Former President Donald Trump‘s 2024 election campaign lambasted Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) as a “thirsty, third-rate OnlyFans wannabe model” ahead of the governor’s Thursday night debate against Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA).
“Ron DeSanctimonious is acting more like a thirsty, third-rate OnlyFans wannabe model than an actual presidential candidate,” said Steven Cheung, a Trump spokesman, in a statement. “Instead of actually campaigning and trying to turn around his dismal poll numbers, DeSanctus is now so desperate for attention that he’s debating a Grade A loser like Gavin Newsom.”
DESANTIS GOES FOR ‘HAIL MARY’ IN HIGH-RISK DEBATE AGAINST NEWSOM
DeSantis squares off against Newsom at 9 p.m. Eastern on Fox News from Alpharetta, Georgia, with Fox News host Sean Hannity moderating the debate. The unusual debate with the California Democrat gives the Florida governor another chance outside of Republican National Committee-sanctioned primary debates to make his case to a friendly audience.
Unlike Trump, DeSantis has participated in all three previous GOP primary debates but is likely seeking free media attention in facing off against Newsom, a rising star in the Democratic Party. Yet, the former president’s campaign has taken to mocking the debate due to DeSantis’s troubles with decreasing poll numbers and internal struggles with his affiliated super PAC, Never Back Down.
“At the debate, Ron will flail his arms and bobble his head wildly, looking more like a San Francisco crackhead than the governor of Florida. This isn’t a prediction. It’s a spoiler,” Cheung continued. “Hopefully for Ron, it’s a seated debate so he won’t have to mash his foot into his high-heels to look taller. But if not, he’ll definitely be on a 12-inch step stool so he can peek right above the podium.”
Cheung’s comments referenced allegations DeSantis has worn height-enhancing cowboy boots on the campaign trail.
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Trump currently dominates his rivals in national surveys. A RealClearPolitics poll average shows Trump at 62%, DeSantis at 13.6%, and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley at 9.6%. The debate with Newsom comes less than seven weeks before the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses, which DeSantis is banking on winning to halt Trump’s march to the nomination.
DeSantis has the coveted endorsement of Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) and influential evangelical Iowa leader Bob Vander Plaats. However, a solid debate performance against Newsom could help give another boost to DeSantis ahead of next week’s fourth GOP debate in Alabama.
