DeSantis vetting process begins in earnest as Ukraine comments scrutinized

The vetting of Ron DeSantis has begun.

The Florida Republican governor made claims about the war in Ukraine earlier this week that have sharply divided opinion among Republicans, with pundits digging through his words in a detailed search for meaning.

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“While the U.S. has many vital national interests — securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness within our military, achieving energy security and independence, and checking the economic, cultural, and military power of the Chinese Communist Party,” DeSantis wrote. “Becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them.”

Those two statements, calling the war a “territorial dispute” that isn’t a “vital national interest,” invited scores of opposition from Senate Republicans and GOP presidential candidates.

Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) all have “completely” disagreed with DeSantis, with Graham telling CNN that “to say this doesn’t matter is to say war crimes don’t matter.” Meanwhile, White House hopeful Nikki Haley accused the Florida governor of copying former President Donald Trump.

“Republicans deserve a choice, not an echo,” Haley said in a statement.

DeSantis’s comments were revealed Monday on Tucker Carlson Tonight in response to a questionnaire Carlson sent to all announced and prospective Republican presidential candidates. The governor’s comments contrasted with those of Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence but mostly aligned with Trump.

In his responses to Carlson, DeSantis said he opposes forced regime change in Russia, opined that the war is drawing Russia closer to China, and attacked President Joe Biden‘s “blank check” payments to Ukraine and “as long as it takes” slogan.

The comments split conservative pundits, with headlines in National Review ranging from “Ron DeSantis Gets Ukraine Wrong” to “Questions for Ron DeSantis on Russia and Ukraine” to “DeSantis’s Ukraine Statement Was Careful Electoral Politics, and That’s a Good Thing.”

A Gallup poll released Monday suggested that the view is unpopular with registered Republicans. Of those polled, 60% said Russia’s military power is a “critical threat to the U.S.” In contrast, 50% of independents and 45% of Democrats answered likewise.

DeSantis claims in his book, The Courage to be Free, that he has rejected polling as governor.

But Republican strategist John Feehery described the issue as being 50/50 based on polling he’s seen, making it more of a toss-up, and said it’s likely a win for DeSantis to be out of step with Washington Republicans.

“This positions DeSantis as an outsider/populist, so it would make him a natural heir to the Trump MAGA mantle should Trump falter,” he said. “The fact that many Republican senators who are closely associated with the political establishment are criticizing him is probably a net positive for DeSantis.”

Phil Sears/AP

And while Pence and Haley shared harsh words, DeSantis denied Trump the opportunity to attack him, something the former president has tried repeatedly and DeSantis has mostly sidestepped.

David Carney, a New Hampshire-based GOP strategist, said DeSantis might prove to be ahead of the curve on public opinion.

“If Biden continues to bumble around on framing this as a national challenge, it might benefit those who are taking a more isolationist position,” Carney said. “Pundits who claim to know how this issue or that issue will impact the primaries next year are full of s***. The competition’s issues and standing and the issue environment in January of next year will determine how these positions might play. “

Some have argued that while the tone of DeSantis’s comments differs sharply from Biden’s, the extent of their policy differences may not be so vast. When the governor previously said Ukraine shouldn’t receive a blank check, Heritage Foundation research fellow Victoria Coates described the statement as common sense.

But the controversy may signal that any honeymoon period DeSantis enjoyed with Republican primary voters is over.

DeSantis made his name largely on fighting pandemic restrictions and promoting culture war battles over education and “woke” politics, which his social media accounts have stayed focused on since the Ukraine controversy erupted.

When asked about the Ukraine row, a DeSantis spokesperson said the governor’s words speak for themselves.

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As DeSantis creeps ever closer to an official White House run, his words will be watched more and more closely as voters look for clues to his vision.

“Over the last four years, DeSantis has not only been able to pick his issues, he has been able to create his own issues such as the war on drag queens,” said University of Central Florida professor Jim Clark. “Now, he is facing a new set of questions, and how he handles them will determine the fate of his campaign.”