🇺🇸 Is DeSantis Done?

Plus, here’s where America’s worst drivers are found…

July 18, 2023

The Flag

Good morning, and happy Tuesday. Armed Forces Brewing Company CEO Alan Beal shared some of the veteran-owned and operated company's best sellers as a tribute to veterans and first responders.

Plus, here’s where America’s worst drivers are found…

Also, today’s partner offers life insurance that isn’t just easy. It’s smart and affordable too.

TRENDING

Left: Joe Lieberman Weighs the Trump Risk Russell Berman, The Atlantic

Right: ‘Not My Concern' Narrows the GOP Field Roger Kimball, American Greatness

Right: Will Mounting Death Toll Change Ukraine’s Calculus? Colin Freeman, Spectator World

Right: Supreme Court 'Ethics' Scandal Is New Russia Hoax David Harsanyi, The Federalist

QUICK CLICKS

Santos Censure, Wildfire Smoke Pours In, Crimea Bridge Attacked

US: Democrats prepare a vote to censure Rep. George Santos (NBC News)

US: Biden-era revisions to citizenship test stir new fears (Axios)

US: Canadian wildfire smoke puts around 70 million US residents under air quality alerts (CNN)

US: Senator Manchin speech stokes speculation of White House run (Reuters)

US: Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali (BBC News)

US: FDA approves antibody to protect infants from RSV (CNN)

World: Moscow says Ukraine attacked its key bridge linking Russia with Crimea (NBC News)

World: Iran's morality police to resume headscarf patrols (BBC News)

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2024

Is DeSantis Done?

As the Republican field for the presidential nomination grows, Governor Ron DeSantis’s campaign is facing notable hurdles and resistance. Before the official announcement of his candidacy, DeSantis was generally viewed as the most viable Republican alternative and challenger to former President Donald Trump. However, winds seem to have shifted recently.

Reporting from the Left: Alarm bells for DeSantis, Pence falls behind and Biden stays frugal: Takeaways from new campaign finance reports Fredreka Schouten, David Wright and Alex Leeds Matthews, CNN

From The Flag: DeSantis will sit down with CNN’s Jake Tapper tonight for an exclusive interview. Here’s what both sides are saying about the Florida governor.

LEFT-LEANING SENTIMENT

DeSantis Isn’t Doing Great, But He’s Not Out

  • Despite a poor start to his campaign, DeSantis shouldn’t be written off given his prior accomplishments and presence in Republican politics.

  • “MAGA Cruelty” and DeSantis’s record on several social rights issues in Florida may serve to haunt his political aspirations.

  • DeSantis should step out of the race in order to salvage his political future.

Don't Write Off DeSantis Just Yet Ed Kilgore, New York Magazine: “Lately everywhere you look, people are dumping on Ron DeSantis. He botched his campaign launch. He’s lost altitude in the polls. He keeps getting outmaneuvered by Donald Trump. Big donors and conservative media figures (especially Rupert Murdoch) are beginning to wonder if he’s wasting their time and money. As actual voters learn more about the Florida governor’s personality, they seem to like him less. DeSantis is widely seen as just one major misstep away from a campaign in free fall. … But you know what? It hasn’t happened yet. …Trump hasn’t quite reached that tipping point where Republican elites and voters conclude he’s the near-certain nominee and begin to consolidate support for him. …it’s too early to write the DeSantis 2024 obituaries is that none of the other non-Trump candidates has made a move, leaving DeSantis as his only credible challenger.”

Why Ron DeSantis’s stunts might backfire Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and his obedient Republican legislature have made bullying and attacking the vulnerable the hallmarks of their governance. Whether it is ‘don’t say gay’ legislation (and retribution against Disney for supporting inclusion), denying medical care to transgender youths, muzzling teachers and professors who address systemic racism in the United States, firing a county prosecutor who dared object to DeSantis’s refusal to protect women’s bodily autonomy, or shipping unwary immigrants to other states, Florida has become not where ‘woke’ died but rather where empathy, decency and kindness go to die. … the MAGA culture wars risk alienating young people and the diverse workforce the state needs. … In addition, evidence points to a brain drain from Florida universities and colleges, although data is hard to come by. Records show an upward tick in staff departures at some of Florida’s largest universities.”

One more opinion piece from the Left: DeSantis, Quit Now and Save Yourself for DeFuture Mayra Adams, The Hill

RIGHT-LEANING SENTIMENT

DeSantis Has Options and Opportunities

  • DeSantis could bolster his reputation by holding CNN accountable and showing his willingness to confront media bias and misinformation.

  • DeSantis's strategy is focused on building a strong political foundation, and it’s too soon to discount his candidacy as a failure.

  • A charismatic performance at an Iowa forum showed DeSantis’s potential as a prominent contender in the presidential race.

DeSantis Needs to Take Scalps at CNN Luther Ray Able, National Review: "In a shift for his campaign, Ron DeSantis plans to sit down with CNN’s Jake Tapper to discuss the Florida governor’s vision for America. … The early success of DeSantis’s campaign in national and state-level polling has slipped ever since Trump regained the news cycle, in the wake of investigations and splashy bombast. DeSantis initially eschewed confrontational media hits, but he now has the opportunity to harvest more than a few cuts of red meat for a base that hasn’t seen as many gladiatorial trophies from the gator governor as they may have expected. … but is CNN the place to start for a DeSantis media blitz? Yes, even though a lousy showing would be costly. While there may be friendlier or less skeptical interviewers than Tapper — on a Daily Wire or Joe Rogan Experience appearance, say — many primary voters either watch CNN or hate CNN, and they would like to see Tapper, the network’s face, humiliated.”

DeSantis says he's playing the long game amid lackluster early polls Haisten Willis, Washington Examiner: “Florida's Republican governor launched a much-hyped and well-funded presidential bid in May, but his polling has mostly stagnated in the weeks since, leading him to field questions about whether he's failed to launch. … But the Florida governor likely hoped for better numbers to date. His polling topped 30% in the RealClearPolitics average in March, then dipped into the low 20s amid former President Donald Trump's indictments and has been in the low 20s since. … Political experts say it is still far too early to write off any campaign at this point, DeSantis included. He may then try and appeal to Republican voters by showcasing how he's moved to Trump's right in order to prove who is the true conservative in the race. The Florida governor emphasizes his ability to get things done and acknowledges it will take a lot of toil, sweat, and tears to get out ahead as the crucial votes are counted.”

One more opinion piece from the Right: Ron DeSantis Makes Waves At Republican Presidential Forum In Iowa Ryan Saavedra, Daily Wire

FLAG THIS

DeSantis on the Decline

Polling data on Ron DeSantis's favorability shows fluctuations in public opinion over time. Most recently, a significant number of respondents have an unfavorable view of him, with his net favorability rating being negative.

As of July 10, 35.5% of Americans viewed DeSantis favorably while 45.9% saw him unfavorably. (FiveThirtyEight).

FLAG FINDS

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WATERCOOLER

Third Term, Slow Motion to Save Money, Guerrilla Crosswalks

Roosevelt and Winston Churchill aboard HMS Prince of Wales for 1941 Atlantic Charter meeting

On July 18, 1940, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who first took office in 1933 as America’s 32nd president, is nominated for an unprecedented third term. Roosevelt, a Democrat, would eventually be elected to a record four terms in office, the only U.S. president to serve more than two terms.

Today I learned that the reason "Baywatch" filmed sequences in slow motion is because they were short on money to finish the shows.

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