Irish feud: Ron DeSantis faces heat at home
Story by Gary Fineout and Kimberly Leonard • 5h • 5 min read
August 30,2024

TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Gov. Ron DeSantis — whose pugnacious brand of politics made him a national Republican star — is now finding himself against the ropes at home.

DeSantis pulled back a contentious plan this week to add golf courses and hotels at some Florida state parks. The governor acted after his administration’s “Great Outdoors Initiative” faced a withering blast of criticism from across the political spectrum, including from one-time GOP allies who may run for governor when he's out of office.
Local school board candidates he backed underperformed in the Aug. 20 primary. He is feuding with the lone Jewish Republican in the Legislature after that lawmaker called out DeSantis for recently traveling to Ireland — which has recognized Palestine as a country.
And two initiatives on the November ballot on abortion access and recreational marijuana appear poised to pass despite the governor’s opposition.

The hits follow DeSantis ending his presidential campaign after coming in a distant second in the Iowa caucuses. Both political supporters and detractors are watching closely to gauge how this will impact an anticipated run for president in 2028. Continued losses in his home state over the two years of his term-limited tenure would dampen his prospects.

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, who helped the governor’s first campaign but stuck with former President Donald Trump against DeSantis in the presidential primary, brushed aside any suggestion that the backlash against the parks proposal could be seen as a part of a broader rebuke to DeSantis.Gov.
“I don’t think it’s a diminution of support for the governor. I think it was a very bad idea,” said the Northwest Florida Republican who was among those calling for DeSantis to scrap the parks plan.

Still, there is growing anticipation in Tallahassee that incoming legislative leaders who take over this November will be less accommodating to DeSantis, and that other politicians eyeing the governorship or cabinet jobs will also grow bolder in expressing their positions. POLITICO interviewed a dozen legislators, consultants and lobbyists about DeSantis’ path forward — many expect a noticeable shift in the relationship and power dynamic between the sometimes prickly governor and his erstwhile Republicans allies.

“I don't think the backlash about parks was about him being a lame duck,” said Jamie Miller, a veteran political consultant who once worked for the Republican Party of Florida. “But I also do think that when the governor was tone-deaf in the past, people would go along with it. And now they’re positioning themselves for their political futures and you won’t see them do that.”

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