Tipsheet

Brand Building: Should Ron DeSantis Climb into the Lion's Den and Appear on 'The View'?

Guy Benson
Guy Benson  |  August 04, 2022 1:05 PM

You may have seen this virtual smack-down trending earlier in the week, and Julio highlighted it here.  The producers at The View evidently sent a booking inquiry to the governor's office in Florida, gauging Ron DeSantis' interest in appearing on the all-female daytime talk show.  DeSantis' deputy press secretary responded with the following email -- which may or may not be an explicit hard 'no,' but the message speaks for itself:


Oh really? You'd be "honored" to have the governor on your show?  That's interesting, given the myriad unhinged things ('fascist, bigot, homicidal sociopath') your hosts have screamed about him over the last few years.  Please explain, dear producer, why it's in our interests to engage with this level of derangement.  Team DeSantis brought receipts here, and I'd imagine there's more where that came from.  It certainly looks like this was a flat no, but perhaps the "pass on" line might be up for interpretation.  Are they taking a pass, or are they passing the offer along?  It's probably the former, but there's at least a bit of ambiguity there.  Griffin also notes that the campaign side has its own media team that coordinates DeSantis' explicitly political interviews, which is another form of leaving the door cracked open.

Let's start by stating the obvious: The View is a cauldron of hostile ignorance.  It amazes me how consistently clueless and incandescently angry several of the show's hosts are, basically as a default setting.  I have no problem with differences of opinion, or some sharp-elbowed criticisms.  I play in the sandbox of political media.  It's part of the job.  Still, The View may stand alone in its uniquely aggressive stupidity and vicious hysteria, often peddled by ladies inaptly named things like Joy and Sunny.  The likelihood of DeSantis getting a fair shake from people who've denounced him as a bigoted, murderous Nazi, or whatever, is close to zero.  Part of the job of a good communications team is to help put the boss in the best possible positions, and to protect them from ugly, lose-lose scenarios.  Staffers sometimes err by being too protective and gun shy, which can make their principal look weak, or afraid of (or unprepared for) legitimate challenges.  But in this case, net-net, keeping Ron DeSantis away from this particular rolling festival of under-informed animosity is probably the right call.  This adage, not to be interpreted literally in this context, comes to mind.

However.  The View has a sizable audience, largely comprised of women.  I'd venture a guess that many or most of them are...let's say...unpersuadables -- but some might be somewhat open-minded.  More important in this calculation is the secondary audience.  One of DeSantis' key brand features is that he's not cowed by criticism and refuses to back down.  He fights, in other words, which has been a major component of Trump's appeal to the Republican electorate.  Well, DeSantis also fights, and he tends to fight better and smarter.  When a Democratic politician or a Democratic media outlet comes for him, he's usually armed to the teeth with information and prepared to execute a dismantling.  It may not make sense for DeSantis to descend into this high-profile pit at this exact moment, but if he has his eyes on a prize bigger than winning re-election in Florida down the line (as is the subject of widespread speculation and buzz), a strong appearance on The View could be a feather in his cap.

He's not going to disarm the hosts with charm; that's neither his style nor his strength.  But if he were to hold his own (he is much brighter and better-informed than any number of his would-be interlocutors) and lands a few solid points amid the fray, that would burnish his 'effective fighter' credentials.  Even if the segment melts down into a frenetic pile-on and he can't get a word in edgewise, as long as he doesn't lose his cool or look rattled, that would reflect well on him (and poorly on the pilers).  One thing about Trump is that he truly wasn't afraid of any interview, even when perhaps he should have been.  He'd sit down with anyone, even if he ended up looking exposed as cringe-worthily ill-equipped to build a convincing argument.  But he was also quite skilled at rhetorical jujitsu, and often found ways to throw off even interviewers who were loaded for bear with 'gotchas,' frequently shifting exchanges onto his preferred turf.  Many Republicans would like to see a national figure with a bit more personal and messaging discipline than Trump, but they also relish when someone on The Team mixes it up in a hostile setting, then performs well.  DeSantis has an opportunity here.  If he can use it to his advantage, on his own terms, it's something he and his team should consider in the future.  I mentioned this idea on my radio show:


In case you missed it, I'll leave you with DeSantis' first general election television ad of the cycle (it's technically still primary season in Florida, but this is clearly a November-minded spot):