DeSantis' 'humiliation' of Trump is first major blow in the race for the 2024 nomination: columnist

According to Washington Post columnist David Von Drehle, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) delivered a not-too-subtle shot across Donald Trump's bow last week when he let it be known that he doesn't feel he needs the former president's endorsement for his re-election campaign.

With Politico reporting, "Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has plenty of advantages ahead of his November reelection. More than $100 million in the bank. A growing statewide Republican voter advantage. Massive popularity with the conservative base. What DeSantis doesn’t need and isn’t requesting: former President Donald Trump’s endorsement," the political analyst claimed it was DeSantis' way of letting people know he thinks Trump is irrelevant.

As Von Drehle put it, "It’s an intentional humiliation of a man who hates humiliation. For all his braggadocio, Trump’s ego is a robin’s egg attached to a cinder block hanging from a thread above a candle flame. Every day, he struggles to blow enough hot air to prevent the flame from burning the thread and dropping the block on top of the egg."

According to the columnist, DeSantis owes his rapid rise to Trump, going from a little-known House member to a high-profile governor in one of the country's most populous -- and politically powerful -- states.

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As Von Drehle points out, the Politico story was expertly timed to come out right after a recent poll showed DeSantis in a tie with the former president as the popular choice of Republicans looking at the 2024 presidential race, with the columnist pithily adding, "...the kind of tie that happens when a rising balloon and a falling cinder block meet briefly as they pass going in opposite directions."

Writing, "DeSantis has served notice that he is ready to fly solo, to cast his own light rather than bask in Trump’s reflection. That’s hitting Trump where he lives," he continued, "DeSantis struck first. He is savvy enough to realize Trump is surely mulling over a nickname for him. Reckless Ron? Without even saying the word, DeSantis slapped a preemptive label on Trump’s forehead: Irrelevant Donald. It will be difficult for Trump to shed."

"Ambitious Republicans have two choices: Wait for Trump to die, or take him on mano a mano. Trump’s 2016 GOP opponents tiptoed around, waiting for him to implode. No one was willing to throw the first punch, knock Trump off-balance, then keep going until only one of them was standing," he added before concluding, "Ron DeSantis, a man in a hurry, is more than willing. The brawl has begun."

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