Florida’s Governor only got the fifth most speaking time in the first 2024 Republican presidential debate, but he thinks it’s just as well that he avoided “a lot of cross chatter that was going on.”
During an interview on “Fox & Friends,” Ron DeSantis explained why.
“We’re auditioning to be the President of the United States. You know, I’m not here to get in a food fight,” DeSantis told interviewer Brian Kilmeade.
“If someone came after me, I was ready to go loaded for bear, we were going to respond and put that to bed. But, you know, I was more interested in talking directly to the people at home rather than kind of some of the bickering that was back and forth,” DeSantis added. “There was a lot that was going on and, you know, my thing is just, like, OK, that’s fine, but let’s focus on the issues that matter.”
Indeed, DeSantis avoided taking the bait early in the debate from one challenger.
Vivek Ramaswamy got the first direct hit on DeSantis, referencing a DeSantis strategy memo from Never Back Down and blasting “puppets following slogans handed over to them by their 400-page super PACs.”
“Do you want a super PAC puppet,” he asked, “or do you want a patriot who speaks the truth?”
DeSantis didn’t respond to that, and Ramaswamy subsequently spent much of the debate brawling with Chris Christie, Nikki Haley and Mike Pence.
DeSantis was compelled to respond to another dramatic moment, however.
Asked directly if Pence did the “right thing” on Jan. 6, DeSantis reverted to a stump speech chestnut.
“This election is not about Jan. 6 of 2021. It’s about Jan. 20 of 2025, when the next President is going to take office.”
The former Vice President challenged DeSantis on not having answered the question. That finally prompted a response from the Governor.
“I’ve answered this before. Mike did his duty. I’ve got no beef with him,” DeSantis said, quickly pivoting to blasting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
DeSantis said Thursday he wanted to talk issues on the debate stage.
“There’s a lot of people up there that said a lot of things,” he told Kilmeade. “I’m the only one that’s actually delivered on all these issues, whether it’s the economy, whether it’s the crime, the border, you name it. And so looking forward, those are the issues that we were really strong on, the issues that people really care about.
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