Florida Governor Ron DeSantis reacted negatively to former President Donald Trump’s implication that slave-holding states could have negotiated an end to the Civil War in a recent interview with ABC News.
DeSantis also provided his most resolute response to date, stating that he will remain in the 2024 contest and has no intention of endorsing Trump, irrespective of the outcome of the Iowa caucuses the following week, as he has fallen short in polling against Trump.
DeSantis was asked, while campaigning in Grimes, Iowa, on Sunday, while affiliated with ABC’s Rachel Scott, what he thought of Trump’s new remarks regarding the American Civil War, given his own experience as the Republican leader of Abraham Lincoln’s party.
As president, Abraham Lincoln fought against the Confederacy in an effort to unite a nation that had fragmented due to the southern states’ desire to maintain slavery.
“I don’t even know what he’s talking about. I mean, Lincoln did what he had to do. He ended up ushering in the abolition of slavery and he saved the Union. That’s a huge victory for the Republican Party.” DeSantis said.
Subsequently, he criticized Trump for his protracted and occasionally meandering addresses.
On Saturday, while attending a campaign event in Newton, Iowa, Trump made the following statement regarding the Civil War:
“If you take a look, I mean the wars, I don’t know what it is — the Civil War was so fascinating. So horrible, was so horrible, but so fascinating.” Trump said
“And it was, I don’t know, it was just different, I just find it — I’m so attracted to seeing it, so many mistakes were made,” he continued.
“See there was something I think could’ve been negotiated to be honest with you. I think you could’ve negotiated that. All the people died, so many people died,” Trump added
“Abraham Lincoln, of course if he negotiated it, you probably wouldn’t even know who Abraham Lincoln was,” he concluded.
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