DeSantis Campaign Now Reassuring Donors And Keeping An Eye On Sen. Tim Scott
[guest post by Dana]
Things aren’t going quite as well as the DeSantis camp had hoped it would at this point in time:
A confidential campaign memo obtained by NBC News lays out what the Florida governor’s presidential campaign sees as its path forward: focusing on the early states, refusing to give up on New Hampshire, not yet investing in Super Tuesday battlegrounds, zeroing in on DeSantis’ biography and sowing doubts about his competitors — particularly Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.
“While Super Tuesday is critically important, we will not dedicate resources to Super Tuesday that slow our momentum in New Hampshire,” the memo states. “We expect to revisit this investment in the Fall.”
…
Across the DeSantis political universe, there is a heightened awareness of the importance of the early states and the reality that he will burn out without strong performances there…
With DeSantis seemingly stalled in the polls, there is a question about whether he will even be able to catch up to Trump. If the Florida governor’s numbers don’t improve, a change of strategy would become necessary:
“From my understanding, if we don’t see a bump in the polls, we are basically going to shut down the idea of a national operation,” a DeSantis-aligned operative said.
Also, because of the low polling, wealthy donors are starting to look elsewhere:
With Ron DeSantis stalling in the Republican presidential primary, some wealthy donors who’d hoped he could beat Donald Trump are now giving Tim Scott a serious look. The meeting comes amid widespread angst among wealthy GOP backers about the emerging 2024 field, and DeSantis’ bumpy start in particular. Many high-dollar donors in Trump’s native New York City have tired of the former president and worry about his general election chances. But they say their faith in the Florida governor has been shaken by early campaign missteps and his hardline positions on abortion, transgender rights and other culture-war issues. They fear time is running out for anyone else to break through.
Now, several donors are starting to more seriously mull backing Scott — a more traditional Republican alternative to the populist and combative Trump and DeSantis.
Recently, Tim Scott met with a deep-pocket donor who went to South Carolina to talk to the candidate and see whether he would back him and cut him a check:
The meeting comes amid widespread angst among wealthy GOP backers about the emerging 2024 field, and DeSantis’ bumpy start in particular. Many high-dollar donors in Trump’s native New York City have tired of the former president and worry about his general election chances. But they say their faith in the Florida governor has been shaken by early campaign missteps and his hardline positions on abortion, transgender rights and other culture-war issues. They fear time is running out for anyone else to break through.
Now, several donors are starting to more seriously mull backing Scott — a more traditional Republican alternative to the populist and combative Trump and DeSantis…
“A lot of donors that I’ve met are all curious and want to meet Tim and see what he’s about,” said Andy Sabin, a metal mogul and Republican contributor. “He’s the one guy running who’s got some personality and charisma. His delivery is terrific.”
No wonder the DeSantis camp is going to be going after Scott. And it’s true that Scott has personality, charisma, and gives great speeches. Unfortunately, DeSantis does not possess any of those attributes. The first debate will be held on August 23rd. DeSantis doesn’t have much time to move the needle.
–Dana
Hello.
Dana (560c99) — 7/13/2023 @ 6:26 pmDeSantis is fighting with one hand tied behind his back, by his own choice, because Trump attacks and DeSantis basically sits there and takes it, because he and every other candidate except Christie won’t fight back out of fear of alienating The Trump Base.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/13/2023 @ 7:02 pmI prefer candidates who aren’t fearful (and who aren’t unhinged), which basically leaves Christie, Hutchinson and Hurd, but their combined polling is 3.4%, which speaks clearly about the state of my party.
I think DeSantis is hoping for something that gives him a chance to break away from Trump without alienating the Trump base. I think that could be done by speaking directly to them…he could even pander a bit… “I know a lot of you don’t think the Democrat machine will let Trump win in 2024, what I can promise you is that Trump cannot win against that Democrat machine in 2024. I can beat them, but I need everyone’s vote to do so, everyone who wants a change in 2024: People who voted for Trump, women who didn’t, men who didn’t, blacks, hispanic, new voters we want you, and with you, we will win by an indisputable margin….” Just keep hitting at “they won’t let him win” and transition over time to simply Trump cannot win but I will win and win big if all of you vote for me
steveg (237b84) — 7/13/2023 @ 7:39 pmLet me ask you, all. Do you think DeSantis is a good person? Because he does not strike me as a good person. He strikes me as a thug and a gangster.
The kind of person whose idea of Environmental Protection would be: “That’s a nice tree you have there. It would be a shame if anything were to happen to it.” (Yeah, I stole it from The Wizard of Id.)
nk (6ed565) — 7/13/2023 @ 7:52 pmI agree with your assessment, nk, and have previously described him here using similar terms. I remember him being an ass toward high school kids wearing masks during the pandemic who were standing behind him. Really berated one especially for wearing a mask and yet he knew nothing about the kid’s health or his family’s health. A real prick.
