Ron DeSantis mocked for placing himself at the mercy of 'petulant man-child' Elon Musk

Ron DeSantis opened himself up to mockery by launching his presidential campaign alongside capricious billionaire Elon Musk, according to a new column by conservative Charlie Sykes.

The Florida governor will reportedly announce his 2024 bid for the White House during a chat on Twitter with CEO Elon Musk, and Sykes published a column on The Bulwark that questioned his political instincts and judgment.

"In 2023, a major candidate for president of the United States is paying court to an erratic, decompensating, narcissistic, endlessly needy, petulant man-child, who has spent the past few months posting poop emojis, taking counsel from someone called catturd, and destroying the social media platform he bought on a whim," Sykes wrote.

"Along the way, Musk has opened the door to bigots, crackpots, conspiracy theorists, charlatans, and the insane of every stripe, while displaying his own brainworms on a regular basis."

The social media mogul fancies himself a kingmaker, Sykes wrote, and DeSantis was indulging in that fantasy -- which comes with a cost.

"Meatball is also now at the mercy of Elon’s whims," Sykes wrote, using Donald Trump's nickname for his closest rival. "Just days ago, Musk was emoting over Tim Scott; and tomorrow he may decide that DeSantis is cold product. He could endorse, unendorse, praise, mock, embrace, and discard the Florida man in one of his 24-hour manic bursts of a--holery."

"Meatball would be well and truly screwed," he added.