{"id":587652,"date":"2023-08-19T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-19T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/desantis-rivals-sharpen-knives-for-first-debate\/"},"modified":"2023-08-19T13:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-08-19T10:00:00","slug":"desantis-rivals-sharpen-knives-for-first-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/desantis-rivals-sharpen-knives-for-first-debate\/","title":{"rendered":"#DeSantis rivals sharpen knives for first debate"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/08\/desantisron_081823getty_desantis.jpeg?w=900\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is heading into next week\u2019s pivotal GOP primary debate with a target on his back.<\/p>\n<p>While still regarded as the most competitive GOP alternative to former President Trump, DeSantis has seen his numbers slip in some polls while other candidates, like businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), have <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>eared to close the gap.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr1_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>And with Trump signaling that he\u2019s likely to skip the debate, DeSantis is staring down a critical moment in his campaign as he takes the stage with at least a half-dozen other candidates who want to knock him from his second-place perch.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe debate should be an opportunity to take on the frontrunner, but if Trump doesn\u2019t show, then Gov. DeSantis is the frontrunner on that stage,\u201d said GOP donor Dan Eberhart. \u201cHe\u2019s going to have to be prepared to fend off attacks from the rest of the field.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a smart strategic move by Trump,\u201d Eberhart added. \u201cHe knows Gov. DeSantis is his most serious challenger. This is a way to let others bruise DeSantis for him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, The New York Times reported on a memo from the pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down, which called for DeSantis to go after Ramaswamy directly during the debate and defend Trump in the face of attacks from Christie.<\/p>\n<p>The memo reportedly called for DeSantis to take a \u201csledgehammer\u201d to Ramaswamy by calling him \u201cFake Vivek\u201d or \u201cVivek the Fake.\u201d The document also prepped DeSantis for what to do in the likely scenario that Christie launches an attack against Trump.\u00a0Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) was also reportedly mentioned.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The debate comes as other candidates have started to gain traction against DeSantis in public and internal polling.\u00a0The New York Times reported that an internal poll seen in the memo showed Ramaswamy surging in New Hampshire. Meanwhile, an Emerson College Polling survey released earlier this week showed Christie neck and neck with DeSantis there.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr2_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Strategists note that the fight for second place is especially important in case Trump doesn\u2019t end up on the ballot in the face of his mounting legal troubles. The former president is facing charges in two federal cases, as well as in state cases in New York and Georgia.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The trial dates for the cases are still being hammered out and Trump\u2019s campaign is full-steam ahead, but strategists say campaigns are fully aware that this is unchartered territory.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt this stage, I think the DeSantis campaign\u2019s biggest concern is the rest of the field catching DeSantis because at this point, Trump is a runaway frontrunner but there are some permutations and combinations of things that can happen to him legally,\u201d said Ford O\u2019Connell, a Florida-based Republican strategist. \u201cYou want to be in the position where if Trump\u2019s not the Republican nominee, you\u2019re the Republican nominee.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr3_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>DeSantis\u2019s campaign maintains that the GOP primary is still a two-person race.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMore money has been spent attacking Ron DeSantis than either the current or former president combined, and we fully expect the candidates at the debate to primarily come after Ron DeSantis because he is the greatest threat to every other Republican primary contender,\u201d said DeSantis campaign press secretary Bryan Griffin. \u201cThis primary is a\u00a0two-man\u00a0race, but only Ron DeSantis can beat Joe Biden and implement the agenda we need to reverse this country\u2019s decline and revive its future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The DeSantis campaign said Thursday that it was not aware of the memo. Legally, campaigns and super PACs cannot directly coordinate with each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr4_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Eberhart, a DeSantis donor, echoed the campaign and argued the memo was not out of the ordinary.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything that unique about the advice in the memo\u2026\u201d Eberhart said. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty standard advice to stick to your message and don\u2019t get dragged into the mud by a bunch of tier-three challengers trying to get a second of airtime.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe DeSantis team is concerned about every candidate in the field, as they should be,\u201d he continued. \u201cTrump may be in the lead right now, but Gov. DeSantis is clearly in second place and the candidate most likely to be the nominee. Everyone is going to be trying.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr5_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Ramaswamy has seen a surge in name ID as well as growth in the polls, which was unthinkable prior to him jumping into the race earlier this year as a virtually unknown candidate. According to the Real Clear Politics polling average, DeSantis comes in second place at 14.8 percent, and Ramaswamy clocks in third at 6.9 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>O\u2019Connell said the memo was on the right track in targeting Ramaswamy, pointing to the fact that he hasn\u2019t faced that many attacks since getting into the race.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVivek is largely undefined,\u201d O\u2019Connell said. \u201cA lot of people let Vivek say whatever he wanted and it\u2019s sort of gaining a little traction and threatening Ron\u2019s hold on the second-place narrative.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr6_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>\u201cIn all fairness to Vivek, I think he is the flavor of the moment and I think as more people learn about him, he may not make the jump,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Scott, on the other hand, could also be a threat given his fundraising prowess and donor connections. DeSantis and Scott swiped at each other last month over the controversy surrounding Florida\u2019s Black history standards. However, Scott has not gained a ton of traction in the polls.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTim Scott is someone who could eventually be a concern down the road,\u201d O\u2019Connell said. \u201cIt\u2019s really hard to attack Tim Scott so therefore you don\u2019t want to attack Tim Scott until he starts to show signs of momentum.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr7_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Christie\u2019s campaign has been described by many as a \u201ckamikaze mission\u201d to take out the former president in the primary. While he\u2019s still far from being a top-tier candidate, the Emerson poll shows that he could have an impact on the race in the Granite State.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChris Christie\u2019s job is to dissuade people from voting for Trump,\u201d O\u2019Connell said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou get a twofer with Chris Christie,\u201d he said. \u201cYou whack Chris Christie because Chris Christie is the old Republican Party and without coming out and saying it, you\u2019re actually defending Donald Trump, which puts you in the good graces of Trump voters. They\u2019re trying to triangulate off of Christie.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Friday, the Times reported that Trump plans to skip Wednesday\u2019s debate and sit down for an interview with conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson instead. An aide to the former president told The Hill that his campaign \u201chadn\u2019t confirmed anything on our end\u201d and cautioned against \u201cgetting too far ahead\u201d in terms of Trump\u2019s plans.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of whether Trump shows or not, the debate is clearly a high-stakes moment for the Florida governor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s about making sure the rest of the field doesn\u2019t catch you,\u201d O\u2019Connell said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of the mode you\u2019re in if you\u2019re DeSantis right now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Copyright 2023 Nexstar <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Media<\/a> Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/4159361-desantis-rivals-sharpen-knives-for-first-debate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is heading into next week\u2019s pivotal GOP primary debate with a target on his back. While still regarded as the most competitive GOP alternative to former President Trump, DeSantis has seen his numbers slip in some polls while other candidates, like businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":587653,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/08\/desantisron_081823getty_desantis.jpeg?w=1280","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[4941,144768,29102],"class_list":["post-587652","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-donald-trump","tag-gop-debate","tag-ron-desantis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/587652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=587652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/587652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/587653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=587652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=587652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=587652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}