In a surprising turn of events, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis , who is vying for the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination against former President Donald Trump , criticized Trump for failing to deliver on his promise to investigate Hillary Clinton . The remarks come as the two competing candidates of the Republican party for the presidential election had a terrible fallout in the past few months. The duo have since then been sharp critics of each other as they tread towards their goal to be the party’s face in the upcoming elections.
The former President had earlier stated that if elected in 2024 he would prosecute his opponents with the help of the Department of Justice. According to the New York Post , Trump is facing multiple indictments, including charges related to the storage of confidential documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence and his alleged role in the January 6th Capitol protest.
DeSantis did not mince words as he recalled Trump’s unfulfilled 2016 promise to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Democrat politician Hillary Clinton’s emails. “Two weeks after he got elected, he said, ‘Ah, forget it. That’s what you say before the election, it’s not what you say after the election.’ So he didn’t follow through on that promise,” DeSantis stated in retaliation to Trump’s promises.
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DeSantis focused on the imperative need for “a single standard of justice” in the country and not misusing the system for personal political gains. He expressed his belief that a president should not directly order the Department of Justice to investigate individuals but should work through the attorney general to ensure that proper investigations are carried out.
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The Florida governor made it clear that accountability within law enforcement agencies is essential. He asserted that if any government agency, such as the FBI, were to act inappropriately, it was well within the president’s rights to take action against those responsible.
“So we’re going to hold them accountable,” DeSantis affirmed. “We’re not going to use it to go after people for no reason, but we are going to set the priorities that they’re going to do.” In a recent rally, Trump mentioned the possibility of having the Department of Justice indict a political challenger if he were re-elected.
DeSantis on Trump’s broken promises to hold Hillary Clinton accountable: “He ran in 2016 saying he was going to appoint a special prosecutor for Hillary’s emails. A lot of us thought that that was appropriate, because they didn’t really do a very thorough investigation of her.… pic.twitter.com/q0OhnfiG6P
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) September 17, 2023
According to recent polling data from Economist/YouGov , Trump maintains a substantial lead over his opponents in the 2024 Republican primary, securing 53% support among respondents. DeSantis is his closest rival with 14% support, followed by business entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy at 6%, and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence tied at 5%. The same polling data also indicated a close race between Trump and President Joe Biden, with 44% of voters supporting Biden and 43% backing Trump if the election were held immediately.