FL_Ag1998 said:
FireAg said:
BG Knocc Out said:
FL_Ag1998 said:
FireAg said:
I know many of y'all have scoffed and laughed me off for saying it, but I really think he needed to do two things right off the bat:
1. Say something outlandish to grab a headline or two from the get-go (I hear y'all...not his style, etc...but he needed to make some real noise of his own in the echo chamber)... Even if he had to walk it back later, he would have grabbed a little spotlight in the moment...
2. Early on say that one of his first priorities would be to pardon Trump of all wrongdoing in all cases so that the counry could move on from political persecution...
I said those things even before his launch, and though I have no proof it would have helped him, I think it would at least have provided a voice for him in the echo chamber...no way to know if it would have carried him to victory (likely a bridge too far without knowing what his follow ups would have been), but I do think it would have caught eyes and given him a little momentum bump...
I wish he had come out firing at Trump a lot earlier than he did. However, I truly believe Trump has two groups of supporters:
1) Diehards, which aren't aren't ever going to love anyone more than they love Trump.
2) The Vengeance voters, who are voting for him because he's under attack by the Left. Many of these people will state in interviews that they like DeSantis but they just "have to vote for Trump because of what the Dems are doing to him."
No amount of headline grabbing by DeSantis would have changed either of those group's votes.
If Trump were to be 100% honest he would acknowledge that the biggest favor the Dems did for his re-election hopes was to continue to attack him after he left office. I mean, its almost like the Dems knew that would rile his base up while also riling up the Dem base. The gamble is the effect its going to have on the middle bloc of voters. That's a big gamble considering its only the fate of our country that hangs in the balance.
Very good point. Add that to the fact that the media has done everything in their power to keep Trump front and center and make sure he is the candidate, and it was just too much of an uphill climb for ANYONE. I am not sure Desantis could have done anything that would have made any material difference whatsoever.
If that's true, then I think you have to concede that DeSantis ran too soon...it was not the right time to pursue the White House for him...
He was almost in a no-win situation and was put there by Trump. Remove the Trump-effect from this Primary and DeSantis was running at the perfect time based off what he had accomplished, the mood of the country, and the momentum he had gained as governor. His term as Gov will end two years before 2028. His prime time was now, despite what you want to argue.
Hell, everyone was in agreement that it was the ideal scenario for Trump to be the magnanimous king-maker (or however you want to phrase it) and pass the torch to the next evolution of "MAGA". But Trump's ego and wallet couldn't pass up another run at POTUS.
And if Haley and Ramaswammy hadn't decided to run for positions in Trump's potential administration then it would be a Trump vs. DeSantis race and look much different.
How about arguing instead that this was the perfect time for Trump to be a true leader of a party and movement by stepping aside and annointing the next generation/evolution? He could even have rightfully claimed to have started this great movement, and sat back waiting for all the adulation to roll in. But Trump screwed that up. Unless of course he's not really in this for the party and MAGA movement. Unless he's simply in this for himself.
With all due respect, this is revisionist history, and here's why…
DeSantis never had a polling lead while Trump was a declared candidate, and DeSantis declared in May of 2023…WELL after Trump, so DeSantis knew he was facing an huge hill to climb on the day he declared, down 33+ in the RCP average…so I'm not sure how Trump declaring (November 2022) well before DeSantis hurt DeSantis after the fact, when DeSantis declared…if that's the case, and DeSantis didn't think he could make up that many points, then why enter in the first place down by so much? So saying he was in a "no-win" situation…well…he should have seen the numbers on the day he declared and KNOWN it was nearly impossible facing a huge gap between him and Trump…. So you can say "remove Trump for the equation", but the fact is, Trump declared and DeSantis waited, so Trump was already in the equation
before DeSantis made his decision…
Further, you can't blame Haley and Ramaswamy for stealing votes from DeSantis, and why? Because they both launched their campaigns back in February…while DeSantis was starting a book tour…
The blame ALL falls on DeSantis…he waited…he behind by more than 30 points when he FINALLY entered, and he was never able to recover…
That's on DeSantis…
Your argument would have more merit if he declared first…but he was literally LAST to the party for those real contenders in Iowa, and then spent a huge chunk of time and resources trying to win Iowa…
His strategy backfired in a very public and epic way…
If you truly believe "his prime time was now", then why was he LAST to the party?
That's the reality…no history revision necessary…