WASHINGTON—Hours after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis appeared to dismiss President Donald Trump’s 2026 gubernatorial endorsement of Rep. Byron Donalds, the MAGA favorite congressman spoke to The Floridian and shrugged off Gov. DeSantis’s dig against him.
When asked about Gov. DeSantis’s assertion that Rep. Donalds wasn’t doing much during his time in the House of Representatives and that he has appeared to be focused on campaigning in other states rather than pushing President Donald Trump’s “America First Agenda,” Donalds sarcastically stated, “Ok.”
Donalds didn’t want to directly engage DeSantis, instead, he stated that he was focused on getting “the President’s agenda done,” adding that Trump’s endorsement “means a lot,” and that he would figure out his future plans “pretty shortly.”
“I'm happy that I have the President's support. It means a lot, so we're just going to keep doing our job and moving forward,” said Donalds.
When asked what his thoughts were about DeSantis saying that First Lady Casey DeSantis would govern better than him, Donalds shrugged off the question.
“I can't even speculate on it because we don't know what's happening— nobody's in a race, but I just know in terms of where things are, I like where I am,” he added.
What DeSantis Said About Donalds
"You got a guy like Byron, he just hasn't been a part of any of the victories that we've had here over the left over these last years. He's just not been a part of it," DeSantis said before talking up his wife.
"He’s been in other states campaigning, and that's fine, but okay, well then deliver results up there!" He continued, claiming Congress hasn't "done very much" to implement Trump's agenda.
How We Got Here.
When The Floridian first reported that DeSantis was traveling to Washington, where he planned on pitching First Lady Casey DeSantis potential candidacy and actively trying to prevent donors from supporting Donalds, Trump endorsed Donalds a few hours after was made aware of the story.
Laura Loomer, who sources say made the White House aware of the article and who was one of the first to suggest that Mrs. DeSantis would be running for governor in 2026, recently spoke to Donalds at CPAC about that very story.
DeSantis could be probing to see how Donalds will respond, and if he has what it takes to stand up to opposition. If DeSantis and his online influencers continue to throw jabs at Donalds, Donalds will have to respond.
If he doesn't Team DeSantis may smell blood in the Gulf of America.
