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Lara Trump has issued a dark warning to Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSandis, saying it would be “nicer” for him to stay out of the 2024 race for the GOP presidential nomination. Former President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law appeared on Sky News Australia to boost his candidacy, which is expected to be announced on Tuesday. The announcement appears set to take place, despite Trump being urged by allies to delay the start of his campaign until the Dec. 6 Georgia Senate runoff. “I think he’s smart enough to know that it would be great to have all the support of this party, the America first movement, the Maga, whatever you want to call it, fully behind him in 2028,” Mrs Trump said. He said the movement could split if Mr. DeSantis runs in 2024. “I can tell you that the qualifiers are very messy and very raw. We’ve been through it before. So wouldn’t it be nicer for him, and I think he knows this, to wait until 2028,” he added. Seeing Mr. DeSantis as his main challenger within the party, Mr. Trump has sought to keep him on the sidelines, often touting his support for Mr. DeSantis in 2018 when he ran for governor of Florida. Mr. Trump recently called the governor “Ron DeSanctimonious” — a nickname intended to tear him down, as Mr. DeSantis refused to rule out challenging Mr. Trump for the Republican nomination. While the GOP struggled in the midterms, Mr. DeSantis was strongly re-elected, unlike many of Mr. Trump’s top supporters who lost key races. After Tuesday’s election, Mr. Trump issued a statement calling Mr. DeSandis “an average DEMOCRATIC governor with great PR.” He also shared his anger that Mr. DeSantis did not say he would not run for president in 2024. “I say this with all due respect to Ron DeSandis, he’s never stepped in the ring with a fighter like Donald Trump,” Trump adviser Corey Lewandowski told the AP in 2016. But DeSantis ally Matt Caldwell told the news outlet that “if you want to run for president, you have to do it when it comes.” The Florida lobbyist and Mr. DeSantis’ inaugural chairman, Brian Ballard, told the AP that “the coalitions he built, the bridges he built, the constituencies that never touched a Republican before have embraced Republicans and Republicanism with form of the DeSantis government.” . “He’s certainly a leader and someone who I think has demonstrated the type of coalition building that we need to win back the White House,” he added. Erick Erickson, a conservative radio host, said many of his listeners prefer DeSantis. “They love Trump, they thank him, they wish him well and they’re ready to go their separate ways,” he said, referring to the people who call into his program. “Trump voters like Trump because they like winners who fight. That’s exactly how they perceive DeSantis. The only man between the two who is a loser is Trump.”
