'Yikes': Ex-Trump lawyer startled by Trump fundraising email 'impersonating' DeSantis — but it's fake

Donald Trump’s presidential campaign is under fire after a local news anchor from Florida accused the organization of sending out a fundraising email that appeared to be from Governor Ron DeSantis. But the Trump campaign says the email is fake.

“It’s a slick fundraising email,” tweeted Spectrum News 13 anchor Greg Angel on Monday, noting that it included the Florida governor’s “campaign logo, photo, and all.”

“But - check the fine print,” he continued. “It’s a fundraising email actually for Trump PAC and presidential campaign. Always read the fine print.”

“A former popular president using a very popular governor to raise campaign cash? Not the first email like this. More and more it shows Gov. DeSantis’ orbit of power and influence - his gravitational pull in the GOP,” Angel added in a subsequent tweet.

The allegations prompted a flood of reactions.

"Trump is impersonating DeSantis in this fundraising email? Highly doubtful Team DeSantis signed off on this. Not a good sign for Trump 2024 campaign, sorry," tweeted media strategist Gabriella Hoffman.

Many in Trumpworld responded as well.

“Over/under on DeSantis campaign sending a cease and desist? Because this is yikes,” said former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis.

But Brad Parscale, a former Trump campaign manager, claimed that the fundraising email was fake. “You should confirm things first. Making more #FakeNews like usual,” he said in response to Angel’s tweet.

Alexander Bruesewitz, a conservative political strategist, also alleged that the fundraising email was fake. But he placed the blame among allies of DeSantis.

“This is a FAKE,” Bruesewitz wrote on Twitter. “No official Trump PAC sent this email out. Pro-Ron DeSantis 2024 surrogates are spreading this lie all over the place."

The Trump campaign later outright denied that it had sent the email.

“This fundraising email is fake and did not come from us,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told Semafor’s Shelby Talcott.