Ron DeSantis said rival Donald Trump was “calling in” from Mar-a-Lago as he returned to Iowa's icy roads to meet with supporters still emerging from a blizzard, with biting winds and subzero temperatures .
“We're not stopping. I have my winter coat. We have other layers. “I know it’s going to get colder,” DeSantis told his supporters after speaking to a crowd of supporters in Council Bluffs.
“We’re there, we’re coming over.” Donald Trump called. He'll be at Mar-a-Lago. “It’s probably 75 degrees there,” he blurted out. “We will be talking in subzero temperatures and making the case to Iowa voters Monday night,” he said.
It was a cold, frontal attack on the front-runner that DeSantis is said to have taken leisurely during a campaign in which he trails the former president by more than 30 points in pre-cause polls.
He also accused Trump of championing “his issues” and said his focus would be on 2020, not the future. “If he is nominated, the focus will be on the legal issues.” “The convictions of criminals on January 6 play into the hands of the Democrats,” he said.
DeSantis was back on the trail despite warnings of dangerous conditions after a snowstorm hit the state. His top supporters looked to the sky, searching for metaphors to fire up his followers.
Ron DeSantis said his rival Donald Trump was “calling from Mar-a-Lago” after Trump canceled planned Saturday events and DeSantis had a number of events planned
“It's minus 40 degrees, are you ready to go?” Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis told a crowd of DeSantis supporters in Council Bluffs.
“There are some challenges out there. It will be quite cold. “But we are tough, resilient Iowans, we care about this country,” Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has endorsed DeSantis, told a crowd visiting the Florida governor.
“We have to be safe. Layer it up. And if you show up, he’ll be the winner Monday night,” she said.
DeSantis pointed to his roots in the Sunshine State but said the bitter weather could present an opportunity for his campaign, where polls show him trailing far behind Donald Trump.
“Look, it won’t be easy. Wind chill of minus 20 degrees, minus 30 degrees. I've never been in temperatures like that – even for people who grew up in the Midwest, it's significant,” he said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was back on the campaign trail Saturday after holding two events on Friday.
“But you have the opportunity to brave these elements.” “Go to a rally and you'll never have the chance to have your vote count as much,” he told a crowd of about 50 supporters at the Grass Wagon, the event center in Council Bluffs.
“You’re going to have so much power,” he told them.
“We don’t know how many people will attend. “It will be a relatively small number considering that the future of our country is at stake,” he added.
DeSantis, who arrived from Des Moines on Saturday morning, sought and received campaign props.
“I'm a boy from Florida.” Born and bread. And yet here I have sub-zero temperatures. “I’m not going to cancel, if people are willing to come out and hear from me, I’ll show up,” he said.
Former President Donald Trump is scrapping planned events in Iowa on Saturday and part of Sunday amid a snowstorm and freezing wind chill forecasts. He said at the Iowa caucuses on Monday: “Maybe that's a good thing, because our people are more committed than anyone else.”
“You'll see me everywhere.” “You have to earn the vote,” he said.
He was in the midst of starting a Friday pitch, putting together a last-minute event, even after rival Nikki Haley scrubbed her event and posted it online.
“We can handle the snow even though we are a campaign based in Florida,” DeSantis said at a meeting with his supporters in Des Moines.
On Friday evening, Trump's campaign team announced that he was canceling his Saturday events.
“One way or another, I'm getting there,” Trump told his supporters in a video message to Iowa residents from West Palm Beach, where temperatures were mild in his hometown. “They have arguably the worst weather in history,” Trump added.
Then Trump shifted the political implications amid much media speculation about who would benefit. “But maybe that's a good thing because our people are more dedicated than anyone else, so maybe it's actually a good thing for us,” he said.
He planned to fly to Des Moines Saturday evening. “It's going to be a bit of a hike.” “Nobody knows exactly how we're going to get there,” he said.
As he addressed his supporters, DeSantis took a few shots at Trump over his comments on COVID during a Fox News town hall on Wednesday.
“Donald Trump always bragged about shutting down the largest economy in the world.” He said he shut it down and saved all those lies. … Now he’s saying the opposite,” DeSantis said.
“He basically said, 'Oh, I'm a Federalist, I have nothing to do with Fauci,'” DeSantis said. “And then he blamed me for Fauci,” he said, criticizing the NIH infectious disease expert.
“Literally, I was the one selling Dump Fauci T-shirts for this thing.” He said Trump was “just trying to gaslight people.”
“He thinks you're stupid.” “He doesn't think you can tell that what he's saying is completely wrong,” he ranted.