Recent opinion polling shows Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to trail former President Donald Trump, with the former recently referred to as a “dead frog” by former Senator Claire McCaskill.
Well before the recent numbers that show Trump continues to lead, and prior to DeSantis' most recent failures, California Gov. Gavin Newsom had been stepping up his criticism of DeSantis, condemning his counterpart's gun policy, and calling the Florida governor's signing of a gun rights bill “shameful,” according to Politico.
“And then they claim to care about life when the number one cause of death for our children is guns?” he asked while appearing on MSNBC’s “Inside With Jen Psaki” on April 9.
What Newsom Said: Just a week after another mass school shooting, that time at Covenant School in Nashville, DeSantis signed a bill to allow Floridians to carry guns without a permit. The Florida governor declared that “Constitutional Carry is in the books,” in a press release that followed his signing of the legislation.
At the time, DeSantis, who was largely anticipated to declare his run for the 2024 Republican presidential primaries, was lagging behind Trump in numerous polls. Newsom saw the Florida governor’s law allowing permitless carry as a political move, according to the outlet, despite a poll showing most Republicans in Florida opposed the bill.
A poll conducted by the University of North Florida in early March, showed 62% of Republicans opposed permitless carry. That number compared to 93% of Democrats and 77% of Independents who opposed the bill, according to Politico.
Newsom’s Reaction: Newsom told Psaki that DeSantis is “scared to death, scared of the people, scared of the public,” adding “I think the majority of NRA members probably oppose that position.”
“They don’t care about our kids,” Newsom added, “Cause if they did, they’d ban these damn weapons of war. They would have background checks that require some common damn sense.”
Newsom, who was expected to announce a presidential campaign for the 2024 election but shelved the idea, also took aim at DeSantis’ chances of winning the primaries, telling Psaki that DeSantis is going to get "rolled by Trump," according to the Washington Examiner.
“Trump's just gonna roll him, thumped,” Newsom said. Adding that he would advise DeSantis to "pack up and wait a few years."
Read Next: DeSantis, Trump Face New Loyalty Test From Florida GOP In 2024 Primary Battle
Some elements of this story were previously reported by Benzinga and it has been updated.
Photo: Shutterstock
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