Governor Ron DeSantis speaking with the media at a press conference after a town hall hosted by Fox News at the Sheraton West Des Moines in West Des Moines, Iowa on January 10, 2024 (Image: Gage Skidmore / Creative Commons)
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) launched a fundraising campaign Thursday centered around Tesla/SpaceX CEO Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), coinciding with escalating tensions between President Donald Trump and the tech billionaire.
The campaign, distributed via text and email by DeSantis’ political committee, Restore Our Nation, urged supporters to back “real conservatives who will finish the job," according to Politico.
Praising the former DOGE head's work for the administration, the email said he “stood tall and took the hits.”
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The fundraising message has sparked concern among some Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters and Republicans, with critics interpreting it as a sign of partiality.
While DeSantis did not directly mention Trump in his appeal, his praise for Musk's resilience led to speculation about his allegiances.
DeSantis has been advocating for the enactment of DOGE cuts, urging Congress to take action.
A GOP operative, who was not named in the report, told Politico: “Hard to imagine two people with more checkered national reputations among MAGA base than Musk and DeSantis."
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They continued: “Both Musk and DeSantis have put themselves on opposite sides of Trump. And both have failed in their last two campaigns: Musk in Wisconsin and DeSantis in last year’s GOP primary. If they are trying to form a more traditionally conservative populist coalition, good luck with that.”
The once-amicable relationship between Trump and Musk has deteriorated into a highly publicized feud this week. The conflict ignited when the Tesla CEO criticized Trump's major legislative initiative, the "One Big Beautiful Bill," labeling it a "disgusting abomination" on his social media platform, X.
In retaliation, Trump expressed his disappointment and threatened to revoke government contracts with Musk's companies, including Tesla and SpaceX, which receive substantial federal subsidies.
The situation escalated further when Musk alleged in another X post Thursday that Trump appears in government documents related to convicted child predator Jeffrey Epstein, suggesting that this was the reason certain documents have not been made public.
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