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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
David Smith in Washington

‘All hat, no cattle’: Ron DeSantis, the ‘anti-woke’ Florida governor running for president

DeSantis taught at a Georgia boarding school before joining the navy and overseeing the treatment of detainees at Guantánamo Bay.
DeSantis taught at a Georgia boarding school before joining the navy and overseeing the treatment of detainees at Guantánamo Bay. Photograph: Leah Hogsten/AP

The official Florida governor’s website invites visitors to “Meet Governor DeSantis”. But anyone who clicks on that option is greeted with the message “Governor Ron DeSantis Biography – coming soon”, along with his photo and a big white space.

DeSantis’s admirers project on to that blank page the ideal of a strong chief executive, “anti-woke” warrior and consistent election winner. His detractors fill the vacuum with warnings that the Florida governor represents “Trump 2.0”, “Trump with a brain” and “Trump without the circus”.

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