Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis often tells Republican voters on the campaign trail that they should choose him because he is embracing big, bold policy positions that prove he is the presidential candidate most ready to wage an all-out battle on the political left.
A closer look shows much of that agenda — seal the country’s southern border and radically remake the federal bureaucracy — mirrors that of his chief rival, former President Donald Trump.
Since launching his campaign in May, DeSantis has struggled to distinguish his policy positions from the former president. Some of his plans match what Trump has already proposed, and others echo what he already did as president.
