DeSantis Says Some Republicans Endorsed Trump But Told Him Privately ‘They’re Going To Vote For Me’

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Sunday said that some Republicans have endorsed Donald Trump but told him privately to run and that they’ll vote for him. “That’s just the reality,” he said.

DeSantis was on the latest This Week on ABC and told host Jon Karl that Trump wants a party defined solely by loyalty to him, and not by commitment to principles or “delivering” on them for voters.

Karl played a clip of Rep. Thomas Massie, who has endorsed DeSantis, in which the Kentucky Republican said that there are Trump endorsers who are simply afraid not endorsing would cost them a primary.

“Is that what’s going on?” asked Karl. “Because we are now seeing this stampede of elected Republican officials endorsing Donald Trump.”

DeSantis said Karl would have to “ask them” before adding, “I do know elected officials who encouraged me to run and say they’re going to vote for me in a primary, but yet have endorsed Donald Trump.”

“That’s just the reality of the situation,” he said.

He went on to argue that Trump wants the benchmark in the party to be whether or not someone will “kiss his ring,” not any principles or achievements.

“What we can’t have as a party is that our movement is detached from the underlying principles and issues that we’re trying to advocate on behalf of the American people,” he said. “And I think Trump is trying to make it to where someone that kisses the ring, even if they’re not faithful to the core conservative values, somehow they’re a member in good standing just by doing that.”

He brought up another conservative Republican, Chip Roy of Texas, who he said is “fighting on all these conservative issues that all the Republican base has always wanted to do.”

“But the fact that he’s endorsed me and hasn’t kissed the ring and somehow he’s bad? Or he’s somehow a RINO? that is what you don’t want,” said DeSantis.

KARL: One of your supporters, one of the five House members who have supported you, endorsed your campaign had this to say about why so many others have lined up behind Donald Trump. This is Thomas Massie, Congressman Thomas Massie. He said, “I would say a good number of people who have endorsed Trump in Congress have done it because they genuinely want him to be president and prefer him. But a majority of them are scared of their own constituents, not necessarily scared of Trump, but that he would rile up their constituents and that they might lose a primary.” Is that, is that what’s going on? Because we are now seeing this stampede of elected Republican officials endorsing Donald Trump.

DESANTIS: Well, you’ll have to ask them. I mean, I can tell you this. I mean, I do know elected officials who encouraged me to run and say they’re going to vote for me in a primary, but yet have endorsed Donald Trump. That’s just the reality of the situation.

But here’s the thing. What I would tell elected Republicans, you know, when you stand up and you’re delivering on conservative issues, you know, Donald Trump’s not going to be able to say you’re bad if you’ve delivered on those issues. The voters are going to look at what you’ve done. I think Trump can be effective in a primary for people who are not delivering on conservative issues and who are going more wobbly or more left on things. But then that’s always been the case that people can be exposed in these primaries.

So, we’re doing it. I’ve got guys like Chip Roy, I’ve got guys like Tom. I mean, these guys are out there. They’re fighting the good fight, you know, they’ve got a lot of incoming. But what we can’t have as a party is that our movement is detached from the underlying principles and issues that we’re trying to advocate on behalf of the American people.

And I think Trump is trying to make it to where someone that kisses the ring, even if they’re not faithful to the core conservative values, somehow they’re a member in good standing just by doing that. Whereas a Chip Roy, who’s fighting on all these conservative issues that all the Republican base has always wanted to do, but the fact that he’s endorsed me and hasn’t kissed the ring and somehow he’s bad? Or he’s somehow a RINO? that is what you don’t want.

You want it to be rooted in a larger principle and not an individual. Uh, and also, you got to hold people accountable. I mean, I, you know, me as the nominee should be held accountable. Donald Trump, anybody. So we’re doing it, I think, the right way. The people that are attracted to us, they, yeah, they they like what I’ve done in Florida, but but I’m really just the vessel, uh, for the values that they believe in.

Watch the clip above via This Week on ABC News.

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