DeSantis called one of the spending bills that Trump signed “grotesque” and accused him of increasing the national debt. He also dared Trump to take a position on the debt-limit bill pending in Washington. Slugfest between DeSantis, Trump begins in Iowa:
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican presidential hopeful, speaks to the crowd during a campaign stop at Port Neal Welding Company in Salix, Iowa, May 31, 2023.
A tricky balancing act lies ahead for DeSantis. All of those comments came not onstage in his first campaign speech before hundreds of Republicans at an evangelical church, but during a 15-minute news conference with reporters afterward. He did not mention Trump by name when he spoke directly to voters in each of his first four Iowa stops, although he has drawn implicit contrasts.
In a statement, Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump, said that DeSantis’ first speech was “crafted to appease establishment Never Trumpers who are looking for a swamp puppet that will do their bidding.” For the third time in DeSantis’ three trips to Iowa this year, Trump planned to follow close behind with a two-day swing of his own. In March, when DeSantis came for his book tour, Trump arrived days later in the same city and drew a bigger crowd. In mid-May, Trump had scheduled a rally to stomp on the Florida governor’s trip, though he canceled at the last minute, saying it was because of the weather. It was DeSantis who one-upped him then, appearing at a barbecue joint nearby.
He said Tuesday, “I don’t need someone to give me a list to know what a conservative justice looks like.” Trump — whose appointment of the justices who tilted the Supreme Court rightward and overturned Roe v. Wade cheered conservatives — promised in the 2016 campaign to pick a justice from a list that was created by conservative judicial activists, and he has promised to release another list before 2024.
“I just think it’s the right approach,” said Schademann, who added he voted twice for Trump. “He needs to contrast what he did with what Trump did.”
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