DeSantis camp doubles down on ‘listless’ blast, rips ‘entitled’ Trump

WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump now feels “entitled” to every Republican primary vote despite skipping out on the first GOP debate of the 2024 cycle, according to the campaign of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump’s closest competitor for the nomination.

“Donald Trump and some congressional endorsers are ‘listless vessels,’” a DeSantis campaign rep told The Post Monday. “Why? Because Trump and DC insiders feel he is entitled to your vote.”

The statement referenced the governor’s comments over the weekend rebuking those who label anyone challenging Trump as a “RINO” – or Republican in Name Only.

“If all we are is listless vessels that are just supposed to follow, you know, whatever happens to come down the pipeline through Truth Social every morning, that’s not going to be a durable movement,” DeSantis told The Florida Standard in a Saturday interview.

“Anti-establishment”

Billed as an “anti-establishment” candidate in 2016, Trump, now 77, cast himself as a political outsider who would drain the DC “swamp” of bureaucrats.

But now the three-time presidential candidate – who, DeSantis said Saturday, failed to remove the capital city’s old guard during his four years in office – is suddenly resting on his political experience rather than putting up a fight on the debate stage.

“The public knows who I am & what a successful Presidency I had, with Energy Independence, Strong Borders & Military, Biggest EVER Tax & Regulation Cuts, No Inflation, Strongest Economy in History, & much more,” Trump posted to Truth Social on Sunday. “I WILL THEREFORE NOT BE DOING THE DEBATES!”

Instead, the stage will be filled by at least seven candidates, all but one of whom – former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie – have never participated in a presidential debate before.

In addition to DeSantis, the lineup is expected to include entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), former South Carolina governor and Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and former Vice President Mike Pence.

While Trump may be gambling that his absence will result in fewer viewers tuning in to hear his lesser-known opponents introduce themselves to a nationwide audience, DeSantis spokesman Bryan Griffin said the former president’s decision to give the Milwaukee debate a miss indicates a lack of willingness to fight for the office lost to President Biden.

“Ron DeSantis will continue to blanket the early states, campaign hard, and bring his message and unparalleled conservative record everywhere because he knows this nomination must be earned,” Griffin said. “He will not be outworked and will put in the effort necessary to win the primary, bring Republicans together, and beat Joe Biden.

“We cannot afford to do anything less in this election cycle because so much is at stake if the Democrats win.”

No MAGA without Trump

Initially seen as a more electable version of Trump, conservative commentators said DeSantis would offer supporters of the 45th president’s Make America Great Again movement an alternative to the four-times-indicted Trump.

Instead, the MAGA base has largely remained dedicated to the man whose 2016 campaign slogan gave them their name, equating his GOP opponents to traitors – even booing them off stage.

“You don’t get Trump policies without the man,” Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) said last week on Donald Trump Jr.’s “Triggered” webcast. “Everybody running against him right now … are trying to sell people that ‘Oh, yeah, you liked those policies? You can get all of that but you know, you get somebody different in the top.’”

“No, you don’t get SpaceX without Elon, you don’t get Apple without Steve Jobs. And you don’t get border crime, Abraham Accords, Space Force … justice reform, tax reform – all of that [without Trump,]” he added.

If Trump is betting his MAGA base will carry him through to the election without winning over new supporters, he may not be wrong.

He’s dominated GOP polls since before election season even began, and is pulling more than 40 points ahead of DeSantis in the latest RealClearPolitics polling average.

“Voters recognize that President Trump is the only candidate who has a proven record of delivering results for the American people and the only candidate who ‘fights for people like me,’” the Trump campaign said in a statement on Sunday.

Still, DeSantis on Saturday said a political “movement can’t be about the personality of one individual,” but rather based in principle and on “what [you] are trying to achieve on behalf of the American people.”

Reaching a broader base

But as recent polls indicate that the majority of Americans say they “definitely” will not vote to return Trump to the White House, Trump loyalists may need to at least consider other candidates if they don’t want a re-run of the past three years under Biden.

With the elephant out of the room on Wednesday night, the inaugural 2024 GOP debate will offer ample opportunity.

“Ron DeSantis believes your trust should be earned and has the vision, plan and record to beat Joe Biden and reverse the decline of our country,” the governor’s campaign said. “That’s why Ron DeSantis will be showing up on Wednesday night to debate, and Donald Trump will not.”

The argument comes after Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel on Sunday highlighted the critical importance of independent and moderate voters to the 2024 election, urging GOP candidates to focus on beating Biden and use several key issues that would turn out more votes for the party.

“The average family has paid $10,000 more under Joe Biden, they’ve paid $2000 more in energy costs. Bidenomics is costing American families,” she told Fox News. “And they are hurting not just with that, [but] with fentanyl, with kids who still have deficits in school, with crime surging.”

“They are looking for a solution and this debate stage is going to give them that first glimpse of hope for 2024.”