‘No Substitute for Victory’: DeSantis Calls on Conservatives to Wield Their Political Power

OXON HILL, Md.—American conservatives must accept no substitute for real political victories and must not refrain from wielding real power to achieve those victories, according to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The failure of many Republicans to effectively wield power to achieve conservative goals cannot be allowed to continue, DeSantis said at an April 21 leadership summit in Maryland hosted by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

“In Florida, we deliver big victories every single day,” DeSantis said. “We reject the culture of losing that has infected the Republican Party in recent years. … We know there is no substitute for victory.”

Widely considered a likely presidential contender, DeSantis’s speech focused on all the hallmarks expected of such an aspirant.

To that end, DeSantis outlined a long list of political victories achieved by his administration in Florida, which he promoted as a blueprint not for the Republican Party only, but for conservative values themselves.

“We’ve really become the beating heart of the conservative movement in America,” DeSantis said.

“Florida has been a refuge for those fleeing leftists state and local governments.”

‘Winning’

DeSantis’s speech repeatedly focused on the qualities a leader needed to run a successful administration and continue, in his words, “winning.”

DeSantis said that he had developed experience building a cadre of people in his administration “who share the vision” of a conservative future, and lamented the prevalence of Republicans he considered to be “potted plants,” who sat in offices without asserting real power in order to achieve lasting political victories.

Possibly alluding to a national-level campaign, DeSantis underscored his track record of using his executive power in Florida to “pursue a conservative agenda,” and derided the social media-centric political campaigns prevalent to many other politicians, including former President Donald Trump.

“Politics isn’t about entertainment. It isn’t about building the brand on social media,” DeSantis said.

“Politics is about producing results.”

Florida, he said, offered a blueprint for the conservative movement in how to effectively wield power while suppressing the malignant influences that eroded other administrations from the inside.

“We’ve been able to operate an administration that does not get involved in any drama or palace intrigue,” DeSantis said. “We execute the mission every single day.”