Kingmaker Rupert Murdoch hosted Ron DeSantis at his California ranch and told him: 'Fox News will support your bid for president in 2024'

David Maylon
knewz
Sat, 27 May 2023 20:06 UTC

© MEGA/Twitter/Euromaidan Press/KJN

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis • Fox's Rupert Murdoch • Former US President Donald Trump

Fox Corp boss, Rupert Murdoch has officially taken a side in the Republican race leading up to the 2024 National elections, and this time he is backing Ron DeSantis.

According to Vanity Fair, the conservative news mogul invited the Florida Governor to his Vineyard in Bel Air, California for dinner in 2020 and assured him that Fox would support his potential presidential run in 2024.

Earlier this year, signs of this sentiment became more apparent as Fox implemented a soft ban on Trump and began featuring DeSantis more frequently.

Additionally, during this time, the Dominion lawsuit loomed over the news corporation, prompting it to distance itself from the election controversy and thus steer clear of Trump.

Murdoch even expressed regret, stating that he would have preferred his anchors to be more assertive in denouncing Trump's election conspiracies that defined his campaigns. He was also quoted saying, "I would have liked us to be stronger in denouncing it in hindsight," per the Independent.

As the situation unfolded, Knewz reported allegations of higher-ups within the company trying to shift the blame for the election denial onto its anchors. A senior producer claimed that the company was scapegoating her and her female colleagues, including Maria Bartiromo.

Perhaps the most significant move by Fox to close the door on Trump and his 2020 election denial scandal came with the dismissal of Tucker Carlson and the eyewatering settlement reached with Dominion.

On Trump's side, his decision to participate in CNN's Town Hall event, despite their previous antagonistic relationship, emphasized his falling out with Murdoch.

Aside from Fox, Trump has long since escalated a war against DeSantis and even drew backlash from his own party members in congress because of his style of play.

However, despite the influence of the heavyweight News empire and its support of DeSantis, Trump remains the favorite among Republicans as seen in recent polls by Fox News and Gallup.

DeSantis is expected to officially enter the race for the 2024 presidency next week.

Comment: Since 2020? The moguls are far ahead of the public.

Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis vowed Friday to seek a repeal of President Trump's signature First Step Act, a bipartisan criminal justice reform bill that aimed to reduce recidivism, allowed a pathway for non-violent prisoners to shorten their sentences, and reduced mandatory minimum sentences.

DeSantis said in an interview with the Daily Wire:

"Under the Trump administration — he enacted a bill, basically a jailbreak bill, it's called the First Step Act. It has allowed dangerous people out of prison who have now re-offended, and really, really hurt a number of people.

"So one of the things I would want to do as president is go to Congress and seek the repeal of the First Step Act. If you are in jail, you should serve your time. And the idea that they're releasing people who have not been rehabilitated early, so that they can prey on people in our society is a huge, huge mistake."

DeSantis voted for the first version of the bill as a member of the House of Representatives in 2018, the same year he was elected as Florida's governor, but had resigned before the final, more moderate version of the bill came to a vote in the chamber.

Trump's campaign responded to DeSantis by pointing to his original vote, and argued he was basically criticizing his own supporters in Congress who also voted for the bill.

Trump campaign spokesperson Stephen Cheung tweeted following the DeSantis' interview:

"Lyin' Ron. He voted for the First Step Act. Would be a shame if there was video of him praising it in an interview with a local FL television station... Supporter [Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky.] voted for the bill as well. DeSantis is calling out his own Congressional supporters and throwing them under the bus."

The slight from DeSantis is the latest in a series of ramped up criticism aimed at Trump after facing near constant attacks from the latter in recent weeks.

On Thursday, the governor torched Trump over the COVID-19-related lockdowns of 2020, and for what he described was Trump turning "the country over to [Dr. Anthony] Fauci." He also said he understood Trump was going after him because "he understands I'm the candidate who can beat him."

Early polls from before DeSantis launched his presidential campaign have consistently shown Trump with a commanding lead over the Republican field with DeSantis in a distant second.