DeSantis vs. Disney

Seems to me like the Republican establishment was happy to work with Trump when convenient, who are all these people who boycotted him who are suddenly going to be back in favor? Since those are the people Republican voters hate the most, its hard to see that happening.

 

DeSantis is a MAGA type.

 

Its all about gaining attention to broaden the fundraising base

 

They are the people that help fill out a POTUS Administration. They are the political appointees that have to staff all the Executive Branch agencies and the White House. You won't know their names but they are Sullivan and Psaki equivalents in the Republican party, who work their way up from Admin to Admin and work at law firms and think tanks when their side is out of power. These are the people that were advised to sit out Trump's Admin and which forced Trump to make a lot of unusual hires. It also didn't help that Trump fired Preibus, Mr. Republican Establishment, less than eight months into his Admin for anyone that might have been on the fence.

 

DeSantis knows how to sing from the hymnal but it doesn't mean he is a true believer.

 

His actions show that he is.

 

He is auditioning for a role and has to be prepared to go toe to toe with the head of the MAGA movement in the next two years.

 

DeSantis idea of a working relationship is very similar to Trump though. He commands, you obey or be called out and punished. Look no further than the state senate andvthe redistricting maps. Pub senate tried to give him maps they hoped wold pass judicial review, he stomped his feet, they abdicated, and he approved his own maps that shouldn't pass judicial review if the law is applied above the politic

 

Do you think he is a strong proponent of authoritarian rule? Are you?

 

And now going after university professors which will end up hurting our in state schools. Very troubling what we are seeing out of DeSantis.

 

DeSantis is willing to sacrifice our top 5 ranking for his presidential campaign.

 

I think DeSantis showed that he is less interested in authoritarian rule than most blue state governors over the last couple years. Does he pick a lot of political fights? Yes and I would prefer he tone it down a bit. However, DeSantis has become the liberal bogey man since April of '20 and the way the media has gone after him required him to fight back with full force. He is currently at 58% approval rating in Florida and that is driving a lot of Democrats and one person in Mar-a-Lago crazy.

During COVID, I spent time in California and Florida. Want to guess which one was more authoritarian?

 

So whataboutism? I liked what I saw in DeSantis early on. But his behavior as of late is very concerning to a moderate like me. He doesn’t just pick fights. What he is doing is punishing anything or anyone he perceives as a political opponent. After the last 6 years is that really what you want in the White House?

 

How is it whataboutism when comparing how different governors acted during COVID? When given the opportunity to be authoritarian, DeSantis declined when some of his peers accepted.

I've already said I would prefer for DeSantis to pick less political fights but I'm fine when he responds to an attack, which he has faced a lot of since April of '20.

 

Because we are talking about DeSantis behavior, not some other governors that have little chance of ending in the White House.

 

And when talking about being an authoritarian, don't you think it is important to see how a Governor acted when the opportunity came to be an actual authoritarian? DeSantis was attacked relentlessly for not being authoritarian enough. I get you don't like him picking political fights with his opposition but I think you are really barking up the wrong tree when it comes to authoritarianism with DeSantis after the last two years.

 

Short term policy decisions versus my way or the highway. One is regulatory, the other authoriatarian. DeSantis is like Trump in that he doesn't like, nor will he tolerate, being told something he doesn't want to hear. Very close circle of people he trusts and doesn't change his mind or admit his errors. Those are fatal flaws in my book. Never trust someone who lacks humility. Jmo

 

No, it’s not relevant, it’s standard whataboutism. I think you really like DeSantis chances to get back the white house which leads you dismiss his troubling tendencies. He isn’t just picking fights, he is engaging in political retaliation with anybody that dares disagree with him. He appears to be very thin skinned, unable to let go, and prone to payback. Pretty much the last thing we need if we have any chance of moving away from the extremes and get back to governing.

 

He had no problem forcing UF to give tenure to an unqualified quack so the guy would take the Surgeon general job

 

So when discussing authoritarian tendencies, it is not important to discuss how a governor actively passed on the opportunity to be an authoritarian when his peers actively embraced those opportunities. That makes absolutely no sense.