Analysis: Ron DeSantis is the Fox News candidate for president
2 years ago 2 min read
“Disney has alienated a lot of people now,” DeSantis said. “And so the political influence they’re used to wielding, I think has dissipated. And so the question is, why would you want to have special privileges in the law at all? And I don’t think that that we should.”
What set DeSantis off is the Mouse’s reaction to what critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which bans schools form teaching kids about sexual orientation or gender identity and which the Florida Republican governor signed into law earlier this week.
DeSantis’ decision to seize on the issue comes after wall-to-wall coverage of Disney’s opposition to the law. Primetime hosts like Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham dedicated portions of their shows to blasting Disney for allegedly giving in to the “woke” forces in the country.
It’s just the latest example of DeSantis taking cues — and marching orders — from Fox News.
DeSantis understood, rightly, that the vast majority of conservatives in the country get their news from — and solely from — Fox. (In a 2020 Pew poll, 65% of Republicans said they trust Fox for political coverage — 30 points higher than any other network; 6 in 10 Republicans said they got their politics and election news from Fox.)
There’s also this: Trump soured on Fox in the wake of the 2020 election as, in the main, it refused to vouch for his false claims about election fraud.
“Very sad to watch this happen, but they forgot what made them successful, what got them there,” Trump tweeted shortly after the 2020 election. “They forgot the Golden Goose. The biggest difference between the 2016 Election, and 2020, was @FoxNews!”
Knowing this — and perhaps seeking to amplify the rift — DeSantis has moved into the position of Fox’s #1 mouthpiece in Republican politics.
The Point: Given Fox’s dominance of conservative mindshare, being the preferred candidate of the network is a very good place to be for DeSantis’ national ambitions.
More News
Opinion | A Year on Ozempic Taught Me We’re Thinking About Obesity All Wrong
Opinion | The One Thing Trump Knows He Wants in a Running Mate
How a Tiny Chicago News Organization Won 2 Pulitzers