Gov. Ron DeSantis withdrew from the Republican primary on Sunday ahead of the New Hampshire contest tomorrow. Consistent with his national support, DeSantis could only muster about 20% of Iowa voters and, thus, followed Vivek Ramaswamy out the door. They both endorsed Trump as did Tim Scott, who exited last November.

In a campaign video, DeSantis said he was terminating his campaign: “Following our second-place finish in Iowa, we’ve prayed and deliberated on our way forward. If there was anything I could do to produce a favorable outcome — more campaign stops, more interviews — I would do it. But I can’t ask our supporters to donate their time and volunteer their resources if we don’t have a path to victory.”

DeSantis added: “It’s clear to me a majority of primary voters want to give Donald Trump a second chance. While I have had disagreements with Donald Trump, such as [his handling of] the coronavirus pandemic and his elevation of Anthony Fauci, Trump is superior to the current incumbent, Joe Biden. That is clear.”

With that, DeSantis endorsed Trump’s candidacy. Trump responded: “He was very gracious, and he endorsed me, so I appreciate that. … Very honored to have his endorsement. I look forward to working together with him to beat Joe Biden, who is the worst and most corrupt president in the history of our country.” No petulant and demeaning mention of “DeSanctimonious.”

Trump now hopes to take out South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in New Hampshire ahead of her home-state primary on February 24, though she is likely to remain a contender at least through that primary.

The latest national polls indicate that Trump has the support of about 65% of likely GOP voters, as opposed to the 51% of votes he received in Iowa last week. Notably, Trump has a 41% favorability rating among all voters nationally, versus Biden whose favorability is polling at 39%.

And Biden’s failing approval ratings among the growing ranks of independent voters should give his socialist Democrat Party handlers a lot of heartburn, assuming they still believe Biden will be on the Demo ticket in November. (More on that in a minute.)

However, Trump’s “65% of likely GOP voters” polling raises concerns among Republican strategists, though that support will go up after the DeSantis exit. It’s concerning because, as I have noted before, Trump is effectively running as an incumbent president, and thus, once he officially announced that, he should have closed out any significant competition before the primary.

He should be polling at 90% of likely Republican voters, particularly given Biden’s weakness. But after contesting the 2020 election results with erroneous claims rather than focusing on the real issue, the Demos’ massive bulk-mail ballot fraud (still intact for 2024), and the resulting disgraceful J6 protests, a lot of Trump’s support softened.

As Nate Jackson wrote after the Iowa Caucus, Trump has “created an unbreakable bond with his supporters,” but he needs to forge that bond with every Republican voter.

There are three Trump factions among Republican voters. The first, and I think largest, faction is composed of pragmatic voters like myself. While I think DeSantis was a superior candidate in many ways, I will vote for Trump without hesitation, as I have twice before. The second and third Republican factions are composed of those who have an unwavering devotion to Trump and those who are tired of the Trump drama and believe that he should have cleared a path for a new start.

If Trump wants to win, he must pull in that third faction of discontent Republican voters, which may be as high as 25%. As noted by the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board today, millions of former Trump supporters are tired of the chaos. Of course, though Trumps “communication style” was divisive from the starting gate, a lot of the “chaos” has been and continues to be fomented by Leftmedia agitators, and the deep state collaborators.

Notably, those second and third Republican factions are apparent in the data we collect from dissatisfied readers who unsubscribe from The Patriot Post. They report in roughly equal numbers that we are either “Too pro-Trump” or “Too anti-Trump,” which I suppose means we are balanced in our reasoned assessment of Trump.

As for DeSantis, he will continue to be one of the best Republican governors in the nation and a future presidential contender. Having spent time with him, and having closely followed his congressional and gubernatorial record, as I noted here, he has many of the attributes that Trump admires most in others but has never achieved himself. Those would include both DeSantis’s public and private character, his academic background and military service record, and his leadership as governor of Trump’s home state, Florida.

Moving forward, Trump will have to find a VP ticket holder who brings those attributes Trump lacks to the ticket. If he picks a running mate who is his mirror image, he will face an even steeper uphill battle. Unfortunately, while DeSantis has the attributes Trump lacks, the Twelfth Amendment to our Constitution would present a legal challenge, as it stipulates, “The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.” To avoid that challenge, Trump would have to declare his residency in another state — probably not going to happen.

Finally, as I referenced above, with Trump the presumed nominee, the real question is this: Who will be on the Demo presidential ticket this November?

As I wrote 15 months ago, way out in front of other speculation about Biden’s 2024 candidacy, I believe that soon after the 2024 primaries conclude in June, Biden may withdraw as a candidate citing his age and obvious health issues, leaving the selection of the November Demo ticket in the hands of the delegates at the Democrat National Convention in Chicago, beginning August 19th. No states will officially recognize candidates on the respective Party ticket until the convention delegates make their decision. I believe this Biden bait-and-switch deal is already done, baked into the Demo 2024 calculus.

A year after that assertion, it is beginning to look prophetic and more likely by the day. Who will Trump face in November? I speculated back then that it might be Gavin Newsom or Robert Kennedy Jr., or perhaps moderate Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) on the top or bottom of the ticket, and maybe that is when Michelle Obama enters stage left.

(Footnote: With rising anti-Semite student protests against Biden’s policies with Israel, some Democrats have said out loud what others are whispering, that maybe they should cancel the Democrat Convention in order to avoid the 1968 optics of violent protestors battling police. Recall that the worst of the J6 protest optics involved Trump supporters in pitched battles with Capitol and District Police.)

Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776

Follow Mark Alexander on X/Twitter.

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