'Thumb in the eye': Trump loyalists freak out over DeSantis’ 'disgusting' alliance with a Dominion lawyer

At a roundtable event in Miami on Tuesday, February 7, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw a discussion on “the damaging impacts of defamation from the legacy media.” One of the panelists was attorney Libby Locke, whose far-right clients have included Project Veritas’ James O’Keefe and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (who Locke represented in her failed defamation lawsuit against the New York Times).

During the roundtable, DeSantis exalted Locke as “an extraordinaire when it comes to First Amendment defamation.” But to some MAGA Republicans, Locke has committed an unpardonable sin by representing Dominion Voting Systems. And one of the Donald Trump loyalists who is furious with DeSantis for promoting her, according to Daily Beast reporter Zachary Petrizzo, is MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell.

Dominion is suing Lindell as well as attorney Sidney Powell, Fox News, Newsmax TV and One America News (OAN) for defamation. Lindell, like Powell, falsely claimed that the company’s voting equipment was used to help now-President Joe Biden steal the 2020 election from Donald Trump — a claim that has been repeatedly debunked.

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Lindell told the Daily Beast, “It is disgusting. She is a liar. She is part of the lie…. DeSantis being in cahoots with a Dominion lawyer has outraged the people of the United States. DeSantis lost any chance of running.”

DeSantis has yet to officially announce a 2024 presidential run, but right-wing figures who are pushing him as an alternative to Trump range from firebrand author Ann Coulter to Fox News’ Rupert Murdoch.

Joseph D. McBride, a far-right MAGA attorney who has represented some of the January 6, 2021 defendants, is also furious with DeSantis for embracing Locke.

McBride told the Beast, “How in the hell is he going to beat Trump in a primary when he just gave Dominion a seat at the table? I just don’t see it happening.”

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When the Beast asked McBride if he thought DeSantis was attacking Trump by featuring Locke at the roundtable in Miami, the attorney responded, “Yeah, I think it’s a thumb in the eye. I think it’s his way of saying all that election stuff was nonsense, and ‘This is my way of passive-aggressively saying that I think that the election was without any hiccups.’”

Another far-right MAGA Republican who is slamming DeSantis for featuring Locke is Laura Loomer. On February 7, Loomer tweeted, “It is truly sickening. It really confirms what I’ve been saying all along. @GovRonDeSantis doesn’t care about voter fraud, problems with electronic voting machines, & he doesn’t care about free speech.”

That same day, “Stop the Steal” election denialist Ali Alexander tweeted, “DeSantis isn’t just trolling Trump. He’s now trolling us. Brings on Dominion Machine’s lawyers to compliment their defamation cases (which target free speech and election integrity activists) with frivolous claims.”

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Read The Daily Beast’s full report at this link.