Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis Privately Meet in Miami to 'Bury the Hatchet' After Heated Feud: Source
April 29 2024, Published 11:39 a.m. ET
Friends again? Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump met privately in Miami on Sunday, April 28, multiple sources confirmed to ABC News.
According to the outlet, the Florida governor, 45, requested the meeting with Trump through a mutual contact, as he wants to "bury the hatchet" between the two. (Another source revealed real estate investor Steve Witkoff arranged the meeting.)
DeSantis and Trump, 77, were friendly before the former allegedly went behind his back and decided to enter the 2024 presidential race.
Trump would frequently lash out at DeSantis for betraying him.
“I got him elected,” Trump told Fox News anchor Bret Baier during a June 2023 interview. “And I thought it was very disloyal when he said ‘Yes, I’d run.’ I got him past two races.”
“I’m a big loyalist," he continued. “Some people right here in this room tell me, ‘Sir don’t worry about loyalty, it doesn’t mean anything in politics.' I said, to me it does. I got the guy elected.”
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Trump claimed if it wasn't for his help, DeSantis would not have gained any supporters.
“He fought for me along with [Ohio Representative] Jim Jordan and hundreds of other people in all fairness he was fine,” Trump said of DeSantis' support. “So I said, let’s give it a shot. I endorsed him, and it was like a bomb went off.”
Trump also took credit for DeSantis coming out on top against Democrat Andrew Gillum in the general election.
“Ron said, ‘There’s no way I can beat him,'” Trump noted. “I did three rallies, big massive rallies … he ended up winning. Three years later, they asked him, ‘Are you going to run against the president?’ He said, ‘No comment.’ I said, no comment means he’s going to run. I helped him 100 percent.”
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Though Trump and DeSantis frequently clashed, the latter quickly endorsed him once he left the race after finishing in second place in the Iowa caucuses in January.
"While I've had disagreements with Donald Trump, such as on the coronavirus pandemic and his elevation of [COVID-19 adviser] Anthony Fauci, Trump is superior to the current incumbent, Joe Biden. That is clear," DeSantis said at the time, to which Trump later responded, "I appreciate that, and I also look forward to working with Ron."