'Weakened' DeSantis meets with Trump after brutal GOP primary 'shellacking'

29 April 2024

After Ron DeSantis' landslide reelection victory in 2022, the far-right Florida governor's cheerleaders —including right-wing author Ann Coulter — saw him as the presidential candidate with the best shot at defeating Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary and going on to defeat President Joe Biden in the general election.

But DeSantis ran what many pundits described as a lackluster presidential campaign, arguing that he needed to be much more forceful in his attacks on Trump. DeSantis eventually suspended his campaign and gave Trump a lukewarm endorsement.

Trump was furious that DeSantis ran for president in the first place, attacking him as "Ron DeSanctimonious" and "Meatball Ron" during the primary. And there has been a lot of tension between them.

But according to the Washington Post's Josh Dawsey, Trump and DeSantis met in Miami on Sunday, April 28.

"Allies brokered the meeting in hopes of a potential détente between the two men, and Trump's advisers hope DeSantis will tap his donor network to help raise significant sums of money for the general election, the people familiar with the matter said," Dawsey reports. "Like others interviewed for this story, the people spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private deliberations. The pair met for several hours, and DeSantis agreed to help Trump. The meeting was friendly, according to a person with direct knowledge."

According to Dawsey, the meeting was "orchestrated" by Florida-based real estate developer Steve Witkoff and marked the first time Trump and DeSantis had spoken since the end of the GOP presidential primary.

Dawsey describes the motivations that that Trump and DeSantis camps had for the meeting in Miami.

"Trump and allied groups have lagged behind President Biden and his allies in the money chase," Dawsey explains. "DeSantis has built a wide network of wealthy patrons whose assistance would be valuable in helping Trump try to close the gap, and is popular with some Republican voters who are exhausted by Trump. There is an incentive for DeSantis to form a closer relationship, as well."

Dawsey adds, "People close to DeSantis have said it is untenable for him to continue to have a strained relationship with Trump, particularly as he eyes his political future. He is widely viewed among Republican donors and consultants as weakened after a shellacking by Trump in the primary."

Read the Washington Post's full report at this link (subscription required).

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