Gov. Ron DeSantis laughed off a reporter's question Friday asking if he might appoint himself to Sen. Marco Rubio's soon-to-be vacant seat.
The answer?
"Absolutely not!" The Florida Governor chuckled, speaking at a Jacksonville press conference to discuss school choice. This is a far cry from rumblings that DeSantis could best further his political ambitions from D.C.'s upper chamber. Politicos noted that DeSantis will term out as Governor in 2026 anyway, so why not represent Florida up north?
Gov. DeSantis says no.
He poked fun at media outlets sourcing anonymous people "familiar with the governor's thinking," who say he might replace Rubio, claiming he finds it "funny."
"That means they don't know what the hell they're talking about...It's all made up and they're just guessing," DeSantis said. "I was never in consideration for [the seat], trust me.
"It was never something that I considered, and we've done so much," he continued. "I think I probably have done more in the last week than most U.S. Senators do in a term. It's just the reality of being an executive versus being in the legislative branch."
If not him—and he's saying it never would have been—the Governor still has yet to announce who will fill Rubio's shoes after President-elect Donald Trump snagged him for the Secretary of State role. Top names floated for the position include Attorney General Ashley Moody, Chief of Staff James Uthmeier, or Lieutenant General Jeanette Nuñez.
Other less likely possibilities include a military leader, such as state Sen. Jay Collins who is a former U.S. Army Green Beret.
Though he has yet to announce the name, he's stressed that Florida's next Senator must be tough on immigration, opposed to H1-B visas granted to foreigners seeking a specialized profession in the U.S., financially and Constitutionally conservative, and will "push back on the insanity" of D.C.
No matter who it is, DeSantis has promised since Rubio's nomination in November that he will announce the appointment by early to mid-January. On Friday, he doubled down.
"I told people we would do it in the first half of January, and I think we're probably on course to do that," he said. "But clearly we will have somebody in place ready to go on Jan. 20.
"I think that's important," said DeSantis.
