Launching a scathing attack on Ron DeSantis after his failed presidential bid, former White House chief strategist Steve Banon called the Florida Governor a "petulant child" who will never be president.
Conservative media personality Bannon targetted DeSantis in a recent episode of his podcast War Room that aired on Monday.
Bannon, a staunch ally of Donald Trump, hailed the former United States President as "super classy" and slammed DeSantis, stating the Governor has spent and "burned $150 million" on his 2024 presidential campaign in Iowa.
A former federal prosecutor and frequent Trump critic, Ron Filipkowski, shared a nearly 30-second video of Bannon's comments on X (formerly Twitter). He captioned the video as “Bannon says DeSantis will never be president”.
“President Trump's very classy, super classy. He's got a kind heart. He's a very kind-hearted guy,” Bannon said.
“Ron DeSantis was not gracious. He said, 'Oh, I signed the pledge, so I got to support him kind of,' still like the little 9-year-old, petulant child that Ron DeSantis is. Ron DeSantis, who's never going to be President of the United States, you just spent, burned $150 million in Iowa, dude. You can't come back from that,” he added.
Also Read: From being the next Trump to endorsing him: How Ron DeSantis' campaign unravelled
{{/usCountry}}Also Read: From being the next Trump to endorsing him: How Ron DeSantis' campaign unravelled
{{/usCountry}}Ron DeSantis ends his bid for president, endorses Trump
In a video posted on X, DeSantis declared that he suspended his presidential bid and endorsed Trump, who is the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination.
“Trump is superior to the current incumbent Joe Biden, that is clear,” DeSantis said. "I signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee and I will honor that pledge. He has my endorsement because we can't go back to the old Republican guard of yesteryear."
DeSantis' departure from the White House race came after his second-place finish in the Iowa caucus on January 15, where he received roughly 21% of the vote compared to Trump's almost 51%. With almost 19% of the vote in Iowa, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley is still in the race and is facing Trump in Tuesday's primary in New Hampshire.
Will Trump make DeSantis his running mate?
On Monday, Trump stated that it is “highly unlikely" DeSantis will be his 2024 vice presidential pick or even part of his administration.
DeSantis' exit from the presidential race prompted speculation that Trump could pick him as his 2024 running mate.
Asked if DeSantis could be part of the Trump administration as Vice President or as a Cabinet member, the former president firmly told 'Fox & Friends' co-host Lawrence Jones that he didn't see the Florida Governor serving as his running mate or in his administration.
“It's highly unlikely. I have a lot of great people. And I have great people that have been with me right from the beginning," the Republican front-runner said while appreciating DeSantis for the endorsement.
“I have to be honest, everything is a possibility, but I think it's highly unlikely. I have a lot of great people. And I have great people that have been with me right from the beginning," he added.