Ron DeSantis aides say he's 'not going to be bullied' by Trump — but that's exactly what happened

The Washington Post reported that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), in attempting to remain relevant in a news cycle that exploded with Donald Trump's arraignment on 34 felony counts, attacked Trump — only to have the move backfire.

At first, DeSantis attempted to remain silent, but Trump's allies began calling him out, wondering why he was MIA on the issue of his indictment by the Manhattan grand jury.

According to CBS News reporter Robert Costa, a person close to Trump said that he's complaining about "muted response from his Republican rivals, especially from Gov. DeSantis."

It pushed DeSantis to make a statement, noting that he's never experienced a political problem involving paying off porn stars. It didn't make Trump very happy. He complained he was “not going to be bullied” by the ex-president, the Post cited "two people familiar with the Florida governor’s thinking."

Still, it appears that's precisely what happened to DeSantis.

Last week, Trump's super PAC hit DeSantis on a number of issues, from Social Security to his mistakes around COVID-19. Last month, Trump's allies alleged that DeSantis was even "extremely lenient" on child pornography cases as a prosecutor.

DeSantis rushed to claim he wouldn't extradite Trump from Florida, promising to protect him. The news came less than an hour before Trump announced he would turn himself in. It also sparked attacks on DeSantis because the Constitution specifically outlines extradition from state to state. DeSantis got his law degree from Harvard University before working as a military lawyer.

Trump then called on DeSantis' donors to show their loyalty with cash for Trump. It's unclear how much money Trump was able to gather from the DeSantis donors.

"His response to Trump’s indictment reflects both the trial-and-error in his approach and his reluctance to declare open warfare against the top-polling Republican candidate. Rather than open a new phase of combativeness with Trump, DeSantis is lying low again, at least for the moment," the Post said.

So, it appears, DeSantis was actually bullied into silence again by Trump.

Read the full report.