Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has not announced a bid for the White House to challenge former President Donald Trump in 2024. But that hasn’t stopped Trump and his most loyal online supporters from throwing just about anything against the wall to see what sticks.
A year and a half before the election, Trumpworld’s latest line of attack: portraying DeSantis as a “globalist” who is “endorsed” by liberal philanthropist George Soros.
The origins of the freshly minted Trumpworld attack began to emerge late last week after Soros spoke at the international security conference in Munich on Thursday.
“My hope for 2024 is that Trump and Florida Governor DeSantis will run for the Republican nomination. Trump has turned into a pathetic figure and continues to mourn his loss in 2020,” he said. Major Republican donors are abandoning him en masse.
Then Soros, a popular bogeyman among those on the right, offered a retarded compliment to Florida’s governor: “DeSantis is cunning, ruthless and ambitious. He probably is [the] Republican candidate. This could lead Trump, whose narcissism has turned into a disease, to run as a third party candidate. That would lead to a Democratic landslide and force the Republican Party to reform itself.”
Those comments — in which Soros never actually endorsed DeSantis — were quickly taken out of context by Trumpworld royalty and pro-Trump media.
“The Kiss of Death – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Endorsed by George Soros,” Kari Lake wrote on Twitter, sharing a link to an article from far-right site The Gateway Pundit, written by site editor Joe Hoft, falsely claiming that “George Soros has endorsed DeSantis for 2024.”
“If the devil likes you, you might be doing something wrong,” continued The Gateway Pundit story, which has since gone viral in the right-wing media ecosystem. “Getting a Soros endorsement is not a good thing for DeSantis.”
As The Daily Beast previously reported, Lake is currently on the shortlist as a potential vice presidential nominee for Trump in 2024.
“George Soros Backs DeSantis for 2024!” country music artist turned Trumpworld celebrity, Travis Tritt wrote Friday on Truth Social. He then added a shocked emoji for good measure.
“I get George Soros attacking President Trump, but praise DeSantis? That’s interesting, don’t you think? former Trump administration official turned right-wing radio host Seb Gorka on responded to Soros’ comments. Gorka sparked anger among his MAGA followers, with the post gaining more than 5,000 likes.
But Trump’s most loyal backers didn’t stop there.
The ultra-Trump Twitter account “il Donaldo Trumpo” — which has nearly a million followers on Twitter — wondered aloud: “AND WHY IS GEORGE SOROS SUPPORTING RON DESANTIS?
“George Soros says Trump has ‘become a pathetic figure,’ then compliments DeSantis and says he will be the Republican nominee,” said Trumpworld adviser Alex Bruesewitz. added. “I support the man hated by George Soros.” Students for Trump founder Ryan Fournier shared a similar one message.
Since Soros’ comments, DeSantis pundits have fired back.
“This ‘approval’ story is a simple IQ test,” DeSantisworld expert David Reaboi wrote, calling out Lake’s first Twitter post. “Soros saying DeSantis is effective and smart is an attempt to get the left he funds to focus on defeating him. It’s a **warning**, not an endorsement. FFS, how can some of you be so stupid?”
Ron DeSantis’ secret Twitter army of far-right influencers
Soros called DeSantis ‘ruthless’ because, unlike Trump, he is actually willing and able to use power. He did more to wound Soros as governor of Florida than Trump did as president of the US,” said Chronicles Magazine’s Pedro Gonzalez. continued.
More independent conservative voices shared a similar sentiment.
Wisconsin conservative radio host Jay Weber wrote: “Soros did not support DeSantis. What an idiotic spin on his comments.”
This isn’t the first time DeSantisworld and Trumpworld have clashed on Twitter. Earlier this week, DeSantisworld figures — including former Newsmax host John Cardillo — accused Trumpworld of “photoshopping” photos to give the false impression that Soros hangs out at parties with DeSantis supporters.
Read more at The Daily Beast.
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