With Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) expected to announce his run for President next week, the forces of former President Donald Trump maintain their offensive. A new ad released by pro-Trump political action committee (PAC) MAGA Inc. accused Gov. DeSantis of being a tax hiker, complete with another snappy nickname of "Ron DeSalesTax."
Sung to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had A Farm," the ad focuses on the "Fair Tax" law pushed by DeSantis during his time in Congress.
While it would cut multiple forms of taxation, the "Fair Tax" system would impose a 23% sales tax hike, lampooned in the ad as "Ron DeSalesTax had a plan- to make you pay more."
The Washington Examiner quoted former DeSantis press secretary Bryan Griffin, who called the ad "dishonest" and pointed to positive aspects of the Fair Tax law pushed by DeSantis, including disbanding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
"In Congress, the governor supported the concept of a Fair Tax, a plan to lower the overall tax burden on an individual by replacing all federal taxes — including income tax — with a lower tax. The plan also sought to end the IRS which, at the time, was being weaponized by the Obama administration. To describe only part of the plan in an attack is dishonest," Griffin told the Examiner.
Moreover, Griffin highlighted Florida's tax climate as an impetus for the Sunshine State being the country's fastest-growing state in 2022, with one resident being none other than Trump himself.
"Incidentally, Florida's favorable tax climate has encouraged a record Trump number of people to move to the Sunshine State, including former President Donald Trump," Griffin stated.
In April, MAGA Inc. released an ad parodying the allegation that DeSantis once ate a pudding cup with his fingers, claiming he " loves sticking his fingers where they don't belong," referring to his previous support for cutting Medicare and Social Security.
The pro-DeSantis PAC Never Back Down immediately struck back with ads citing Trump's apparent willingness to enact gun control measures and questioning why Trump is attacking DeSantis instead of Democrats.
Of course, the ad war is only part of the Trump-DeSantis rivalry.
DeSantis recently rallied much of Florida's Republican legislature to his side, while Trump has maintained support from Florida's Representatives in the House.
Moreover, Trump has frequently cited his popularity in the polls compared to DeSantis, saying in a recent interview, "I'm doing much better against Biden than [DeSantis] is in the polls, and I'm doing much better against him. I mean I'm beating [DeSantis] by 40 points in some polls, so he can talk about what he wants."
Once DeSantis announces, we can expect the rivalry to erupt into a full-scale war.
