Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is generally shunning in-depth interviews with major media not owned by Rupert Murdoch, it is reported by major media not owned by Rupert Murdoch. But that reporting is not entirely accurate.
There’s at least one non-News Corporation destination that DeSantis is visiting for a big sit-down interview — and he’s not the only 2024 Republican candidate to do so, be they declared or presumed. It’s a show the GOP hopefuls are all hitting.
Like with most Republicans, the media’s position with respect to the Florida governor is not warm and friendly the way it is with non-Republicans. That’s a feature that DeSantis makes a point of often. For example, a spox recently told NBC News not to expect him any time soon, after false characterizations by MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell that she barely corrected.
The outlets that attack him complain that he doesn’t do big, one-on-one interviews — although to be fair, he and his surrogates and spokespeople do routinely respond to and take questions from the press.
But he’s doing more than shouted question and answer time on Thursday, appearing for an interview with Eric Bolling on Newsmax’s 8 p.m. program The Balance.
It’s worth noting that DeSantis has taken fire on Newsmax from host Greg Kelly, and the Trump-friendly channel has the ex-president on air and in the news often.
The media at large might consider Newsmax just another GOP-friendly stomping ground for DeSantis, but among conservatives, Republicans, and MAGA the primary war is well under way and it is by no means as simple as “not liberal, must be friendly.”
But Bolling’s show has stepped out of the primary war and become an important 2024 stop. Which makes it all the more clear, by the way, that DeSantis is in the 2024 race even without an announcement.
Bolling has had Trump on many times of course. Ambassador Nikki Haley is a regular as well, and was on specifically about the 2024 election days after she declared her candidacy. Fellow declared 2024 GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy was interviewed for the show recently, too, outlining why he’s running and what he means to do.
Tonight, Bolling sits down with the governor considered the biggest threat to Trump by Trump, as can be discerned from his relentless attacks on the popular Florida governor, who well outperformed the ex-president in 2020.
Former Vice President Mike Pence is on Newsmax often. When he does his Eric Bolling sit-down it’ll be a sweep.
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