Onetime presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis is seemingly plotting a political reboot as he nears the end of his term as Florida governor and repositioning himself for the post-Donald Trump era, according to a new analysis.
The Republican governor established himself as a MAGA favorite due to his laissez faire handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, but his national profile evaporated after Trump vanquished him in the 2024 primary and he lost most of his clout back home, but Slate's Luke Winkie noticed that DeSantis is attempting to reinvent himself in a restaurant tour posted online.
"DeSantis is spending his waning months in public office driving around Florida and dining at local hot spots, in his own low-rent version of the Food Network," Winkie wrote. "The series is called, almost unbelievably, Diners, Drive-Ins & DeSantis."
The show's title and production mirrors Guy Fieri’s long-running series and are uploaded directly to X, where viewers are treated to the same formula in each of the nine episodes so far.
"There is Ron, with his giant head, sitting down for a meal in one of Florida’s many nondescript tropical enclaves," Winkie wrote. "Naples, Cocoa Beach, and other cities you typically only encounter when reading the Wikipedia pages of dead professional wrestlers ... Then DeSantis — dressed in a suit and flag pin — gives his review of the cuisine, in a way that can only be described as surreal."
DeSantis largely steers clear of partisanship as he stuffs fried seafood and pizza into his mouth, but Winkie said the series does seem to have a political intent, and it reflects the newly "defanged" image he's been projecting with tweets about baseball, Ronald Reagan quotes and fiscal policy musings.
"In other words, DeSantis has begun to sound like a fairly ordinary Republican dad, far removed from the hardcore firebrand of the Joe Biden years," Winkie wrote. "And with Trump rapidly leaking oil (and brain matter), I do find myself wondering if this is a savvy pivot. MAGAdom is up for grabs: J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio are jostling for pole position, and both possess their own particular doctrines."
"If DeSantis is envisioning a comeback, maybe he believes that — in 2028 or beyond — America might be ready to once again pull the lever for a boring, polo-and-khakis conservative, rather than whoever can do their best Trump impression," Winkie wrote.