As the Republican presidential candidates prepare for Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, one prominent White House hopeful is essentially missing in action.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has faced allegations that he has given up on the state and shifted his focus almost entirely to South Carolina, though he denied that was his strategy during a recent interview.
In a recent statement, Scott Wagner, CEO of the Never Back Down political action committee working on the governor’s behalf, indicated that it “continues to host a slew of events on the ground for Gov. DeSantis in South Carolina, New Hampshire, and beyond aligned with our core mission of mobilizing grassroots field operations in those states.”
Front-runner Donald Trump nevertheless made a point of bringing up DeSantis’ conspicuous absence from the state during a campaign stop in Manchester on Saturday.
Voter in New Hampshire yells out: “Ron DeSantis got a new pair of high heels”
Trump: “That’s not polite. He does not wear high heels, alright maybe he does.”
😂😂😂
pic.twitter.com/i8dUf4vE92— Alex Bruesewitz 🇺🇸 (@alexbruesewitz) January 21, 2024
“You notice I didn’t mention the name of Ron DeSanctimonious yet,” the former president said. “I think he’s gone.”
While DeSantis did schedule a campaign stop in New Hampshire for Sunday and planned to continue campaigning there in the hours leading up to the primary, Trump made it clear that he believes former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley is his biggest rival at this point.
He took aim at the former South Carolina governor, noting that he has secured endorsements from a host of prominent GOP officials across Haley’s home state.
“To the people of New Hampshire, all you need to know about Nikki Haley is that every globalist, liberal, Biden supporter, and Never Trumper is on her side,” Trump said. “And virtually every single leader in her home state of South Carolina is on our side.”
U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who dropped out of the GOP presidential primary in November, gave Trump his endorsement despite the fact that Haley initially appointed him to Congress.
Haley addressed her dearth of home-state endorsements, however, blaming the trend on her insistence on accountability while she served as governor.
“You will not see me have a whole lot of legislative endorsements in South Carolina,” she acknowledged. “And the reason is, I forced them to have to start showing their votes on the record, against their will — that’s documented.”
During a prior appearance in Concord, New Hampshire, Trump offered a scathing assessment of Haley’s record, insisting: “She’s not tough enough, she’s not smart enough and she isn’t respected enough.”
