Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) launched a direct challenge of former President Donald Trump over his three Supreme Court appointments. The governor said he “respects” the picks, but he pledges to “do better” than his closest Republican rival in nominating justices.
Republicans have commended Trump for creating a strong 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court. The majority has allowed for a conservative agenda to be prioritized for the nation, including the reversal of Roe v. Wade last year.
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DeSantis pushed back on the three conservative justices appointed by Trump, saying, “None of those three are at the same level of Justices Thomas and Justice Alito,” telling radio host Hugh Hewitt those justices are “the gold standard.” DeSantis added that his nominations, if he secures the highest office in the nation, “will be along the lines of a Sam Alito and a Clarence Thomas.”
The Trump campaign responded to DeSantis’s comments on Monday, saying the governor's “latest flip-flop has left many wondering if he tripped in his high-heel boots and hit his head or is simply hallucinating from his disastrous event in Oklahoma last weekend.” The Trump campaign pointed to DeSantis's appearance in the Sooner State, where he received an endorsement from Gov. Kevin Stitt (R-OK).
DeSantis touted his abilities to flip three out of four liberal seats during his first month in office as governor after inheriting a Democratic Florida Supreme Court.
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DeSantis has praised Trump's justice nominations of Justice Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, and Brett Kavanaugh numerous times as Trump calls out in his response.
“I think that Donald Trump has done a better job appointing judges to both the U.S. Supreme Court and the appeals court than any other president in my lifetime—including one of my heroes, Ronald Reagan,” DeSantis said in a Florida GOP gubernatorial primary debate in 2018, Jason Miller, a Trump spokesman recalled on Twitter.