Ron DeSantis’ new 'political theater' shows how badly his 'clout has waned'

27 January

After Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis won reelection by 19 percent in 2022, many of his cheerleaders were confident he would be the next president of the United States.

But DeSantis' 2024 presidential campaign was a disappointment, and he ended up dropping out of the race and giving GOP frontrunner Donald Trump a lukewarm endorsement.

According to Politico reporters Kimberly Leonard and Gary Fineout, the two-term Florida governor is now "facing his biggest hurdle since ending his 2024 presidential campaign in trying to work with fellow Republicans."

"He wants legislators to pass measures on illegal immigration to support Trump's executive orders and mass deportation plans, and to enact sweeping changes that could make ballot initiatives more difficult to pass," Leonard and Fineout explain in an article published on January 27. "But he had to force lawmakers to travel into town as GOP legislative leaders said the work could wait until the regular policymaking period in March. And once lawmakers get to Florida's capital, it's still not clear they'll do what DeSantis wants — or instead opt to publicly push back against the governor."

"Infighting" between DeSantis and Republicans in the Florida State Legislature, according to the Politico reporters, show how much the governor's "political clout has waned since he exited the presidential race a year ago." And one GOP state lawmaker described the tensions as a "s--t show."

Democrat Jason Pizzo, minority leader in the Florida State Senate, told Politico, "Mommy and daddy are fighting. And they have to consume for more power, more relevance, more attention. We're all grown-ups, so there are some adults in the room. The Senate president and the speaker really probably need to get together on what they'll agree to do."

Meanwhile, a GOP member of the Florida House of Representatives, quoted anonymously, criticized DeSantis for his "political theater" and told Politico, "No one feels the need to cover for him politically. He's not the best politician. He’s a bull in every china shop."

Read Politico's full article at this link.

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