Donald Trump headed to Iowa on Monday for a campaign rally and to give everyone a taste of what they are going to hear from him over the next year or so.
I would suggest that his team change it up a bit because the feedback was not exactly positive.
The speech was supposed to be about his education platform, but it turned into a DeSantis bashing speech as well as touting some of his accomplishment when he was in office in 2016.
It was also no surprise that he continued to talk about the alleged fraud in the 2020 election.
Start Looking Forward
I can flat out tell you, this speech is not going to work. Trump needs to look forward, not back, and he simply is incapable of letting the 2020 election go.
Trump stated, “What they do to those machines — what they’re doing, our country is really being hurt very badly.”
The crowd ate it up, but they are not the people that Trump needs to reach. He needs to create curiosity outside of his little bubble, but he really does not seem to care about that.
Then he went off on DeSantis, stating, “You have to remember, Ron was a disciple of Paul Ryan, who is a RINO loser who currently is destroying Fox [News] and would constantly vote against entitlements.
“But Ryan, Paul Ryan is a big reason Mitt Romney … lost his election. And to be honest with you, Ron reminds me a lot of Mitt Romney, so I don’t think you’re going to be doing so well here.”
So, let me take you back to August 5, 2016. This is Trump on Paul Ryan…
"So, in our shared mission to make America great again, I support and endorse our speaker of the House, Paul Ryan. He's a good man.” (NPR)
Trump loved these guys until they started to push back against him, or, in DeSantis’ position, became a threat to him becoming president again. Trump always touts loyalty, but he will go for your throat the second you are of no service to him any longer.
Then Trump put out a video going after DeSantis, where he stated, "For those of you that didn't notice, Florida was doing great long before Ron DeSanctus got there. People are fleeing from New York to Florida and other places because of high taxes and out-of-control crime. It's really bad. Not because of the Governor,” according to Fox News.
"Florida was doing fantastically. You had a governor named Rick Scott who did a very good job. Even Charlie Crist, a Democrat, did a good job, but he had very good numbers.
"Sunshine and ocean are very alluring. It's not too hard to work with those factors. So just remember Florida was doing really well long before Ron DeSanctus got there."
The push back on this was immediate.
Seth Weathers, the CEO of Freedom Speaks Up, stated, "Whoever helped Trump create this (even if you’re a friend of mine), should be fired. Also, Trump should fire himself for participating in this."
Grabien founder Tom Elliott, added, "Remember when your administration was mad DeSantis re-opened Fla. during Covid?"
The comments went on and on, mostly from people that used to support Trump.
Trump is panicking, plain and simple. He has seen a 50 point lead disappear down to single digits in some polls, and he knows he is behind in some key states for the primary race.
Do you know why that is? Because he cannot let go of 2020 and all he talks about is himself rather than what he will do for the people of this country. He has this incessant need to slap himself on the back because nobody else will do it anymore.
His campaign is dying. That does not mean he will not win the nomination because he will if it is a crowded field, but I still do not see a path from him beating anyone in a general election if he keeps this up.
He has to pivot, and his diehard supporters need to stop defending him and get the message through that this is not working if he expects to draw in new voters.
Remember Trump supporters, he has your vote, we know that, but your vote alone will not win him a general election. He has to lure in new voters and if he stays on this path, he will have an embarrassing loss.
