of being a “globalist” and taking credit for his re-election success in the Sunshine State.

President Trump claimed that without his endorsement, DeSantis would not have achieved victory, saying, “Ron would have not been governor if it wasn’t for me. So, when I hear he might run, I consider that very disloyal.” Furthermore, Trump correctly noted the exceptionally high popularity of DeSantis among Republicans throughout the country in an April 2021 University of New Hampshire poll, which showed him leading Donald Trump 42% to 30%, with no other potential Republican contenders in double digits.

Trump also highlighted what he perceived as DeSantis’ mishandling of the pandemic in Florida through “FAR WORSE than many other Republican governors”. He pointed out how Florida was one of the first states to reopen and criticized DeSantis for fiercely opposing va**ine mandates and extended school closings. However, despite this criticism, one CDC study largely vindicated DeSantis’ decision to reopen schools in Fall 2020, even though it had been heavily critiqued at the time.

Trump’s perspective about va**ines has remained unchanged since then. He views their development through “Operation Warp Speed” as one of his biggest accomplishments as president, even though he also opposes va**ine mandates like DeSantis does. He also suggested that donors and politicians close to DeSantis were globalists, a move designed to make MAGA voters wary of the Florida Governor.

“Ron DeSanctimonious, who I made Governor in BOTH the Primary & the General, is also a Globalist, & so are his donors,” Trump wrote. “Jeb ‘Low Energy’ Bush was next to him last week. Check PAST!”

In conclusion, President Trump has expressed his position clearly and decisively regarding candidate Ron DeSantis’ potential presidential candidacy in 2024…he doesn’t like it. While it is yet to be seen whether these criticisms will have any real impact on either candidate’s chances at success come time to vote, Trump’s comments certainly demonstrate beyond any doubt his determination to fight off any potential challengers ahead of the election race.