Dana (560c99) — 7/13/2023 @ 8:26 pmOn a practical level, if Desantis wants to win, he has to pick up not just the Trump votes, but also people who didn’t vote for Trump. I don’t see him doing anything in that direction. On a personal level, there are 0 reasons for me to vote for him. I am uninterested in watching him spend 4 years berating me and my profession, and getting in irrelevant d!ck measuring contests and unnecessary personal feuds. And he isn’t even clever in dealing with them. His thoughts on foreign policy are so naive as to easily accept obvious Russian lies. He doesn’t seem to have anything to say about the economy or trade. His entire campaign seems to be “I HATE WOKE PEOPLE” which I guess is his prerogative, but that isn’t a plan for running a country that he seems to think is 70% woke people.
Nic (896fdf) — 7/13/2023 @ 8:58 pmDesatan has the personality of a piranha and is more loathsome then trump. Tim scott scares democrats like biden and the DNC. He could strip a small but significant number of black votes in swing states. More bad news for republicans NY court says pro republican gerrymander was only temporary for 2022 election. Democrats can redraw map for 2024. The 4 ny seats put republicans in control of house.
asset (62c320) — 7/13/2023 @ 11:40 pmWhy he can’t suicide against Trump is a mystery. I guess punching down is the new GOP MEME.
Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/14/2023 @ 1:51 amnk: “Do you think DeSantis is a good person?”
Dana: “I remember him being an ass toward high school kids wearing masks during the pandemic”
Dana, that was an indelible moment. And I’ve not seen anything since to counter the impression. Could you imagine Reagan bullying those kids or using illegal immigrants as stunt props or ratcheting up the rhetoric against gays and trans? Even DeSantis’ attempt at humor by suggesting placing a prison next door to Disney is weirdly dark.
I’m sure that some here will bully similarly….saying that if you want to get rid of Trump, then DeSantis is the only plausible option. That the bulk of the party will simply not prefer happy warriors like Scott or Haley….and definitely not unrepentant traitors like Christie or Hutchinson. But likability is a thing. It’s a big thing for the general election.
Perhaps DeSantis….Trump without the drama but also without the cultish magnetism….is the baby step away from Trump that is needed….and one more grueling national loss is needed before the great horde is pulled in a new direction. I keep saying it, but we will see. The first debate is 6 weeks away. It will be the first opportunity to see our choices side by side. To not just see their poll-driven canned responses, but to see their choices off script and where they choose to punch.
It will be telling if DeSantis continues to punch soft at Trump and instead punches down at Scott. As if Scott’s 2% standing demands an attack….and Trump’s 50% standing requires continued tap dancing.
DeSantis isn’t languishing because of NeverTrump. He can’t win over Trumpers because they need the flamboyant personality as much as they need the culture war policies. That can be the only conclusion at this point. Bullying Mickey Mouse and highschoolers? That ain’t Reagan’s party…..
AJ_Liberty (5f9353) — 7/14/2023 @ 3:53 amDeSantis is the best chance out of the current candidates for America’s future, but those who don’t like social conservativism continue tobbash him while ignoring his successes. That’s your choice.
Meanwhile, our government continues to be weaponized by the left against the American people. Carry on.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/14/2023 @ 5:11 amAs a practical matter, DeSantis’s “social conservativism” and Covid denialism probably will not even carry Florida for him in a Presidential election. Maybe Idaho, and I’m likely being unjust to Idaho.
But he will likely get the lady who does not wear underwear.
nk (6ed565) — 7/14/2023 @ 5:28 amYes, if anyone knows how to win elections, it is GOP donors. DeSantis won easily in FL despite the “culture war” issues being front and center.
No Republican nominee will be pro-choice, or support men in women’s sports, or whatever. They should make their peace with that.
Mike P. (b84e44) — 7/14/2023 @ 7:52 amNk,
You have learned from the left well in how to turn a positive, DeSantis’s reasonable decision to allow people to live their lives in the face of the manmade Chinese virus, into a nagative by lying and calling the governor’s responsible decisions “Covid denialism.”
Same BS that let the left lie about his keeping pervision out of a young child’s school lessons and xall it “don’t say gay.”
Carry on.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/14/2023 @ 8:14 amRe 4, Karnak answer is Youngstown mob and possibly a notable Columbus OH slumlord.
