I don’t get the hate some people hurl at the Florida governor. He’s not going to win the 2024 Republican nomination. Still, I have zero problems with Ron DeSantis jumping into the 2024 race and offering Republican voters an alternative. DeSantis’ agenda isn’t too dissimilar from Trump’s concerning the key issues facing voters this cycle. He’s hired one of the best debate consultants, which shows in his solid debate performances. Maybe the only knock is that he doesn’t do enough to put significant space between himself and whatever is left of the competition, which looks like Nikki Haley. It’s not a trainwreck like Rick Perry in 2012.
.@RonDeSantis with a dig at both Trump & Haley: “We've held events in all 99 counties. We go out and we answer questions from folks. I know a lot of the other candidates don't do that. We show up to the debates.” pic.twitter.com/ShzvnWkWk3
— Samantha-Jo Roth (@SamanthaJoRoth) January 13, 2024
Regardless, you must appreciate the chutzpah on this guy who showed up at one of DeSantis' town halls in Iowa to present him with a “participation trophy” while calling the Florida Republican “our favorite snowflake.” Who is this person? Who knows—but DeSantis wasn’t pleased, though he handled it well, saying he doesn’t need participation trophies. His wife, Casey, accompanying him through the final hours before voting, signaled for security to take this individual away, which they did.
📍Atlantic, Iowa — a man came up to DeSantis at his town hall & tried to hand him a participation trophy. He said DeSantis he “probably won’t win the election.” He also called DeSantis “our favorite snowflake.” pic.twitter.com/fTEY9Y4kM9
— Samantha-Jo Roth (@SamanthaJoRoth) January 13, 2024
The latest poll from Ann Selzer showed Haley pulling ahead of DeSantis but admitted it’s “shaky ground.” Do you know who remained firmly ahead? Donald Trump—what else is new? Trump remains at the top of the heap with 48 percent of GOP caucus voters, Nikki comes in second with 20, DeSantis with 16, and Vivek Ramaswamy pulls in fourth with eight percent (via Des Moines Register):
Nikki Haley has overtaken Ron DeSantis in Iowa just days before a high-stakes Republican caucus that could help determine whether either candidate has a viable shot at upending Donald Trump, the race’s far-and-away front-runner.
But even as Haley has moved into second place, a new Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll indicates her support may be based on “shaky ground,” said pollster J. Ann Selzer, who conducted the poll.
The Iowa Poll shows 48% of likely Republican caucusgoers pick Trump as their first choice for president — a slight dip from the 51% who said the same in December.
Also, how on Earth is Asa Hutchinson cobbling together one percent of the vote in that poll? Yet, while trophy man might have roasted DeSantis, the voters polled by Selzer delivered multiple stab wounds to Nikki Haley with their utter lack of enthusiasm for her, which Selzer noted is odd with a candidate supposedly moving up in the polls. The longtime pollster called Haley’s numbers in that department “on the edge jaw-dropping.”
“Her enthusiasm numbers, again, I just think are on the edge of jaw-dropping. That 61% are just mildly enthusiastic or not that enthusiastic — it just seems at odds with a candidate moving up,” she said.
Then again, with temperatures plummeting into the negative, I wouldn't be as jacked to go out and vote either.