This. Trump won not because he made the libs mad, but because he did it in a way that allowed the deplorables to join in the fun. Deplorables loved Trump rallies where they all got to yell at the libs and where Trump recounted his stories that they knew would trigger the libs. DeSantis just can’t capture that (nor can Ted Cruz which is why he fell so flat against Trump).
This. The country club Republicans who turn up their nose at Trump LOVE DeSantis. I hear “I hope DeSantis runs” almost every session I play, and his supporters run the gamut of race and religion.
Yup, he can stump about how he’s fucking over Disney, and smirk. How he triggered the libs over COVID, and smirk.
People also know he got stuff done in Florida and turned it into a COVID denier’s freedom-filled paradise.
Yeah it’s a very narrow lane. My guess is that he tries to position himself to keep Trump from running, but if Trump runs he’ll probably stay positive and issue-oriented and say nice things about Trump and just say he wants to take it even farther. He could hit him on the vaxx, perhaps.
The laws piss off the libs, make marginalized people suffer, and enshrine extreme freedumbs. The base loves that shit. The base doesn’t care about nuanced healthcare policy, but “Don’t Say Gay,” is a winner. He keeps it simple and obvious.
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lol I was gonna make the pre-emptive SSC joke but decided against it. I mean are we going with the assumption that there’s zero chance of legit elections ever again? Or just that there’s no scenario where Trump fucks things up so badly in a second term that he makes the party radioactive for a while? (Spoiler: there are plenty.)
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It’s a huge risk though and one that solely depends on staying on Trump’s good side for 4 years. As a governor you can try to stay on Trump’s good side but back it up with your own strategy of building your base as well.
That’s the rub. What’s a bigger risk: coming for the king and missing, or the tides turning against fascism in the period where you’re waiting? IMO it’s definitely the former. I would looooooooove to see a knock-down drag-out between Trump and DeSantis because I think it harms them both and permanently wounds DeSantis. But I think DeSantis is too smart for that and will remain aligned with Trumpism without getting too close. Being Trump’s VP is way too risky.
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There is also the risk of going up against Trump and getting cucked like Jeb or Cruz.
I also think you are underestimating the effects of the riggage.
This is true in theory, but we still have to find an actual person who DeSantis couldn’t beat (assuming he doesn’t take VP, which I don’t think he should). I think he beats anyone that Trump picks as VP including Ivanka. Don Jr. might be the toughest.
i just cannot agree that’s a policy wonk. attaching his public image to an ivermectin hawking surgeon general, and taking a billion of disneyworld debt to own the kids and their woke parents isn’t a policy, and i flat out cannot call any elected repub a wonk anymore.
It’s just bad policy but it’s still policy.
The difference, as pointed out earlier, is the only important part of the policy is the title as the base doesn’t pay any attention beyond that.
He is certainly not a Jed Bartlett policy wonk. 
He is a policy wonk relative to Trump though. Donnie Dumb Dumb cannot comprehend anything beyond “Donnie Dumb Dumb is President, what President says people have to do, Donnie Dumb Dumb is big boss man!” DeSantis can actually understand the idea of writing a law or regulation and not ruling by decree.
yeah he 100% knows what the boomers in Iowa care about RIGHT THIS MINUTE and is getting that shit DONE within hours.
owning the disney execs might have been called a policy within his political committee, but taking on the special district debt was likely not in the plan. hence, my stance
stop shifting the wonkness overton window!
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Trump’s VP is for Tulsi or Nikki or Sheriff Joe—a fringe contender for 2028.
It’s this. Governor Fuckface in Virginia is another recent example of that.
I think we basically agree.
VP’s rarely advance to the Presidency
15/49 have so not a terrible ratio
as a republican, ghwb and before that ford and nixon? oof
Only six were actually elected there, though. And three of them were among the first eight presidents.
Starting as Trump’s VP in 2024 you’ve gotta have at least 10 points of death equity. Plus maybe like 2 points of SSC/WGH equity. And perhaps 5 more points that Trump manages to get a third term and then dies.
And if you’ve got a 1/4 shot on top of that to win a 2028 election, you’re almost a coin flip to be prez at some point.