And asset, I don’t think Tim Scott is absolutely necessary to peel off a magic margin of black voters, they’re starting to drift off and dumping Harris off the ticket gives them a golden though false excuse. One DeSantis needle thread strategy could be to convince non south Florida Hispanics a. the Dem -no matter who. – will not win, and 2. You don’t the overwhelming fave of the you know who’s to be back in the saddle.
urbanleftbehind (6bde35) — 7/14/2023 @ 8:49 am@4
Yes, absolutely.
whembly (5f7596) — 7/14/2023 @ 9:34 amI want to vote for a president that will defend the constitution and our rights. Desantis has already demonstrated that he won’t do that. Won’t vote for him in the general. But Biden is as bad (if in different ways).
My most likely choice in a Biden/Desantis race is leaving the ballot blank.
Time123 (a4279f) — 7/14/2023 @ 10:57 amThe against strategy is a vote for the eventual winner.
BuDuh (eaef9b) — 7/14/2023 @ 11:02 amI agree, except I don’t think either will be nominees for their respective parties. Living in California means the Democratic nominee is guaranteed their electoral votes, so there is no point in voting for a presidential candidate.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 11:41 amI have yet to hear or read a policy oriented speech by Scott. It’s all platitudes.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 11:49 amOr complaining about them.
BuDuh (eaef9b) — 7/14/2023 @ 11:56 amIf Scott’s primary polling in his home state continues as it is now (31 points behind Trump; 8 points behind DeSantis; roughly tied with Darling Nikki) he will be toast come the SC primary .
Scott’s primary polling is opposite of his personal approval at 47/25. You would think a popular senator would have much better numbers running in his home state.
It appears that SC Republicans like Scott as a Senator but not as a President.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 12:06 pmAs you know, under the current electoral system voters in non-battleground states are essentially disenfranchised in presidential elections if they vote for the opposition party. So my vote for a Republican candidate won’t matter when the vast majority in California vote Democratic.
It’s not even close. Biden beat Trump by more than 5 million votes, receiving nearly 2/3 of the votes cast.
I still reserve the right to complain all I want.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 12:19 pmI have noticed.
BuDuh (eaef9b) — 7/14/2023 @ 12:41 pmAt least (for the most part) my comments are backed by linked sources, unlike some posters here.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 1:36 pmCharles C. W. Cooke Disagrees:
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 1:58 pmMorning Consult Republican Primary Tracking Poll 7/11/23
………
•Ramaswamy is No. 3: Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy has overtaken former Vice President Mike Pence for third place among potential GOP primary voters, with 8% backing. Trump remains the clear front-runner, with 56% support, followed by DeSantis, whose 17% backing matches an all-time low since Morning Consult began tracking the race in early December.
•DeSantis is losing ground to Biden: DeSantis trails Biden by 5 percentage points in a hypothetical general election match-up, and hasn’t outperformed the incumbent since March. Trump trails Biden by 1 point, down from a 3-point lead late last month.
……….
•……….(F)ormer South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and (former New Jersey governor Chris) Christie with 3% each.
……….
•Trump is popular with 74% of the party’s potential electorate, while 24% view him unfavorably. The bulk of the GOP primary voters (66%) also hold favorable views of DeSantis, while 21% hold unfavorable views.
•Ramaswamy is as popular as he’s ever been following his stern defenses of Trump, with potential primary voters 36 points more likely to hold favorable opinions than unfavorable opinions about him, 49% to 13%.
Rip Murdock (eaf997) — 7/14/2023 @ 2:11 pm………….
@20 vote third party. I do. Every morning hillary clinton wakes up cursing jill stein and then bernie sanders. Dr. cornel west could siphon off just enough black votes in 2024 unless democrats can keep green party off ballot as they did in 2020 or trump ould have been re-elected. The two partys hate when you vote third party aginst them.
asset (a57085) — 7/14/2023 @ 2:39 pmI’d like to knw how did Tim Scott manage to get started so successfully on the road toward winning the Invisible Primary.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/14/2023 @ 2:42 pm@28 He is non threatening black man. Their is not a large supply of them.
asset (a57085) — 7/14/2023 @ 3:46 pmLet me ask you, all. Do you think DeSantis is a good person?
I want to vote for a president that will defend the constitution and our rights.
I have yet to hear or read a policy oriented speech by Scott. It’s all platitudes.
All meaningless at this point. When Trump is trailing indictments for insurrection, leaving nuclear secrets in unsecured rooms, conspiracy to commit election fraud and for being an all-round asshat, things may change. A preference cascade can happen pretty quickly.
Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/14/2023 @ 10:14 pmIf I didn’t already know it, I would know I was at Patterico.com by the fawning over Scott, the (along with Trump) worst possible choice. Scott is for open borders, endless war, copying the left’s soft on crime stance, covered by useless “happy talk.”
And you know you’re at Patterico.com by the attacks on DeSantis, who has shown he can win and govern. Choosing a mediocrity with “charm, charisma, and great speeches” is a joke.
Again, I loathe Trump.
DN (d3d897) — 7/18/2023 @ 9:58 pm