Roe’s resignation is only one of waves of departures of staff, both official and unofficial, that started early in the DeSantis campaign. It’s like watching one of SpaceX’s rocket failures but in slow motion, with less impact, and burning of other people’s money instead of just Musk’s. Still, it’s no less spectacular to watch. So what really happened?
Republican political strategist Gregg Keller, AKA “The Dark Prince of Secrecy,” doesn’t blame Roe, but DeSantis’ personality. “It all rises and falls on candidate quality, and while Ron DeSantis is a tremendous governor… he doesn’t have the personality or the charisma to win people over in a presidential primary… I just don’t think he had the personal likability, magnetism anywhere near what Donald Trump has,” Keller said.
Tucker Carlson made waves this week at TPUSA’s conference, echoing my sentiments here at Human Events, that DeSantis’ online supporters are some of the “nastiest” people he’s ever seen in his life. One of DeSantis’ biggest supporters John Cardillo doesn’t take that personally, however, “he’s picked a side I just think he should be honest about it. As for the DeSantis campaign’s staffing problems, Cardillo says “many of us weren’t happy about the people he brought on the team. We didn’t think that they could fight, not just Trump, but that they understood the tenor of the base.”
A DeSantis supporter predicted that Ron would win Iowa and it will all be over, to which I responded that I predicted Vivek Ramaswamy would win with 100% of the vote and declare the United States a Hindu nation. Both have about as good a chance to happen, which is to say… none. Iowa has always been about the race for 2nd place, as I’ve noted in these pages, and as KCCI from Des Moines has confirmed, showing DeSantis as 32 points behind. DeSantis endorser John Burk (with whom I have a bet) has said he thinks that if the Florida governor doesn’t win Iowa then it’s over. I agree, with the caveat that I think it’s already over with the primary itself being something of a formality. I myself am actually looking forward to the Missouri caucuses as more of a social event, and to make the case to my fellow Missourians of why Vivek Ramaswamy might make a good VP pick more than anything else. What anyone who has a functioning brain ought to be worried about at this point is the future of the GOP, and our preferred policies. That and stopping the Neocons.
Ron DeSantis’ campaign failures likely have less to do with staffing issues, fundraising, and policy than they do with the good old “who would you rather have a beer with” politics of George W. Bush fame. Very few Republicans want a Negroni with Nikki, a Cabernet with Christie, or sadly a Vodka with Vivek. Most Republican voters would rather have a Two-Hearted Ale with Trump. And with Colorado’s decision to push Trump off the ballot, and the fight we all have ahead of us to try to stop the Democrats in 2024. Maybe we should take a page out of the Trump playbook, shun the alcoholic beverages, have a Diet Coke, and get to work coordinating our efforts at fighting the real enemy at the gates.
