Facing a crowded Republican primary field of 11 announced candidates including former South Carolina Governor and Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and frontrunner former President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis visited North Augusta to explain why he should be the nominee.
Roughly 265 people were in attendance at the June 22 event. DeSantis was 20 minutes late in appearing before the crowd, but no one seemed to care as they clapped along with Norman Greenbaum’s song, “Spirit in the Sky.”
DeSantis dressed casually, wearing jeans and a sports jacket and wasted no time skewering Democrat President Joe Biden.
“Are you ready to help send Joe Biden back to the basement? God save the Queen? No, it’s God save America!” DeSantis said, mocking Biden’s latest gaffe to the first of many standing ovations.
In a swipe towards his potential Democrat opponent, California Gov. Gavin Newsome, DeSantis recalled a recent visit to San Francisco where he said he witnessed rampant homelessness and overt drug abuse.
“It’s jarring when you pull up and see boarded-up businesses and people openly defecating in the streets,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis defended his record in Florida during COVID. The governor largely kept the state open, garnering criticism even from other Republicans who told him he was committing “career suicide.”
According to DeSantis, the Sunshine State suffered far less economic damage than other states and blamed Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci, former chief medical adviser to the president, for causing the lingering inflation currently gripping the nation.
“A leader looks out for the jobs of people rather than their own political hide. That is what we did, we looked out for jobs,” DeSantis said.
In addressing education, DeSantis said that he would continue his Florida policy of promoting vocational training in high school and technical college as an alternative to an expensive four-year degree. According to DeSantis, under his administration, Florida went from training 500 truck drivers to 3,500 in the space of seven months.
DeSantis, famous for his battles with the Disney corporation, attacked “woke” culture, stating that woke corporations harm the economy, woke schools turn out “dumb” students, a woke justice system makes communities less safe and that the military has a recruitment crisis because leaders are focused on “woke ideology” rather than the mission at hand.
“Don’t tell me that a man can get pregnant and that I should accept that. We became the state where woke goes to die,” DeSantis said.
During the speech, DeSantis never mentioned the man who is considered his main primary challenger: former President Donald Trump. Despite being faced with multiple criminal indictments, a June 2 survey by Yahoo News and YouGov.com found that Trump currently has a 28-point advantage over DeSantis.
Several people in attendance said they were undecided and wanted to hear what the Florida governor had to say before making up their minds on who they would support in the Republican primary.
“I’m in the ‘listen’ not ‘support’ stage. I think, as governor, he has accomplished some great things; but I am waiting to make a final decision,” attendee Jack Borders said.
Another attendee, Henry Dykes, said that even though he was waving a DeSantis sign, he hadn’t fully made up his mind.
“I haven’t decided. I’m just taking the opportunity to hear what people have to say,” Dykes said.
However, Bill Roberts says he has decided DeSantis will get his vote and was quite blunt about it.
“I am not voting for Trump. I am not a Trump supporter. I like DeSantis’ stand on abortion, education, immigration, and he is a fiscal conservative,” Roberts said.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Investigative Reporter and Editorial Page Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
