Florida Governor Ron DeSantis let his facial expression do the talking when asked about Donald Trump Monday ― and maybe that wasn’t such a great idea. (Watch the video below.)
In Japan to meet with the Japanese prime minister, the likely 2024 GOP presidential contender was asked a basic question by a reporter:
“Governor, polls show you falling behind Trump. Any thoughts on that?”
DeSantis, considered the prime challenger to Trump for the GOP nomination, stared wide-eyed with mouth agape before saying: “I’m not a candidate, so we’ll see if and when that changes.”
DeSantis has not officially declared for the race, but his world tour with stops in Japan and three other countries is “apparently aimed at upping DeSantis’s and Florida’s international profile,” The Hill reported.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins said the trip was “seen as a way for DeSantis to burnish his foreign policy credentials” (per CNN).
DeSantis has some catching up to do in a possible race against Trump, according to recent polls.
He also might want to prepare a cooler response when confronted about his 2024 plans.
“One of the oddest expressions I’ve ever seen,” one person on Twitter wrote.
Here are a few other tweets.