Florida Governor Ron DeSantis spoke to the Republican Jewish Coalition at their annual meeting this past weekend in Las Vegas. DeSantis, the keynote speaker, recapped the 2022 Midterm Election, including record-breaking voter support from counties that were formerly considered strongholds and safe havens for Florida Democratic Party candidates.
Asa Hutchinson Considering Presidential Bid
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, who is in the final months of his second term, is heavily considering a bid for president. Hutchinson told CNN: “Absolutely. I’m looking at it – looking at it very seriously. After the midterm elections, it’s more intense, and it’s an accelerated review, and after going to Iowa, I’m encouraged that a governor who’s actually solved problems, who has a conservative common sense approach, can draw support and can be a good alternative. So, I’m encouraged by it.”
Hutchinson has been governor of the state of Arkansas since winning the position in the 2014 election. Prior to that victory, Hutchinson had served the people in various roles of government, including a stint in the House of Representatives, working for the DEA and Border and Transportation Security Directorate which is in the DHS.
As for his history with President Trump, Hutchinson has had tumultuous relationship with him which factors into his position that his decision to run for President in 2024, is not dependent on what Mr. Trump does. While initially supporting two other Republicans back in the 2016 primaries, Mr. Hutchinson did ultimately endorse Trump after he won the primaries. Governor Hutchinson has gone on the record many times condemning the former President for causing the January 6th insurrection.
This tension has increased lately, as the governor has taken a more prominent stance against the former President. Particularly when it comes to the January 6th Committee’s work. He stated, “Very compelling. I mean, anyone who appreciates the difficulty of someone being 25 and thrust into that incredible closeness to history and what even in her young age understood to be fundamentally wrong, and she testified to it,” Gov. Hutchinson told “CBS Mornings.” He even went so far as to say he did believe her testimony went asked the question of whether or not he found Cassidy Hutchinson’s testimony legitimate or not.
On the issues, Hutchinson has a strong pro-life record. He has also been a strong defender of the Second Amendment. He has also praised President Biden’s handling and depoliticization of COVID vaccinations, while also remaining against a vaccine mandate believing that people should have a right to reject the vaccine. However, he does believe more needs to be done to convince people to get the vaccine. As governor, he has signed bills to lower tax rates believing that spurs job growth. Furthermore, he has recently stated that he wants a shape in shaping the future of the Republican Party and that, his desire could culminate in a presidential run.
Louisiana’s Republican US Senators May Run for Governor
BATON ROUGE, La. – While many governors put the 2022 Midterm Election behind them, Louisiana is one of three states with a Gubernatorial Election looming in 2023. The other two states are also southern states, with Mississippi and Kentucky prepping for the election season. Two potential Republican Primary candidates are Louisiana’s current US Senators, Bill Cassidy and John Neely Kennedy.
According to a recent article in the Baton Rouge Advocate, Cassidy and Kennedy also have millions in campaign funds on hand. According to the Federal Elections Commission, and OpenSecrets.org, Cassidy has $2.8 million of campaign funds in hand, and Kennedy has $13.6 million, as a result of money raised while running for federal office. The money can be used by political action committees supporting their candidacies for a state office.
Cassidy’s Senate seat wasn’t up in 2022, but Kennedy was able to win re-election by a landslide, defeating Democrat Gary Chambers by nearly 44 points, taking 61.6 percent of the vote to Chambers taking 17.9 percent.
Cassidy is known for his opposition to Trump after he voted for impeachment following the January 6 capital incident. Cassidy’s opposition to Trump may give Kennedy a major advantage in a tightly-contested Republican primary if both Senators enter the gubernatorial race. Last Sunday, while Cassidy was a guest on NBC’s Meet the Press, he said “Those who closely aligned with the former President underperformed. Those who were talking about the future, who managed their states well, they over-performed. The American people want ideas. They want a future.”
Whether both Senators run or only one decides to enter the GOP Primary, current Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry will be a competitor. Landy declared his candidacy in early October, and Louisiana’s state Republican Party executive committee has already endorsed Landry’s bid for governor. Cassidy slammed the committee’s decision. endorsing Attorney General Jeff Landry’s bid for governor.
“What a classic inside job,” Cassidy said. “If you want the people in the proverbial backroom planning who is going to be the next governor, that was a nice little hat tip to that.”
New ‘Ron to the Rescue’ PAC Launches DeSantis 2024 Ad
Earlier today, a new Super PAC titled “Ron to the Rescue” launched an ad on YouTube that will eventually run as a TV ad in Iowa and other early 2024 Primary States. The ad, titled, “A Nation on the brink”, plays highlights from Ron DeSantis’ 2022 re-election victory speech juxtaposed with commentary and stats about America’s most pressing political issues. You can learn more about the PAC at ron2therescue.com. They’re also on Twitter at twitter.com/Ron2theRescue, Facebook at Facebook.com/RontotheRescue and Instagram, at instagram.com/ron_to_the_rescue/
VIDEO: Mississippi Senator Raises Concern About Rural Access To Hospitals & Healthcare
During a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing earlier this month, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) questioned witnesses about the 2023 Farm Bill.
