Donald Trump supporters have mocked Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ahead of his debate with California Governor Gavin Newsom.
The unusual debate between a Republican 2024 candidate and a Democratic governor touted as a potential future presidential candidate is set to begin at 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday night and will be moderated by Sean Hannity.
The event between the political rivals has been in the works for some time, with Newsom first challenging DeSantis to a debate in September 2022, months before the Florida governor announced his presidential bid.
Since then, DeSantis’ 2024 presidential campaign has repeatedly faltered, failing to make any inroads into the massive GOP primary polls that former President Trump leads. While a strong debate performance could provide a much-needed boost to DeSantis’ presidential campaign, a number of MAGA Republicans have stated that DeSantis will not help his national profile on Thursday, with others stating that they will not even watch the event.
“This debate is being held in Alpharetta, GA where I lived for over 20 years,” Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X, formerly Twitter. “I can tell you right now GA is supporting Trump. No one cares about this debate except the Rep establishment, which is completely disconnected from Rep voters. Already a fail.”
Brenden Dilley, a pro-Trump podcast host and 2018 Arizona congressional candidate, claims DeSantis is having an “inconsequential debate that nobody asked for” with Newsom, and that the Florida governor’s entire 2024 campaign has been “strange AF.”
One MAGA social media profile wryly wrote on X:
“Just wait until the DeSantis-Newsom debate. Ron will win the big league and move up a percentage point. Then he’ll only be 49 points down from Trump. Just wait!”
The @RealCaptainMaga account posted:
“DeSantis v. Newsom debate is a waste of time and not worth watching. I hate Newsom but he will run circles around Ron because he can be charming and doesn’t sound like a malfunctioning AI when he talks.”
The post was in response to former Trump lawyer turned DeSantis supporter Jenna Ellis, who wrote on X: “Anyone who says the DeSantis v. Newsom debate is a waste of time or not worth watching isn’t a conservative and doesn’t have the best interests of this country at heart. They’re just Trump groupies.
“If this was between Newsom and any other outstanding Republican governor, I’d tune in and hope the nation sees the differences in ideology and cheer on conservatism. This is about AMERICA, not Trump.”
In other news, California Republican Party Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson warned DeSantis to be wary of Newsom’s “smooth-talking used-car salesman” persona, which may appeal to viewers during the debate.
“Unfortunately, a lot of people still fall for that,” Patterson told The New York Times.
“The facts are on DeSantis’ side,” she added. “What helps Newsom is his charm and his quote-unquote likability. It doesn’t work for me, but it works for a lot of folks.”
Throughout his campaign, DeSantis has been accused of lacking the charisma to appeal to voters and of struggling with the personal retail campaigning aspect of a presidential bid.
The allegations resurfaced following DeSantis’s solid, if unremarkable, performance during the live GOP presidential primary debates.