Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Stumps in Nashville

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is currently vying for the GOP presidential nomination, served as the keynote speaker at the Tennessee Republican Party’s 2023 Statesmen’s Dinner at Nashville’s Music City Center Saturday night.

DeSantis called Biden the “custodian of American decline,” and hit on familiar GOP talking points. He focused on combating “woke” ideology in a relatively low-energy speech compared to those given by his principal rival, former President Donald Trump.

“I think our mission is very simple,” DeSantis said. “We must reject the idea that as Republicans our job is to just manage the decline a little bit better than the Democrats. I'm not interested in managing the decline in this country, I want to reverse the decline of this country.”

DeSantis specifically vowed to replace officials who he said are ideologically motivated, such as FBI Director Christopher Wray, who was nominated by Trump in 2017 and retained by the Biden administration.

DeSantis earned the largest applause while speaking about “protecting children” against the “sexualization of minors." He discussed his ongoing battle with Disney and the content of books in public schools.

DeSantis warned the crowd that “the Democrats are playing for keeps,” predicting a completely Democratic-controlled federal government if Biden wins reelection. He said a second Biden term could result in a liberal Supreme Court majority and the end of the electoral college.

“Our politics right now is not about what the tax rate is going to be, or how many welfare benefits are going to be distributed,” DeSantis said. “Our struggle right now is, are we going to reject the heritage of freedom that our founding fathers have left to us, or are we going to revive that heritage of freedom?”

Saturday’s event drew hundreds of GOP officials and donors to the Music City Center, including Tennessee’s newest U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles. Notably absent, however, were Gov. Bill Lee and U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty, the three of whom appeared in prerecorded video messages.

Lee was scheduled to appear with DeSantis in Franklin in April, but that event was postponed following the March 27 Covenant School shooting.

Both Blackburn and Hagerty threw their support behind Trump’s reelection in April, which Ogles also did following his election in 2022.

In May, Blackburn reacted to DeSantis’ campaign announcement in remarks to The News, avoiding specifically commenting on DeSantis. Instead, she commended fellow GOP contenders Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.

In that interview, Blackburn didn't specifically answer what she thinks DeSantis' role could or should be within the Republican Party, but said the party sees states "as our labs of innovation" for ideas and policies that could be replicated by other states or at a federal level.

Per Rolling Stone, DeSantis appears also to be losing other critical Republican establishment support, including from Fox News' Rupert Murdoch. This comes as DeSantis’ campaign cut some staff positions amid fundraising challenges, as reported by Politico.

Despite the uphill battle DeSantis continues to face in the shadow of Trump, the presidential hopeful said, “There is no substitute for victory,” in what is undoubtedly a pivotal time for the future of the GOP.

“We cannot have a culture of losing in this party where we give up winnable elections all across this country, and then have recriminations or excuses about why you can't commit,” DeSantis said. “Don't tell me you can’t win — go out there and get it done.”

This article first ran via our sister publication, the Nashville Post.