"Trump, Declaring Presidential Run, Checks Intra-Party Rivals with 'Sacred Act' Ron"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] 'Sanctimonious Ron.'

Former President Donald Trump, who is expected to officially announce his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election after the U.S. midterm elections on the 8th, has begun to actively check Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor and a leading contender within the Republican Party.

According to Bloomberg and other sources on the 6th (local time), Trump attended a midterm election support rally in Pennsylvania the day before and mocked Governor DeSantis by calling him "Ron DeSanctimonious." Governor DeSantis is currently considered the strongest rival to Trump in the race for the next Republican presidential nominee.

Previously, Trump had belittled his political rival President Joe Biden with nicknames such as "Sleepy Joe." This time, he added the adjective "sanctimonious," meaning "pretending to be devout" or "hypocritically pious," to DeSantis's name to create a derogatory nickname. Local media emphasized that this adjective is mainly used in a contemptuous sense, reporting that Trump "cleverly attacked" DeSantis and that this was his "first public contemptuous nickname" for him.

On the same day, Trump displayed a poll showing the support rates for the next Republican presidential candidates on a large screen, stating, "Trump 71%, Ron DeSanctimonious 10%," repeatedly emphasizing that he is leading. He added, "Mike Pence is at 7%. He's doing better than I thought."

Furthermore, he hinted at his imminent candidacy announcement by saying, "I promise you will be very happy in a very short time." Trump and his close aides are reportedly considering officially declaring his presidential run after the midterm elections, which are expected to be a victory for the Republicans, to maintain momentum. This also marks the beginning of his efforts to check his intra-party competitors.

Additionally, this remark drew attention as it came just before Trump was scheduled to campaign in support of Senator Marco Rubio in Miami, Florida, on the 6th. Governor DeSantis did not participate in this event.

Local media reported that although Trump still enjoys overwhelming support compared to other candidates in polls asking about the next Republican presidential nominee, Governor DeSantis is gaining attention as an alternative due to various legal risks surrounding Trump.

Some media also noted that when DeSantis first ran for governor in 2017, Trump showed strong alliance by expressing support via tweets. Governor DeSantis is currently seeking re-election and is considered likely to win.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.