COVID-19 could be DeSantis’s secret weapon against Trump in 2024

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) could ride his pandemic response to the 2024 Republican nomination over former President Donald Trump — if primary voters still have COVID-19 on their minds.

DeSantis’s attitude to the virus, and his reluctance of locking down Florida’s beaches or businesses, helped propel him to national prominence within the GOP.

Trump, on the other hand, made Dr. Anthony Fauci initially the face of the pandemic response. He followed most of his recommendations for 2020, though the former president became more upset at the economic restrictions throughout the year.

BIDEN’S GAY MARRIAGE ‘EPIHANY’ STORY CONTRADICTED BY THE HISTORIC RECORD

“It is an edge on Trump,” Club for Growth President David McIntosh addressed the Washington Examiner. “Trump closed down the economy and had economic decline as a result. … Ron can say, ‘No, I looked at the health data … and I said, I’m not going to close things. And look at how good it is in Florida.'”

The DeSantis team understands this to be a benefit. A DeSantis spokesperson responded to a question about how Florida’s governor compared with President Joe Biden last year. DeSantis said this in a statement to the Washington Examiner, “utilized a freedom first, common sense approach to policy and decision-making. The people of Florida’s life and livelihood come first.”

“When others locked people down, Florida lifted people up,” The statement was concluded. “Florida followed data and science but refused to make policy decisions based on fear. Florida protected jobs, businesses, families, and education, and freedom.”

“COVID is one reason why DeSantis is a stronger opponent against Biden than Trump is,” Brad Todd is a Republican consultant. “For Trump, going back to COVID reminds swing voters that he was unpredictable. For DeSantis, going back to COVID paints a strong contrast with Biden’s kowtowing to the teachers unions and deceptive health bureaucrats.”

The supporters of a DeSantis candidacy are still optimistic. They claim that Florida had a lower rate of the virus-related mortality than other blue states. Some Republican primary voters demand a reckoning of officials who shut down schools and businesses.

“If you compare like California to Florida, age-adjusted COVID mortality were about the same,” DeSantis stated last year.

Trump was clearly defeated by the pandemic in 2020. Trump’s strongest argument for reelection was interrupted by the lockdowns. It seemed to end the patience of independents for unorthodox leadership.

Exit polls show that COVID-19 was the top issue for voters in Biden’s victory. He won voters who believed it was more important to combat the virus than to reopen America’s economy by 60 votes and those who identified healthcare policy as their top priority at 25 by 25 votes.

Democrats believe history will repeat itself.

“COVID could play a role in the outcome of the 2024 campaign because former President Donald Trump is a candidate, and the plague defines Trump’s presidency,” Brad Bannon, a Democratic strategist, said. “Trump could be caught in the crossfire over COVID. Damned because he did and damned because he didn’t.”

According to this view, Trump’s pandemic will remain a significant liability in both the primaries as well as the general election.

“The theme of the DeSantis campaign is freedom, which means the governor might attack the former president for the restrictions he placed on Americans during the pandemic,” Bannon said. “Conversely, Biden might pummel Trump for failing to take aggressive action that could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives from the ravages of the deadly disease.”

Some observers seemed to be confused by the position of the former president on the virus.

“Trump has been unable to figure out how to talk about COVID in a consistent way that helps him, almost from the start,” Todd stated. “However, elections are mostly contested in the future, not in the past, and it will not be the driver for any candidate’s platform.”

Republicans would prefer to move beyond old controversies.

“The biggest thing is looking forward. COVID is over,” According to a GOP strategist. “It can inform biography and philosophy, but fighting over specific things during 2020 is a loser.”

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

However, it’s one issue of many that allowed DeSantis to go from needing to recount to win the governorship in 2018, to being reelected with a near 20-point margin last year. This is why he was able to launch a top-tier presidential candidate campaign just months into his second term. It also shows that he has the potential to get to Trump’s right.

“DeSantis came out of COVID stronger,” Another Republican strategist stated the following: “Not many people can say that.”