In a new ad on Friday (May 12), former President Trump attacked fellow Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, claiming the Governor needs a “personality transplant.”
“The problem with Ron Desanctimonius,” Trump begins his Criticism using his preferred nickname for DeSantis, “is that he needs a personality transplant and those are not yet available.”
In the 40-second ad, the former President claims that nearly every congressman or congresswoman who’s worked with DeSantis has supported Trump, claiming that “surprisingly” some support Trump “because of their relationship with Ron.”
Trump suggested that DeSantis had a “lack of personality” that is only in the same class as former Governor of Arkansas Asa Hutchinson, claiming, “that’s not good.” The former President also spent part of the ad calling DeSantis’ recent foreign trips “a total bomb,” claiming people don’t understand why he traveled abroad.
Trump, the GOP’s primary frontrunner, has regularly targeted the Florida governor amid polls showing DeSantis, who is yet to enter the White House race, second overall to Trump, although he trails the former President by double digits.
The ad points out that several Florida Republicans in the House of Representatives have endorsed Trump, while DeSantis received only one endorsement from his home state’s House Republican, Laurel Lee.
Lee previously served as Florida secretary of state in the DeSantis administration.
The ad suggests Trump’s concern that when DeSantis enters the race — expected to occur later in May at the earliest and sometime in June at the latest — he could become a significant threat to Trump’s own ambitions.
