Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

It is still almost two years before the next presidential election, but one would think after hearing from the so-called presidential contenders, the election is next week and that they need your vote. The current field of announced or those who may run include Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott(only Black candidate), and Mike Pence. But, no matter who decides to run, will have to face the biggest elephant in the room, that being Donald Trump. Despite the fact that Trump may be facing an indictment stemming from his legal issues with NY DA Letitia James and Georgia’s DA Fani Willis, Trump says that he will continue his campaign for a return trip to the White House. None of them despite what they are saying in public, do not want to see Trump in the race after watching him in 2016 and 2020 steamroll over his political opponents except for Joe Biden. In the meantime those contenders will be jockeying for position as to who will be the “front-runner should Trump somehow falter at the starting line. But in order for any of them to gain any kind of traction over their fellow contenders, they will have to speak to powerful conservative groups such as CPAC. The Conservative Political Action Conference is where the who’s who of conservatives often go to brainstorm ideas on ways to make life miserable for liberals through passing laws that they know will affect conservatives as well, but all of that is in the fine print that no one reads. But speaker after speaker will talk about “big government”, while at the same time will subtly inject ideas into the minds of conservative politicians who control the state legislature, where the government becomes even bigger. And nowhere is that more apparent in what Ron DeSantis is doing in Florida.

DeSantis is seen by an increasing number of conservatives to be Trump’s main adversary vying for the 2024 Republican presidential nominee. While Trump is already out there telling the base what he will do to make America even better, DeSantis goes around writing books. His book, “The Courage To Be Free” may be a best-seller, but after hearing from critics, there was nothing inspirational in the book about the man that attracted conservatives like “The Art Of The Deal”. DeSantis choose not to speak at CPAC, perhaps an opportunity squandered or maybe he isn’t ready to be in the same room with Donald Trump. Perhaps he isn’t ready to face the barrage of questions that he knows are coming, knowing that he can’t stand behind spokespersons forever to speak for him. DeSantis is not ready for Trump, even though he knows that Trump is like a bull in a china shop, with no tact, charm, pardon or excuse me when someone is on his radar screen. DeSantis is not only on Trump’s radar screen but on every screen in the nation because of his anti-wokeness campaign to woe in conservative voters. DeSantis in essence is controlling Florida, doing just about everything that the wants. He took on the famous Disney corporation because executives would not go along with DeSantis’ “don’t say” bill that attacked CRT and teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation in certain grade levels. DeSantis got the Florida legislature to pass a bill that took control away from Disney to manage its own business affairs that is now under DeSantis’ control.

DeSantis is clearly showing conservatives how he would run America should he become president. He is not saying anything just yet, trying to be coy hoping that Trump will drop the ball, as he picks up the ball and leads the Republican party to a win in 2024. In other words, DeSantis is trying to get into the White House by coming in through the back door. He wants to be visible enough for his name to be mentioned in the media without making a commitment unless the political winds start to blow in his face. Being anti-woke will take DeSantis only so far, as the longer Trump can be a factor, DeSantis will have to show not only conservatives that he is their man, but also those independent voters who more than often vote with Democrats. One other thing, DeSantis can forget about trying to convince voters that the election will be stolen from him, just as Trump did. DeSantis is no Mike Pence, saying words where he straddles the line. He is not Black, not a woman and except for being governor, he doesn’t exactly stand out in the crowd. Florida is conservative, as the idea of him having his way with conservative lawmakers is a no-brainer. His biggest test will come when he has to face Trump whether face-to-face verbally in the media or in the physical sense, DeSantis must show that he is more than Trump if he is to be the leader of the Republican Party. As of right now, DeSantis is “Trump lite”. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.