Ron DeSantis has a Florida problem

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

Ron DeSantis has a Florida problem
The governor and presidential hopeful has a “huge advantage” in his home state that could ultimately hurt his electability.


And on one cultural issue that did hurt Republicans in the midterm elections — abortion — DeSantis is going even further to the right, preparing to sign a bill banning the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions for rape and incest if victims offer proof of a crime.

“Wow,” said Amy Tarkanian, a former chair of the Republican Party in Nevada, where DeSantis traveled over the weekend. “A lot of people don’t even know they’re pregnant at six weeks. I’m pro-life, but that’s pretty extreme.”

In the run-up to the primary, DeSantis solidified his place as Trump’s chief rival for the nomination largely based on an electability argument. He was MAGA, like Trump, but without the former president’s baggage or toxicity to moderate Republicans and independents — the kind of voters Republicans will need to run Joe Biden from the White House next year.

But as DeSantis edges closer to announcing, he is testing the limits of how hard right he can go without undermining his rationale for running in the first place. It’s a significant risk in a primary in which Republican voters — sore from losing the White House in 2020 and a less-than-red-wave midterm two years later — are desperate to nominate a candidate who can win.

“In a way, the Republican dominance of the Florida Legislature may end up hurting DeSantis because his proposals can become reality,” said Barrett Marson, a Republican strategist in Arizona. “That may help him in a primary in Iowa or Texas or South Dakota, but in a general election in Arizona, Pennsylvania or Wisconsin, it could be ruinous for him.”

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/16/ron-desantis-florida-problem-2024-gop-primary-00087326

[Dorian Gray]

1. I think this is all speculation now

My mom (a right leaning voter in Florida who hates trump) seems to be embracing RDS. I think he gives the veneer of respectability for all the republicans who hated DT's undisciplined ego splattering all over the country. But, it is a veneer. My dad (similar voting profile to my mom) is more alert to RDS' using culture war and a cudgel, and he seems more willing to wait for a better candidate to emerge. (I don't think there will be one.)

Anyhow, they aren't the base of the party anymore. They're north-east polite republicans who want lower taxes, less government, and "respectability." They're old school Ralph Lauren wearing righties, and the party isn't there anymore.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

2. the "less government" GOP certainly isnt there anymore. current party is all cultural wars

sticking their noses into education, women's reproductive rights, transgender...all requires government intervention

[Dorian Gray]

3. Absolutely correct

and it seems to exist for fundraising purposes only, not actually to govern.

[Sky Jewels]

16. If you don't mind me asking, how old are your parents?

I'm just curious about the demographics and when they were in their formative years.

[Dorian Gray]

22. They're older

80 and 83. Originally from the North-East. Retired in Florida. (They hated Trump so much they voted Biden, but that was a total anomaly and probably won't happen again.)

[Emile]

4. If Trump ends up in jail, this will mean nothing. 35% of the GOP

voters will be so pissed off they'll stay home on election day. Maybe not all of them, but enough to ensure another Biden victory. IMO

[joshdawg]

10. That will work for me.

This country does not need another rwnj as President, and desantis is just that........as bad as or worse than the orange thing.

Biden runs, as I'm sure he will, he has my vote.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

5. Let the RUIN begin....."Please proceed Governor."

[machoneman]

6. Here in FL, DeSatan has exhibited many anti-social tendencies apparently ingrained for decades.

I'm seeing a lot of Tampa, Orlando and Miami media only now starting to write of his weird ways of eating, shunning the press, avoiding even his own R legislators. Even ignoring his eating pudding with his fingers on a plane, his penchant for having only yes men (and women) on his staff just reinforces how isolated he is from his own constituents. Many a donor has complained of his avoidance of glad-handing let alone no picture taking with them. Fellow elected R's are stunned and unhappy as he refuses to share any limelight even as they vote into law his prized objectives. On Disney, abortion, book banning and more, he's fired up many an opponent for little gain and has lost a wide swath of potential voters.

