Mark Meadows, Trump's final White House chief of staff, made an appearance on Newsmax on Tuesday to react to reports that Trump is fed up with DeSantis and, according to the New York Times, that DeSantis has told friends that it's too much too big of a request that he bow to Trump. People "want Trump in the White House," Meadows insisted.
Trump reportedly expressed the popular governor has "no personal charisma" and a "dull personality" as rumors swirl the ex-President is angry DeSantis hasn't declined to challenge him for the GOP presidential nomination.
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DeSantis, however, has told his inner circle that Trump's "expectation that he bend the knee is asking too much," the New York Times reported. The governor also reportedly said his biggest regret in office is not having "been much louder" in speaking out against Trump's Coronavirus pandemic response.
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The commentary comes after Trump appeared to take direct aim at DeSantis in an interview just last week when he called politicians who refuse to disclose their booster vaccination status as "gutless." Sources close to the former President revealed Trump has grown increasingly irritated by DeSantis in recent months, with Trump beginning to voice his frustrations to those in his inner circle.
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While Meadows did praise the "great job" DeSantis has done leading Florida, he also insisted that the governor is "smart enough to know that this is the party of Trump. This will continue to be." Trump has yet to publicly commit to another run for the White House, but Meadows insisted it "won't be Ron DeSantis challenging him" if he does.
Employing a tactic often used by Trump and his allies, Meadows accused the media of fabricating conflict between Trump and DeSantis. He did acknowledge there are some other "distractions" that he attributed to the "Liz Cheneys and a few others."
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Meadows, who was once a colleague of DeSantis in the House, also argued that Trump's popularity remains substantial, citing the attendance at Trump's rally in Arizona on Saturday. He pointed to "some reports" that there were "40 miles of people that were lined up trying to get in there." Meadows did not state where that information was derived.
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Last month, the House voted to refer Meadows to the Justice Department for prosecution for refusing to fully cooperate with a subpoena from the Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.