Ron DeSantis asks people to 'chill' about a potential rivalry with Trump


Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) downplayed the idea of a feud between him and former President Donald Trump on Wednesday, saying people "just need to chill out a little bit."
DeSantis was asked during a news conference about Trump's Tuesday night announcement that he intends to run for president in 2024. For now, he said, the focus needs to be off any beef between him and Trump and on the Dec. 6 Georgia Senate runoff race between Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) and Republican Herschel Walker. This is "very important for Republicans to win," DeSantis said.
It's long been speculated that DeSantis plans on entering the 2024 presidential race, and during an October debate with Democratic challenger Charlie Crist he would not commit to serving out his full gubernatorial term if re-elected. DeSantis easily won a second term on Nov. 8, and on Wednesday called this "the biggest bright spot" of the midterms. "It was not so bright in many other parts of the country," he added. "It was a substandard performance given the dynamics that are at play."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
DeSantis was a strong Trump supporter, and touted his loyalty to him when running for governor in 2018, releasing an ad where he calls himself "Pitbull Trump Defender" and puts his baby in a "Make America Great Again" onesie. Trump did not return the favor this election cycle, going to Florida to stump for Republicans like Sen. Marco Rubio but not DeSantis. Trump, who recently dubbed DeSantis "Ron DeSanctimonious" and called him "average" and "desperate," reminded his followers on Truth Social about DeSantis' fealty, sharing the ad and writing, "Thanks, Ron!"
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Democrats: How to rebuild a damaged brand
Feature Trump's approval rating is sinking, but so is the Democratic brand
-
'Two dolls': Can Trump sell Americans on austerity?
Feature Trump's tariffs may be threatening holiday shelves but they've handed Democrats a 'huge gift'
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
The fertility crisis: can Trump make America breed again?
Talking Point The self-styled 'fertilisation president', has been soliciting ideas on how to get Americans to have more babies
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs
-
'Art is one of humanity's great empathic mediums'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Can Trump's team make the MAGA playbook work for Albania's elections?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION The architects of the president's 2024 victory are looking east to extend their populist reach