DeSantis, Trump and Pride

The Republican Party is absolutely tearing itself apart at the seams. If you like Trump, according to the DeSantis group you are a brainwashed cult follower. If you like DeSantis, you are apparently a RINO and a sellout. Both are nonsense.

It has been no secret I have liked what I have seen DeSantis do here in the state of Florida with strong conservative principles. My newspaper The Florida Standard covers Florida news and DeSantis regularly and does not shy away from showcasing his strengths and accomplishments with our reporting. As Editor in Chief the final say on what we publish lies on me, and I have been proud of the stories we have produced and the content we generate.

That being said, I see the Republican campaigns of DeSantis, Trump and others, and am distressed at the attacks being hurled from all sides. I am distressed that it seems both sides cannot see ideas, just merely political figures. I am distressed that nobody is willing to call out any wrongdoing of their candidate, yet hold the other side to the most meticulous and stringent of standards. What it seems is that these campaigns have forgotten the reason why their candidates are running in the first place: to serve the American people. The attacks from the candidates, their “influencers,” and their followers have gotten so personal, so hate filled, so vile, that it is hard to even comprehend a world where the Republican party and conservatives in general recover with any sort of unity after the primary. It seems we are destined to be sequestered to petty rivalries and personal vendettas on the right instead of a courageous army of truth followers who see people from all angles and realize that ideas are objective, politicians are not. The left is sitting back and loving what they are seeing, knowing that we will further bend to their will as we squabble amongst ourselves.

In Florida, we have problems. DeSantis has problems, but so does Trump. Are we too blinded by political forces that we are unable to see that? Are we content with blinders and easy collectivism that makes us hate someone who probably agrees with 99% of what we believe over a person who first and foremost is supposed to be a public servant? How have our politics gotten this way? How have we lost ourselves in the idolization of mortal men?

Everything I have said about Trump, DeSantis, and the 2024 election above are facts, so we can stop the “but, but but” about any of these things now. All of these candidates, and anyone for that matter who is an elected official, should be held accountable for their actions. At the end of the day, these people are politicians who work for us, we pay their salaries, and we should be able to question their decisions and ideas. 

But questioning and discussion is much different than the hatred and vitriol for each other we are filled with right now despite these two men having so much in common and similar goals because we are being led by people with ulterior motives. It is an unpassionate, unideological, entirely political and greed driven rat race we have all found ourselves in, and it fills me with dread at the sight of our movement. But then again, looking at things clearly is not always so sexy and marketable, and people would rather draw a line in the sand and be a part of a group rather than look at the whole picture.

Why is it that we have so much hatred and infighting between us over Trump vs. DeSantis? It is because we as a nation lack meaning. We lack purpose and confidence in ourselves and thus put our hope for America and our futures in the hands of one of these men. Instead of asking when America will change, or when will our community change, or our candidate change, we should be asking when will I change? When will I muster the strength necessary to battle the evil I see around me and not just rely on the musings of a politician? When will I put God above political party and find the courage through him to live the life I should? If we all did that, we wouldn’t have to rely on these political men and means to fix our problems, we could fix them ourselves.

It is obviously okay to choose a side in the presidential race, I am not here to tell you not to do so. I am guilty of that just as much as others and have paid the price by having people divided over many of the things I have said and published and have lost some followers I have had for years. But this nonsense with us at each others throats constantly over Trump vs. DeSantis must cease. We gain nothing by doing so, and are merely just sending ourselves right into the left’s hands, ready to grab more and more control as the right fiddles around with petty arguments and “gotcha” fact check moments. Again, I am guilty of this as well, but I don’t want to do that anymore. The question I am now asking myself and am asking all of you is: Do you want to actually win our country back from those who look to usurp it and strip away your freedoms? Or do you just want to be a part of some man-made political group and be content with losing embroiled in pride?

I will support whichever nominee wins the primary, whether that is Trump or DeSantis. I will put all my eggs behind whoever it is and push to have them destroy the left’s power in this country, because stopping them is far more important than the political squabbles of two conservative men who at the end of the day are just that, men. They have good, they have bad, and we should all be able to see that in both. Put pride aside, go after what is true, make your decisions based on real evidence, remember who the real enemy is, discuss with love, hate evil, and join with your fellow conservatives who want to see this country conserved more than wanting to be “right.” 

-Will Witt