Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) withdrew from the GOP presidential primary Saturday to endorse former President Donald Trump shortly after canceling his Sunday show appearances in New Hampshire ahead of the first-in-the-nation primary there Tuesday.
“I can’t ask our supporters to volunteer their time and donate their resources if we don’t have a clear path to victory,” Desantis said in a video posted to X, formerly Twitter. DeSantis explained why he launched his presidential campaign, reminded voters of what is at stake in the election, and endorsed Donald Trump for president.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill pic.twitter.com/ECoR8YeiMm
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) January 21, 2024
“We launched this campaign to bring accountability to government, regain sovereignty at our border, and restore sanity to our society,” Desantis said. “We cannot succeed as a country if we allow our nation to be invaded, our currency to be debased, our cities to crumble and our kids to be indoctrinated.”
“The D.C. elites that facilitated this mess do not care about you and they do not work for you. They work for themselves. They seek to accumulate power at your expense to pursue an agenda that is harmful to the American people. Citizens do not serve politicians. It is the duty of politicians to serve you,” said DeSantis.
DeSantis pulled out of all television show appearances on Sunday shortly before announcing his withdrawal from the 2024 GOP primary. The candidate immediately pivoted to endorsing his rival, the former president, for the White House this year.
“It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance,’ DeSantis said Sunday. “They watched his presidency get stymied by relentless resistance and they see Democrats using lawfare to this day to attack him.”
“While I have had disagreements with Donald Trump, such as on the coronavirus pandemic and his elevation of Anthony Fauci, Trump is superior to the current incumbent, Joe Biden. That is clear,” Desantis said as he threw his support behind the primary frontrunner.
Desantis said his pick had to be Trump, “Because we can’t go back to the old Republican guard of yesteryear – a repackaged form of warmed-over corporatism – that Nikki Haley represents.”
Adios sir https://t.co/oIupYkIgh5
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) January 21, 2024
