DeSantis to Launch Presidential Campaign on Twitter

Facts

• Twitter CEO Elon Musk announced he will join Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis virtually via Twitter Spaces on Wednesday at 6 pm EDT when the governor is expected to launch his 2024 presidential election campaign.¹
• The Twitter Spaces event will be moderated by David Sacks, a close friend of Musk and a DeSantis supporter. However, the Tesla CEO said he isn’t endorsing DeSantis, just using Twitter as a public town square.²
• DeSantis, who leads all GOP contenders other than former Pres. Donald Trump in the polls, is also expected to file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to officially launch the campaign, as well as meet with top financial backers later this week in Miami.³
• DeSantis won re-election by a landslide last year and has since implemented many right-wing policies regarding race, gender, concealed carry gun rights, and LGBTQ+ rights.⁴
• The Twitter campaign launch comes as Musk has recently dipped his feet further into politics, including tweeting last year that he previously supported Democrats but would vote GOP in the 2022 midterms and potentially support DeSantis in 2024.¹

Sources: ¹Wall Street Journal, ²BBC News, ³FOX News, and ⁴Guardian.

Narratives

• Democratic narrative, as provided by New York Times. DeSantis is a more confusing version of Trump, simultaneously signing harsh anti-abortion laws while also picking an unnecessary fight with Disney that could cost his state countless jobs. The rest of the GOP field is trying to bring decency back to the party, but unfortunately, the Republican base still enjoys the contentious strong-man act over traditional politicians.
• Anti-Trump narrative, as provided by Newsweek. The most important question to ask when running for president is can you win the general election, and the answer is certainly in DeSantis' favor right now. Donald Trump may be leading in the primary polls, but only DeSantis has proven capable when it comes to defeating the incumbent Democrat in swing states such as Arizona, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. The GOP needs a big comeback win in 2024, and DeSantis is the man for the job this time around.
• Pro-Trump narrative, as provided by Revolver News. After months of "experts" claiming Trump could only win the primary, the tide seems to be shifting. Trump will undoubtedly crush DeSantis in the primary, but recent polls suggest he could even beat Biden by four points in the general election. This is because voters understand that, under Trump, the country was strong economically and from a security standpoint. We all know Biden is a warmonger, but the numbers also show rust belt voters are too unsure of DeSantis to give him their full support.

Predictions