Democrats only have themselves to blame for the rise of Ron DeSantis

[Wingnut]

The more Democrats take aim at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on COVID and social issues, the more they propel him to a conservative superhero on the national stage.

The mercurial rise of Ron DeSantis is the Democrats’ fault.

I say this with gratitude, not regret. Absent some catastrophe, DeSantis is going to win a second term as governor of Florida this coming November and, after that, he has a fair shot of being president. This is partly because he has done an excellent job for his state. It’s also because he was unusually lucky in his enemies.

Unable to help themselves, the Democrats have aided him at every stage. They still are.

2018 was a good year for the Democratic Party, but not so good a year that the quality of its candidates didn’t matter. Had the party nominated a credible centrist in Florida’s toss-up gubernatorial race — Gwen Graham, for example — that candidate would not only have won the governor’s mansion for the Democrats for the first time in two decades, she’d have ended DeSantis’ career.

But the Democrats didn’t choose a credible centrist. They hosted a messy and divisive primary, selected the radical Andrew Gillum as their nominee, lost by 0.4 points, and set DeSantis up for a bright future. Opportunity: missed.

Democratic challenger Nikki Fried has compared Florida Gov. DeSantis (above, with wife, Casey) to “the leader of a communist country” — but voters just see a sensible guy making rational decisions.
Democratic challenger Nikki Fried has compared Florida Gov. DeSantis (above, with wife, Casey) to “the leader of a communist country” — but voters just see a sensible guy making rational decisions.

The Dems still had a chance to turn it around, even after he won. Ron DeSantis is a good governor, but he is not perfect, he does not get every call right, and he is as susceptible to base political temptation as any other human being. Florida has undoubtedly grown more Republican of late, but it is not Mississippi, and the Democratic Party will eventually win a big election here simply by being a sober, credible alternative to the GOP.

If the Florida Democratic Party understands this, it has a peculiar way of showing it. Instead of calmly rebuilding, it has allowed itself to become so crazy in its opposition to DeSantis, it has elevated him to national status, provided him with all the incentives he needs to play Churchill at the gates, and, by confirming that any Republican (not just Trump) will be treated terribly in the press, turned him into a rock-ribbed conservative hero.

https://nypost.com/2022/04/02/ron-desantis-unexpected-rise-is-thanks-to-the-democrats/

[catfish1957]

If we get the cheating under control, I fully expect this guy to be POTUS someday.  He has the demeanor, the ideas, the Reagan calmness, the wit and intelligence to pull it off.

Last night I heard he has an over 60% approval rating in Purple FL.  WHo in this divided political climate is able to pull that off?

[IsailedawayfromFR]

The more Democrats take aim at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on COVID and social issues, the more they propel him to a conservative superhero on the national stage.

The mercurial rise of Ron DeSantis is the Democrats’ fault.

I say this with gratitude, not regret. Absent some catastrophe, DeSantis is going to win a second term as governor of Florida this coming November and, after that, he has a fair shot of being president. This is partly because he has done an excellent job for his state. It’s also because he was unusually lucky in his enemies.

Unable to help themselves, the Democrats have aided him at every stage. They still are.

2018 was a good year for the Democratic Party, but not so good a year that the quality of its candidates didn’t matter. Had the party nominated a credible centrist in Florida’s toss-up gubernatorial race — Gwen Graham, for example — that candidate would not only have won the governor’s mansion for the Democrats for the first time in two decades, she’d have ended DeSantis’ career.

But the Democrats didn’t choose a credible centrist. They hosted a messy and divisive primary, selected the radical Andrew Gillum as their nominee, lost by 0.4 points, and set DeSantis up for a bright future. Opportunity: missed.

Democratic challenger Nikki Fried has compared Florida Gov. DeSantis (above, with wife, Casey) to “the leader of a communist country” — but voters just see a sensible guy making rational decisions.
Democratic challenger Nikki Fried has compared Florida Gov. DeSantis (above, with wife, Casey) to “the leader of a communist country” — but voters just see a sensible guy making rational decisions.

The Dems still had a chance to turn it around, even after he won. Ron DeSantis is a good governor, but he is not perfect, he does not get every call right, and he is as susceptible to base political temptation as any other human being. Florida has undoubtedly grown more Republican of late, but it is not Mississippi, and the Democratic Party will eventually win a big election here simply by being a sober, credible alternative to the GOP.

If the Florida Democratic Party understands this, it has a peculiar way of showing it. Instead of calmly rebuilding, it has allowed itself to become so crazy in its opposition to DeSantis, it has elevated him to national status, provided him with all the incentives he needs to play Churchill at the gates, and, by confirming that any Republican (not just Trump) will be treated terribly in the press, turned him into a rock-ribbed conservative hero.

https://nypost.com/2022/04/02/ron-desantis-unexpected-rise-is-thanks-to-the-democrats/

  At one time I had thought the best one could get from Florida was in the person of Marco Rubio.

He quickly dismissed his conservative creds once he got on the national stage by his Gang of Eight alongside McCain.

DeSantis is heading in the right direction and I am encouraged from what I see so far, but I also believe we need to wait some more to get sufficient history so he doesn't 'Rubio' us.