President Joe Biden sought to boost Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Val Demings during an event in Florida on Tuesday, but Sunshine State Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis joked that Biden's move to campaign against him represents "an in-kind contribution" to his campaign.
DeSantis also quipped that his campaign would be willing to "underwrite" Biden to remain in the state for the remainder of the campaign, saying that if the president wants to stick around, "it'll be on our dime."
\u201c.@RonDeSantisFL \ud83d\udd25 response to Biden campaigning for @charliecrist in Florida today:\n\u201cI think it's an in-kind contribution to my campaign. I just want to make the offer public: we will underwrite him to stay in Florida for the rest of the campaign.\u201d \ud83d\udc40\ud83d\udc40\u201d— DeSantis War Room \ud83d\udc0a #FloridaStrong (@DeSantis War Room \ud83d\udc0a #FloridaStrong) 1667357138
Biden has been underwater in job approval polling for quite some time.
The Florida governor has become a popular figure on the political right who many view as a potential future GOP presidential contender. During a debate last month, Crist pressed DeSantis on whether he would serve for a full four-year term if he secures reelection as governor. DeSantis quipped that "the only worn out old donkey" he is seeking to "put out to pasture is Charlie Crist."
Democrats are aiming to cling to control of the House and Senate during the election contests around the nation next week.
Demings is running against incumbent Republican Sen. Marco Rubio.
Crist previously served as Florida governor from early 2007 through early 2011 after being elected to the role as a Republican. Crist lost the 2010 U.S. Senate race to Republican Marco Rubio while running as an independent. He later lost the 2014 Florida governor's race to incumbent Republican Gov. Rick Scott while running as a Democrat. Crist later served as a Democratic lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives but resigned from that job earlier this year as he focused on his gubernatorial run.
On the heels of his primary victory in August, Crist said that he did not want the votes of DeSantis supporters, and he accused the governor's backers of harboring hate within their hearts.
Charlie Crist speaks in St. Pete for first time since accepting Democratic nomination for governor youtu.be
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis actually laughed out loud at his Democratic opponent Charlie Crist's absurd claims about the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Crist accused DeSantis of being the "only governor in the history of Florida” to shut down schools and businesses, referring to a short period in 2020 when most of the country, including Florida, followed the Trump administration's early pandemic recommendations to "flatten the curve."
Crist — who was one of 13 Florida Democrats who sent a letter in July 2020 urging DeSantis to issue a statewide stay-at-home order — then turned around and accused DeSantis of not locking down long enough.
“It’s important to listen to science, to do what’s right, to utilize common sense. You don’t just shut down at the outset," he said, as DeSantis burst out laughing.
"And then when it's, you know, politically convenient for you, you want to open back up to score political points," Crist lamely finished.
On “The Rubin Report," BlazeTV host Dave Rubin spoke with Karol Markowicz, John Cardillo, and David Reaboi about the DeSantis-Crist debate and wondered: Was DeSantis laughing at the absurdity of Crist's contradictory claims, or did he know that his political opponent had just destroyed his own argument?
Watch the video clip below to catch the conversation. Can't watch? Download the podcast here.
To enjoy more honest conversations, free speech, and big ideas with Dave Rubin, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
In a recent debate between Florida’s gubernatorial candidates, Democrat Charlie Crist attempted to smear incumbent Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis as the “shutdown guy” in reference to his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. Never mind that it’s governors from Crist’s own party who still haven’t ended their Covid-19 states of emergency, while DeSantis reopened Florida a […]
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