JOE RAEDLE/Getty Images via AFP
Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis at a meeting in Estero, Florida, in October 2018
UNITED STATES – May the ‘best’ win? Republican Ron DeSantis will officially start the race for the White House this Wednesday, May 24, but not just like that. The Florida governor has scheduled an exchange on Twitter Space, a space for oral discussions on the social network, that will take place with Elon Musk in person.
The exchange will take place at 6:00 pm Washington time, midnight in France, and will be moderated by Republican businessman David Sacks. “This is the first time we’ve experienced something like this on a social network,” said Elon Musk, who also announced in November that he would support Ron DeSantis in the next presidential election.
This candidacy is eagerly awaited by Republicans who are looking for an alternative to Donald Trump. And that’s a good thing, because that’s what Ron DeSantis is talking about. As part of this announcement, the governor stages his opposition, even his duel, with the former head of state. Worse, for a reason that served him throughout his presidency and beyond.
Under the Sun by Elon Musk
With Twitter’s choice, it’s not so much Elon Musk – who is taking a stand against any sponsorship with this interview – who is championing DeSantis, but rather the opposite. Since he bought the social network, moderation has dropped drastically under the worried eyes of European authorities, users banned for hateful, conspiracy or violent language have been reinstated in the name of freedom of expression… And, as the New York Times doesn’t forget, of course, it’s Twitter that former Fox News host Tucker Carlson has decided to launch his new show. Enough to make the Tesla boss a harbinger of the Conservatives.
In addition, after a survey, Elon Musk decided to rehabilitate Donald Trump’s account, even though he had never set foot on Twitter. If the businessman claims to have voted for Biden in 2020, there was some proximity to Turmp. The split between the two seems to have happened a year ago, when the new Twitter boss said it was time for the former president to “hang up”.
“The Florida governor will finally enter the race by provoking ex-President Donald Trump, and with a launch strategy that portrays him as the true anti-establishment rebel… DeSantis is demonstratively attacking the media’s traditional methods used by them “He’s willing to sidestep standard presidential campaign practices,” notes CNN analyst Stephen Collinson. Especially since Elon Musk, who denies any sponsorship, promises “real-time questions and answers without a script”.
DeSantis offline?
But if, like Trump in 2016, you want to embody change and disruption, be careful not to be more royalist than the king. The former president’s advisors don’t hesitate to point out DeSantis’ form and lack of charisma. “Announcing his candidacy on Twitter is perfect for DeSantis. That way he doesn’t have to interact with anyone,” one of Donald Trump’s advisers told AFP. “This is one of the most disjointed campaign starts in modern history,” Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for Make America Great Again, the pro-Trump group, told the New York Times.
“The problem with DeSantis is that he needs a personality transplant,” recently scoffed Donald Trump, who months ago confirmed his candidacy for the 2024 US presidential election.
Shake consumed but not too much. Shortly after his announcement on Twitter, Ron DeSantis will meet Fox News for an interview and there is also talk of airing numerous commercials. Above all, Twitter should therefore be an opportunity to create a small event to try to restart an upward momentum. The challenge for the former Trump protégé is also to pick up points in the polls, as he trails his main rival after his triumphant re-election in November 2022.
The other professed Republican candidates — Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Asa Hutchinson — seldom get more than 5% of voting intentions these days. The winner of these primary elections will face the candidate chosen by the Democratic Party – most likely Joe Biden – in November 2024.
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