"But as DeSantis edges closer to announcing, he is testing the limits of how hard right he can go without undermining his rationale for running in the first place." Per the above, by not listening to well-meaning sycophant's complaints that he's torpedoing independent, leaaning R voters and of course, virtually all Democrats, he's set for a big fall in the national picture. Amazingly, the press only now seems to have turned against him as more stories in FL papers now abound. Let's hope he stays on track by pissing off even more voters!

[JonAndKatePlusABird]

13. Eating pudding with his fingers?

WTF?! Frickin weird

[Mariana]

19. Yeah, in front of other people.

[allegorical oracle]

27. Been noticing that, too. He's ill-mannered, lacking social skills. And he's walking a dangerous

tight rope with his social engineering efforts. His reckless legislation doesn't just affect liberals. Conservative women also get pregnant, miscarry, or have fetuses that don't develop properly and need the very health care that he's canceling. He's already offending minorities, gays, trans folks and drag queens. They vote, too. The hope I'm keeping alive is that he becomes a flash-in-the-pan and Dems start regaining seats in the Fla. legislature.

[Ray Bruns]

7. Ron Desantis IS a Florida problem.

[ancianita]

9. There are two kinds of people -- those who have problems and know it, and

those who have problems and don't know it.

[Ray Bruns]

12. There are two kinds of people and I try to stay away from both of them

[RKP5637]

23. K&R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Excerpt DeSantis sticks his nose right into crotches and personal affairs.

[Chainfire]

14. He is a national problem.

He has just got his start here.

[RKP5637]

24. He's like a cancer and it will likely spread. n/t

[ancianita]

8. Tell that to the Florida voters who helped him win by 20 points. Then think about what they tell you

[FBaggins]

17. Correct - and the voters that the OP seems to care about won't be voting in republican primaries

"Getting too many conservative priorities passed" isn't going to hurt someone in republican primaries.

And it's a whole new ballgame once the general election cycle spins up.

[Mariana]

20. That probably won't translate to much of the rest of the country.

Florida's population is older and more Christian than that of the nation as a whole. Older people and Christians are more likely to vote Republican and support De Santis's policies. That situation isn't going to change for the better any time soon, with thousands upon thousands of retired MAGAts flocking to places like The Villages and its clones.

If De Santis wants to be President, he's going to have to find a way to appeal to people outside of Florida who are younger and less religious. The problem for him is that the instant he tries to do that, much of his base will abandon him. They don't have the same kind of cultish loyalty for him that they had for Trump, especially outside of Florida.

[ancianita]

21. You're right. Probably not. For all the reasons you say.

Most of American voters outside Florida don't want the country to be like Florida. DeSantis's and the Repub legislature's extremist governance are their proof.

[allegorical oracle]

28. He kept a low profile in his first four years. His penchant for social engineering seemed to gear up

when his name was being tossed around for POTUS, he got confident, and feels free to show his true colors.

[ancianita]

29. They all do. So does Koch and his DeSantis donor network. Stealth is their game. Owning

the country is their goal.

[allegorical oracle]

30. Yep. The Kochs have been incredibly effective -- an insidious cancer on this country. nt

[ancianita]

31. Right. Just know that it's ONE Koch now. One brother's dead. The other in NY isn't involved.

The one Koch is the sole developer of his whole donor network over the years, not his brothers.

[Celerity]

11. Florida has a DeSantis problem.

[Timeflyer]

15. Living in Florida feels like being in an occupied country right now,

controlled by an enemy invader that creates atmosphere of fear and intolerance. If you spend time fighting against it, and keep being defeated, it's pretty miserable.

[RKP5637]

25. It is, it used to be sort of calm and pleasant. But now everything is on edge and this asshole runs

around ripping the fabric of Florida. It is a damn miserable place now for millions.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

26. I can't imagine living in Florida (politics wise)

[Cha]

18. Tough SHIT.. oh yeah the magas are

Desperate For Fascism.