A voter in Iowa pressed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over his approach toward Republican rival and former US President Donald Trump on Wednesday.
″Why haven’t you gone directly after him?” asked the man, who pointed to the Republican presidential candidate’s poll numbers compared to Trump.
“What do you mean by going directly after?” replied DeSantis.
“In my viewpoint, you’re going pretty soft on him –,” the man added.
“I’ve articulated all the differences time and time again on the campaign trail,” interjected DeSantis before claiming the media wants Republican candidates to “smear him personally.” “That’s just not how I roll.”
The man, in response, declared that Trump would have won the 2020 presidential election by “a landslide” if he “kept his mouth shut” while he was president.
“He’s been his own worst enemy, there’s no question about that,” DeSantis replied.
The man went on to note Trump’s insults toward former Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina and late Senator John McCain (Republican, Arizona).
“I mean, those are talking points that I would use. I mean the guy has no class in a lot of different ways,” the man said.
You can watch the exchange in the clip below from The Washington Post’s Hannah Knowles.
The man – who ABC News identified as 75-year-old Christopher Garcia, who voted for Trump in 2016 and again in 2020 – later remarked on DeSantis’ “vague” criticism toward his Republican rival in an interview with The New York Times.
“Are these people afraid to take Trump head on? I mean, is that the problem?” Garcia asked of the GOP field.
The Florida governor, who once steered clear of attacking Trump, has taken an occasional swipe at the former president in recent months.
The exchange comes as Trump continues to lead DeSantis by over 49 percentage points in an average of national polls, according to FiveThirtyEight.