Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis seeks to leverage his close relationship with his popular counterpart in Iowa to make up ground on former President Donald Trump in one of the first states to vote next year.
At a campaign stop in Iowa on Saturday, DeSantis denounced Trump for trashing the state’s GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds and other conservatives for insufficiently “kissing his rump.”
“Donald Trump will attack good, strong conservatives like Kim Reynolds because he thinks that advances him,” said DeSantis.
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“Republican voters do not want to see attacks against strong governors like Kim Reynolds. There’s no reason to do that. It’s not about you. It’s about the greater good. She has delivered results for Iowa. She has been a leader that has been able to enact a lot of great policy.”
“There’s no reason to be taking potshots,” DeSantis continued, “but I think it’s another indication that Trump views everything through the lens of him — that if you’re kissing his rump, you’re great. If you’re not, then he’s gonna attack you.”
“That’s not leadership,” DeSantis added. “Leadership is about what you can do for the people you represent.”
Trump has been feuding with Reynolds throughout this year primarily because she has not formally endorsed any candidate in the GOP primary.
As he has done with DeSantis, Trump claimed back in July that his endorsement saved Reynolds from defeat in her first election in 2018.
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Reynolds then took exception to Trump’s comments last month when he criticized abortion bans at six weeks, as were enacted by both Desantis and Reynolds this year. Trump told conservative journalist Megyn Kelly that such laws were a “terrible thing” and a “terrible mistake.”
Although officially neutral, Reynolds has appeared with DeSantis at several events. In July, DeSantis said he would consider Reynolds as a vice presidential pick, if he becomes the nominee.
In June, Governing magazine noted what DeSantis was referring to about Reynolds’ policy wins.
In addition to the six-week abortion ban, Reynolds in this term has enacted a ban on transgender procedures for children, mandated that students must use the public restroom of their biological sex, removed books from school libraries that contain sexual content, approved a flat state income tax that cut the top rate from 8.9% to 3.9% by 2026, and signed a bill to reduce property taxes by $100 million and cap what local governments can charge for property taxes.
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