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Credit: Disney/DeSantis, edited by ITMThe odds that Governor Ron DeSantis will ever become president are dwindling each day, arguably in large part because of his chaotic war against the Walt Disney Company. However, according to the Florida politician, the real reason has to do with the mainstream media.
DeSantis Regrets Shunning Corporate Media
In a recent interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, Ron DeSantis admitted that he had screwed up big time by angering mainstream media outlets like CNN, NBC, and other large corporate channels in favor of his own preferred, conservative-friendly platforms during his presidential campaign and his legal battles with Disney.
DeSantis told Hewitt, “I came in not really doing as much media. I should have just been blanketing. I should have gone on all the corporate shows. I should have gone on everything.” He continued, “We had an opportunity, I think, to come out of the gate and do that and reach a much broader folk.
Of course, there is some irony that the governor would express these regrets by giving an interview to a far-right conservative commentator like Hugh Hewitt while having recently lashed out against the relatively more mainstream Fox News for being insufficiently critical of the GOP presidential frontrunner, Donald Trump.
In speaking in the past tense, it seems that DeSantis is coming to terms with the fact that his campaign for president is likely over.
DeSantis Also Blames the Media for His Loss in Iowa
While Governor DeSantis may now regret that he shunned more corporate news outlets in the past, it was only days ago that he was blaming them for his embarrassing second-place finish in the Iowa GOP Caucus.
DeSantis Campaign says that the media engaged in election interference. pic.twitter.com/awZhK8y4wQ
— suzy (@Suzy_1776) January 16, 2024
DeSantis Communication Director Andrew Romeo released a statement regarding projections of the Iowa Caucus, saying, “It is absolutely outrageous that the media would participate in election interference by calling the race before tens of thousands of Iowans even had a chance to vote. The media is in the tank for Trump, and this is the most egregious example yet.”
For the record, Trump received 51% of the vote in the Iowa GOP Caucus. DeSantis landed at a distant second place with 21.2% (per The New York Times), so the accusations of election interference might have more to do with attacking the mainstream media he is now belatedly trying to embrace rather than any actual effect they had.
DeSantis Takes a Beating From Disney in the Media
For nearly a year, Ron DeSantis has been waging a war against the Walt Disney Company, largely centered on the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando.
Related: Florida Disney Bill To Strip DeSantis District of Power Arrives at Final Decision
After the company publically opposed his Parental Rights in Education Act (better known informally as the “Don’t Say Gay” law), DeSantis allegedly retaliated against Disney by dissolving the Reedy Creek Improvement District and forming the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, complete with his own handpicked board of supervisors.
DeSantis and Disney are still locked in several overlapping lawsuits, but it is safe to say that most mainstream news outlets have not looked favorably on the governor repeatedly attacking one of the world’s most beloved companies, not to mention one of his state’s largest employers.
Between his shunning of the media and his late-in-the-game attempt to embrace it, his visibly struggling presidential campaign, and facing off against Disney, it’s no wonder DeSantis has some regrets.
Do you think DeSantis should have worked with corporate media more? Is he a goner as a presidential candidate? Speak up in the comments below!