Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tried to get under Donald Trump’s skin this week by implying on a radio talk show that the ex-president arrogantly thinks he’s entitled to the Republican nomination and that he would be short-cutting the process if he doesn’t show up on the Milwaukee debate stage next month.
“You have got to earn the nomination,” DeSantis argued.
DeSantis should watch out what he wishes for. If past performances are an indication, Trump could walk away from a debate stronger, while DeSantis is more likely to struggle in the spotlight.
That’s not to say DeSantis is wrong. He isn’t. Trump should do the debate so voters can see how the two leading Republican candidates — and the others, including Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina — hold up under the intense pressure of a live debate. Even when candidates squirm away from embarrassing questions, there’s a lot to be learned about their character from their behavior. If, as Trump continues to hint, he won’t debate, it will be a disservice to voters — and behavior that will send yet another message as to his character.
Won’t make the case
Further, as DeSantis points out, Trump lost to Biden last time. He should get on stage and tell Republicans why he is now a better candidate than he was in 2020.
That is, of course, an impossible case to make to anyone who isn’t already Trump-blind, given the Jan. 6 insurrection that he incited after losing the election. Then there was the E. Jean Carroll civil case in May, when a jury found that he sexually abused her in the dressing room of a luxury department store in 1996, awarding her $5 million for battery and defamation.
And let’s not forget the classified records case here in Florida. Trump was indicted under the Espionage Act for holding onto secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago mansion and obstructing the government’s efforts to get them back. His lawyers’ latest ploy is to try to postpone the case until after the 2024 election. If he were convicted after winning, he could potentially pardon himself, setting a new high-water mark in corruption.
For any of Trump’s challengers, the sound bite of him refusing to answer questions about any of those things would be campaign gold, of course.
DeSantis knows that, but he has other reasons to push the debate issue — namely, shaky donors as his poll numbers remain stubbornly low. A debate where he shows substance and strength against Trump could be that elusive game-changer his campaign has been seeking.
DeSantis’ own challenges
DeSantis notoriously has struggled with a failure to connect with national voters in unscripted moments: During a 2018 debate preparation, one of his advisers even told him he should write the word “LIKABLE” in all caps on the top of his notepad, ABC News reported. But the risk of going on stage during a live event he can’t control is probably worth it to him. Hence, his appearance on conservative radio host Howie Carr’s show on Wednesday as he tried to goad Trump by calling him, in essence, a coward if he doesn’t attend the debate.
Will it work? Not likely. But none of that changes the fact that Republicans, whose party has been hijacked by Trump, deserve to see a full debate on Aug. 23. Unfortunately, what they’ll probably get is a pale version of that, with everyone in the room dancing around the one man who isn’t there.
