Trump claims DeSantis would be working in a cigar store now if it wasn't for ... trends now
Former President Donald Trump renewed his attack on his likely rival for the Republican nomination, saying that Ron DeSantis would not be governor of Florida without his endorsement: He would be working in a cigar store or for a law firm.
'Number one, he's got no personality,' he told a small group of reporters travelling with him back from Waco, Texas, to Palm Beach, Florida, on Saturday night.
'That tends to be bad for a politician.
'But in addition to personal flaws, I think he's got a real problem with the fact that he wanted to destroy Social Security.'
Trump discussed a range of subjects aboard his private jet after holding the first rally of his campaign.
Former President Donald Trump renewed his attack on his likely rival for the Republican nomination, saying that Ron DeSantis would not be governor of Florida without his endorsement: He would be working in a cigar store or for a law firm
Donald Trump talks to reporters, including DailyMail.com, on his plane as he returned from Waco, Texas, on Saturday. He said he believed the Manhattan DA was dropping the case
He was in a relaxed mood as he claimed that that the Manhattan's district attorney was dropping a criminal probe into a hush money payment to a porn star, a week after claiming he'd be arrested within days.
But he reserved particular scorn for DeSantis, who he said owed his career to Trump's 2018 endorsement.
'He wouldn't be a governor. Right. You know where he be right now? Probably working either at a cigar store or a law firm,' he said.
DeSantis emerged as a likely contender last year, as a string of donors said they were dropping Trump for the Florida governor.
His star only shone brighter when he won reelection in a landslide while Trump's midterm picks faltered.
However, so far this year his poll numbers have been on the slide ahead of an expected campaign announcement. Much to Trump's delight.
At his rally in Waco, Trump projected their latest poll numbers on to a big screen to demonstrate his commanding lead. And he once again told the exaggerated story of how Trump endorsed his gubernatorial run in 2018.
'But I'm a loyalist and and when a man comes to me tears in his eyes, he's had almost nothing in the polls,' he told his rapt audience.
Recent polls have shown former President Trump increasing his lead on Governor DeSantis
Trump showed his fans polling numbers giving him a 31-point lead over his likely rival for the Republican nomination in Waco, Texas, on Saturday evening
Trump used his rally to hit DeSantis, as well as condemn the investigations that have dogged him since becoming president in 2016. It was Trump's first campaign rally of this cycle
The then congressman criticized the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, said Trump.
'I said let’s give it a shot Ron,' said the former president. 'I endorsed him. he became like a rocket ship. Within one day the race was over.'
Advisers to DeSantis, according to the Washington Post, have said the governor's candidacy - which many believed would begin in May - has gone from a dead-cert 'coronation' to a lengthy, 50-state fight for delegates.
Meanwhile, Trump is full speed ahead on his campaign, using his plane to get to know key political reporters and starting a schedule of his trademark rallies.
He said feverish speculation about the Manhattan grand jury hearing evidence against him had had no impact on his political operation, and he said he believed prosecutors had no choice but to give up in the face of recent evidence.
'I have no idea what's going to happen...' he said. 'I think they've already dropped the case. From what I understand ... I think it's been dropped.
'But I believe that if anything ever happened with the case, it's a fake case.'
Trump shared his claim Alvin Bragg has dropped the case into him just a week after writing that he expected to be arrested within days
Earlier on Saturday, Trump told fans in Waco that Bragg had 'nothing' on him. He insists a $130,000 payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels weeks before the October 2016 election wasn't a campaign finance violation. Trump also denies a 2006 one- night-stand with the performer.
It makes for a remarkable turnaround. Last Saturday he posted a message that he was expecting to be arrested on Tuesday and calling on supporters to protest.
But the day came and went. And a grand jury hearing evidence in New York did not sit on Wednesday or Thursday, sparking speculation in Trump world that Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's case was foundering.
Trump spent the days following his usual routine of heading to his West Palm Beach golf course, maintaining a picture of business as usual.
On Saturday evening, as he flew home from addressing what
