Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is shadowboxing while former President Donald Trump is going in for the knock-out punch even before the fight officially begins.
The contrasting styles of the leading contenders in the 2024 Republican presidential primary race were evident in speeches on successive nights before the 2023 North Carolina Republican Convention.
While DeSantis alluded to Trump without mentioning the former president’s name during his 45-minute address June 9 in the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, North Carolina, Trump went after the governor by name—several names actually, including “DeSanctimonious” and “DeSanctis”—during his 90-minute speech the following night.
“He’s heading south quickly, no personality. You got have a personality to win,” Trump said, referring to polls that put him far ahead of DeSantis and the other 10 declared GOP presidential hopefuls….