Ron DeSantis Declines to Criticize Trump in Response to Recent Taunts
Hours before former President Donald Trump is expected to announce his third U.S. Presidential campaign, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rejected a chance to directly respond to Trump’s recent attacks on DeSantis’ rise to national popularity, with Trump claiming that DeSantis wouldn’t have won his first election without Trump calling down special agents from the FBI to discard fraudulent votes for then Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum.
At a press conference earlier this morning, a reporter asked DeSantis what he thought about recent “less than flattering remarks from President Trump.” DeSantis responded without naming Trump or criticizing Trump, and instead replied by offering his overall mindset to criticism that is inherent in his role as a governor.
“Well, you know, one of the things I’ve learned like, learned in this job is when you’re doing when you’re leading, when you’re getting things done, yeah, you take incoming fire,” DeSantis said. “That’s just the nature of it. I roll out of bed in the morning and I’ve got corporate media outlets that have a spasm, for just the fact that I’m getting up in the morning and it’s constantly attacking. This is just what’s happens. I don’t think any governor got attacked more particularly by corporate media than me over my four-year term..And yet I think what you learn is all that’s just noise and really what matters is, are you leading? Are you getting in front of issues? Are you delivering results for people? And are you standing up for folks? And if you do that, then none of that stuff matters And that’s what we’ve done, we focused on results and leadership.”
DeSantis went on to point out the state’s overwhelming shift to the right in last week’s election, and he said much of the shift even in the congressional level could be attributed to overall satisfaction with the party across the Sunshine State. At the time of this publication, Trump has yet to comment on DeSantis’ remarks, but Trump is also busy planning for a speech tonight that is most likely going to be his announcement that he is running in the 2024 Presidential Election.
2024 Democrats in North Carolina May Benefit from Population Growth in Charlotte, Durham and Raleigh
Republican Ted Budd will be North Carolina’s next U.S. Senator, but state Democrats have new reasons to view their chances in 2024 with more optimism, thanks to an influx of new residents flocking to the state’s largest cities, Durham, Raleigh and Charlotte.
In recent report from the Kenan Institute known as the “American Growth Project”, released on Tuesday, the Research Triangle, which includes the Raleigh and Durham area, is the fourth fastest-growing area of the United States.
“The region ranks particularly high due to its importance in the biotechnology and bio-manufacturing sectors, according to a statement from the Kenan Institute shared with WRAL TechWire.”
The same report ranked Charlotte as the eighth-fastest growing city in the United States. For the past several decades and in the 2022 Midterm election, Democrats have relied on heavy turnout from young voters and minorities residing throughout the metro areas of the largest cities.
Final tallies are still being registered, but as of the most recent reporting, the states where Democratic candidate Cheri Beasley received the largest proportion of votes were in:
Mecklenburg County (Home of Charlotte): Beasley (D) won by 32.5% and got 234,363 votes.
Wake County (Home of Raleigh and Durham): Beasley won by 26.1, and got 275, 144 votes.
RELATED: Republican Voter-Dominant Counties in North Carolina
New Podcast Episode: Trump vs. DeSantis – Round 1
Listen via Spotify
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Listen Here
It didn’t take long for Donald Trump to attack the latest threat to his
2024 presidential campaign. Within hours of Ron DeSantis’ record-breaking re-election in Florida, Trump was downplaying the feat and taking as much credit as possible for the win.
While DeSantis was soaking in the warmth of the national media spotlight, Trump was the target of criticism of conservatives across the board.
The vast majority of candidates who Trump endorsed were already on pace to win their election. Conversely, candidates who suffered the worst loss margins or underperformances even in victory were the candidates who made Trump’s policies and personal support an integral part of their campaign platform.
Following Trump’s criticism of DeSantis, many conservatives voiced their desire to turn the page from Trump, and move on to DeSantis, including columnists such as Ann Coulter and respected conservative publications such as National Review, The Hill, and more.
Even Trump’s former press secretary, Kayleigh Mcaneny said Trump should postpone his 2024 candidacy announcement until the Georgia runoff ends on December 6th.
DeSantis can proudly point to his present policies as his future plan meanwhile Trump is stuck on complaining about the 2020 election being stolen.
Money always plays a huge role in elections DeSantis best chance for success is to build a coalition of support from other likely contenders who may opt not to run including Nikki Haley and Tim Scott.
If you recall the 2016 Republican primary Trump faced a large field which divided the competition and enabled him to win winner take all states with less than 50% support. Voters may have already forgotten this key fact: In 2016, it wasn’t until many other competitors dropped out of the race when we saw Trump saying serious competition from the remaining two contenders Ted Cruz and John Kasich.
If the GOP primary starts and ends with DeSantis as trumps only challenger, Trump won’t be able to deflect toward other candidates and will benefit from a fractured opposition vote as he did en route to his nomination in 2016.
In some ways, Trump versus DeSantis could resemble the intense battle between Hillary Clinton and Obama in the 2008 Democratic Primary. Clinton was the overwhelming favorite and American’s already knew her backstory, which wasn’t as charming as her opponent. Trump is a known commodity with a support base that has virtually no room for growth conversely DeSantis is a rising star with plenty of blue ocean to expand his base of support.
DeSantis is in a position where he can focus strictly on touting his positives on the other hand Trump is forced into a position where he must go negative on DeSantis rather than focusing on himself.