Adding to Gov. Ron DeSantis' problems in making inroads into knocking off Donald Trump as the leading candidate for the Republican Party's 2024 presidential nomination is his inability to round up more than a smattering of endorsements from members of the GOP-controlled House.
According to a report from the Daily Beast's Jake Lahut, the Florida governor refuses to use the personal touch and call up lawmakers seeking their support, leaving it instead to aides, and not only is that flopping, he's alienating the very lawmakers whose backing he needs.
Days after an NBC poll showed DeSantis taking a stunning drop of 9 points against Trump from April to June, GOP strategists who had suggested he would start lining up endorsements after he announced his presidential bid are complaining about how he is floundering.
According to the report, the Florida Republican has only managed to round up five House members to publicly support him while Trump has 62 in his pocket.
READ MORE: Judge blasts disgraced Ohio GOP House speaker as a 'bully' — and sends him straight to jail
As The Beast report notes, DeSantis' personal awkwardness is coming into play with Republicans in the House where he once served.
Prior to officially announcing, "stories circulated not just of his interpersonal awkwardness but his operation’s apparent lack of interest in cultivating influential GOP supporter," Lahut wrote.
“There’s really no game that DeSantis has, and members have said this: When you’re having staffers reach out to members of Congress—who have bloated egos as it is—they don’t want to have a staffer tell you, ‘Oh we really need your endorsement.' No. They wanna hear it from the f--king candidate,” Lahut added.
You can read more here.
