Ron DeSantis Has Tech Issues To Start GOP Presidential Campaign, Vows To Fight 'Woke Mob'

FLORIDA — Rather than hold a traditional rally covered by TV networks to launch his presidential campaign, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis touted a live Twitter event with CEO Elon Musk to unveil his political agenda.

But it went wrong from the start Wednesday night, with glitches to the stream that kept many people from hearing it.

A conversation with Musk about his presidential campaign hosted on the social media platform's Spaces live audio service battled the sound cutting in and out, apparent hold music playing and the event being relaunched. Musk cited a strain on Twitter's servers as the cause of the problems.

Once the discussion got underway, about 25 minutes later than scheduled, DeSantis began by calling to close the country's southern border, and criticizing spiking urban crime and rising living costs.

"We must restore sanity to our nation," he said, remarking that President Joe Biden, "takes his cues from the woke mob."

DeSantis also got in a few jabs at former reality television star and president Donald Trump, remarking that governing is not about entertainment and saying that a "culture of losing" has penetrated the Republican Party.

The governor spoke against censorship by social media platforms and discussed his ongoing battle with the Disney corporation, as well as the recent book bans and elimination of critical race theory in Florida schools.

“American decline is not inevitable, it is a choice. And we should choose a new direction — a path that will lead to American revitalization,” DeSantis said, according to the Associated Press. “I am running for president of the United States to lead our great American comeback.”

Trump’s team mocked DeSantis and the technical problems that made for a bumpy announcement. “This is a disaster. Not surprising,” tweeted senior Trump adviser Chris LaCivita.

DeSantis filed paperwork Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission to become a presidential candidate. The documents created the Ron DeSantis for President committee.

DeSantis has long been seen as the strongest challenger to Trump for the Republican nomination. A CNN poll taken last weekend showed Trump has the support of 53 percent of those surveyed, while DeSantis has 26 percent support.

The governor and his wife both shared a Twitter video Tuesday evening that showed DeSantis on a stage, while the voiceover said: "Is it worth the fight? Do I have the courage? Is it worth the sacrifice? America has been worth it, every single time."

DeSantis is set to meet with key financial backers in Miami May 24-26 as his presidential campaign launches, Politico reported. DeSantis cannot receive or solicit contributions for a presidential campaign unless he has formally entered the race, the law says.

The Florida Legislature adopted laws this spring pushed by DeSantis to enact a six-week abortion ban and expand a ban on discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity to all school grades, as the Republican governor prepped for the presidential race.

Earlier this week South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott announced that he is seeking the nomination, adding to the field in a Republican primary. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley have also announced their plans to run.

In late April, Florida lawmakers passed legislation allowing DeSantis to run for president without resigning as governor, according to a Washington Post report.

Outside of Florida, DeSantis has received attention for his laws that limit LGBTQ discussion in schools, ban kids from drag shows, ban abortions after six weeks, and an escalating feud with Disney.

DeSantis recently asked that a federal judge be disqualified from the First Amendment lawsuit filed by Disney against him and his appointees, claiming the jurist's prior statements in other cases have raised questions about his impartiality on the state's efforts to take over Disney World's governing body.

The governor's attorney filed a motion in federal court in Tallahassee on Friday seeking to disqualify Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker from overseeing the lawsuit filed by Disney last month. The lawsuit alleges that DeSantis and his appointees violated the company's right to free speech, as well as the contracts clause, by taking over the special governing district that previously had been controlled by Disney supporters after Disney opposed Florida legislation that critics have dubbed “Don't Say Gay.”

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On May 13, DeSantis drew large crowds in Sioux Center, Iowa, at a fundraiser for U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra and at a Cedar Rapids event for the Republican Party of Iowa. The state will hold the first Republican presidential caucus in early 2024.

Trump was supposed to speak at a rally in Des Moines the evening of May 13, but canceled because of bad weather. So, DeSantis pivoted and made an unscheduled stop in Des Moines at a popular barbecue restaurant where he again hit key stump speech topics. Iowans were told the GOP must reject a “culture of losing” and embrace a positive vision for the future if they want to win in 2024.

“Both Florida and Iowa show strong leadership and a bold agenda can defeat the left in this country,” he said, according to the Des Moines Register. “But there’s no substitute for victory. We must reject the culture of losing that’s infected our party in recent years. The time for excuses is over. We’ve got to demonstrate the courage to lead and the strength to win.

“If we make the 2024 election a referendum on Joe Biden and his failures, and we provide a positive alternative ... Republicans will win across the board,” DeSantis added. “If we do not do that – if we get distracted, if we focus the election on the past or on other side issues — then I think the Democrats are going to beat us again.”

DeSantis Vs. Trump

The pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down has for several weeks aired television ads in Iowa with some of his favorite talking points: That Florida is where woke goes to die, and he will never back down.

Trump commercials by the Make America Great Again political action committee are also on the air in Iowa. A recent TV ad targets votes by DeSantis when he served in Congress to cut Social Security and Medicare and raise the retirement age.

National GOP primary polls show former President Trump with a 20 to 30 point lead over DeSantis, according to Real Clear Politics, with the governor in the upper teens to mid-20s. Other GOP contenders like former Vice President Mike Pence are in the single digits.

Political experts have speculated for months on the possibility and timing of a White House bid by DeSantis, who would join Trump in a Republican primary. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley have also announced their plans to run.

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott is exploring a run for the White House. Last weekend former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he may take a look at running. More GOP contenders are expected to join the field in the coming weeks.

Advisers are reportedly considering a kickoff event in DeSantis' hometown of Dunedin, people familiar with the governor's plans told Bloomberg. Events in swing states Ohio and Pennsylvania are also under consideration, Bloomberg reported.

DeSantis Pushes Through Conservative FL Laws

Republicans, who control a supermajority in the Florida statehouse, primarily focused on the governor's conservative priorities during the recent legislative session, approving bills that will likely form much of the governor's platform when he launches his White House bid.

Meanwhile, DeSantis has leaned heavily into cultural divides on his path to a White House bid.

In April, DeSantis signed into law a measure banning abortions in the state after six weeks of pregnancy. The legislation's passage solidified Florida's place among a handful of states with the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation and gave the governor a critical political victory among Republican primary voters.

Last week, the Florida Board of Education approved a request by DeSantis to expand a controversial law prohibiting classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity to all grades.

The Parental Rights in Education bill, dubbed by critics as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, was signed into law last year. Currently, the bill prohibits classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade "in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students."

"We will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not an indoctrination," DeSantis said at the news conference following the bill's signing.
Regardless, DeSantis — who has operated for much of the year with a quiet confidence that he could enter the race on his terms — isn't likely to make any announcements until after the state legislature concludes its business in early May.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.