Trump tried to appear unfazed by Ron DeSantis, but he can’t stop making angry Truth Social posts about him

Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump. Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images and Scott Eisen/Getty Images

• Trump said it was “very unimportant” to him to think of mean nicknames for Ron DeSantis.

• But the former president just can’t stop himself from writing Truth Social posts about DeSantis.

• Over the weekend, Trump made at least 10 posts about DeSantis, culminating in an angry rant.

If former President Donald Trump tries to make it seem like Ron DeSantis doesn’t bother him, his Truth Social feed this weekend told a very different story.

Over the weekend, Trump’s profile on Truth Social was filled with posts about DeSantis, the Florida governor and Trump’s main competitor in the GOP.

On Saturday, Trump kicked off his DeSantis posting tour with at least 10 posts, according to Insider tally.

The first was to insult DeSantis by writing that he felt it was “completely inappropriate to use the word ‘meatball’ as a nickname for Ron” — and in the process caused thousands more people to see the nickname.

He then released three separate messages praising his own poll numbers and boasting about being ahead of DeSantis.

Trump caught his breath to post about Andrea Bocelli’s singing at Mar-a-Lago. But after that, he went straight back to DeSantis and branded him “RINO in disguise.”

In a Sunday post, Trump blasted the New York Post, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch, accusing it of being “fake news” and writing a “poof article” about DeSantis. He claimed DeSantis was “beaten in the polls” compared to himself.

“DeSantis is a RINO trying to hide his past. I no longer read the New York Post. She’s become fake news, just like Fox & WSJ!” Trump wrote, naming two other prominent Murdoch outlets.

In another post on Sunday, Trump railed against DeSantis and Charles Koch – the conservative billionaire behind a network of donors who may be shifting its support from Trump to his rivals.

“Ron DeSanctimonious is Charles Koch for the Globalist Club For NO Growth and Open Borders. We want AMERICA FIRST, NOT AMERICA LAST!!!” Trump wrote.

As of Sunday night, Trump had made at least 10 different posts attacking DeSantis.

DeSantis did not appear to have acknowledged Trump’s attacks on any of his Twitter accounts, which would be consistent with his stated strategy of not engaging with insults directed at the former president.

The truth social spree came after Trump tried to appear unmolested by DeSantis. On Feb. 13, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he doesn’t spend much time thinking about his rival at all, as reported by Insider’s Kimberly Leonard.

“All the fake news is reporting that I spend a lot of time coming up with a good ‘nickname’ for Ron DeSanctimonious that will obviously give the President’s ‘thing’ a try,” Trump wrote. “You are all 100% wrong, I don’t even think about it – a very unimportant subject to me!!!”

Trump refuted a Feb. 12 New York Times report that reported that he had privately devised new nicknames for the governor, such as “Meatball Ron” and “Shutdown Ron.”

However, Trump gave DeSantis the nickname “Ron DeSanctimonious” in November, which seems to have stuck.

It’s clear Trump sees DeSantis as a real threat

Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis. Getty Images

Though DeSantis hasn’t announced a 2024 bid of its own, the two are on a collision course for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. DeSantis has so far refrained from insulting Trump — and in November told people to get together over the prospect of a GOP civil war “relax” between them.

But Trump has been ranting about DeSantis on social media and in interviews for months, attempting various lines of attack to undermine his would-be rival of 2024. Trump has also warned DeSantis — and vowed in January to “handle” him if he were to attempt a 2024 bid.

Trump has further branded him as “average” and “very disloyal,” claimed DeSantis cried in front of him when he asked for confirmation in 2018, and credited himself with having elected DeSantis governor.

Trump and DeSantis officials did not immediately respond to insider requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Source