CNN: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has a clear pathway to running for president in 2024, emerging from the coronavirus pandemic as the most recognizable Republican governor in the country. But Democrats, hoping to reverse years of letdown in marquee races and mismanagement inside the state party, are eager to stop the Republican governor before he even gets to the starting line of a presidential bid, viewing the 2022 gubernatorial election in Florida as a chance to cut short the governor’s surge. ‘It is always easier to stop someone’s rise sooner rather than later,’ said David Turner, spokesman for the Democratic Governors Association.”
“‘You don’t lose your race for governor and then run for president.’ DeSantis burnished his position as a conservative media darling on Thursday when he signed a controversial bill aimed at curbing access to voting in the state during a so-called exclusive event with Fox News. A group of organizations swiftly filed a lawsuit against the bill, but the point already had been made: DeSantis has the Fox News platform and can use it to deliver on Republican priorities. ‘Me signing this bill says: Florida, your vote counts, your vote is going to be cast with integrity and transparency and this is a great place for democracy,’ DeSantis said on Fox after the signing.”