The rivalry between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has heated up, with super PACs and both campaigns releasing ads targeting the other as they face off in the polls.
Super PAC Pro-DeSantis Never Back Down ran several ads directly targeting Haley this week regarding her remarks on Gaza refugees, changing their previous strategy of only targeting former President Donald Trump and President Biden.
The super PAC ad highlighted Haley’s Oct. 15 comments about America being able to “separate civilians from terrorists” by claiming the former UN ambassador wanted to allow refugees from the Gaza Strip — territory controlled by the terrorist group Hamas, which launched a war against Israel on 7 Oct.
One ad, titled “ZERO Gaza refugees,” will be aired on TV and funded by Never Back Down to the tune of about $1 million, a representative of the super PAC told The Post. Other ads are intended to be distributed online.
Another ad also highlighted that DeSantis was the first candidate to oppose admitting Gazans because they were “antisemitic,” and featured footage of Haley saying she would support aid to Gaza in 2017, when she was still a UN envoy.
Haley insists she has never supported accepting Gaza refugees and her campaign has pointed to several media fact-checks that refute DeSantis’ claims.
Haley’s campaign also launched an online ad Friday titled “Desperate DeSantis.”
The ad began by apparently bashing the Florida governor over his personality, which critics said was too “awkward,” and moved on to feature various commentators pointing to DeSantis slipping in the polls.
“Why is Desperate DeSantis attacking Nikki Haley? He lost to Nikki. And it’s easy to see why,” the video reads. “Nikki beats him every time. Sorry Ron. Fake Attack. Five ‘reboot’ campaigns. Fony smiled. Your desperation is becoming more apparent.”
“The Ron DeSantis campaign has had five months of one disaster after another,” Haley campaign spokesman Ken Farnaso said in a statement. “Now, as his campaign breathes its last breath, he’s lying about Nikki Haley’s record because he’s desperate. It doesn’t look good. Voters rallied behind Nikki Haley’s strength and resilience in the face of growing threats around the world. They know he will make America strong and proud.”
Some polls show DeSantis behind Haley, but the Florida governor remains in second place on average nationwide.REUTERS
The escalating attacks come as the two candidates are running for second place behind Trump in key state and federal elections. Both campaigns have said they are putting an emphasis on early contests, with DeSantis’ campaign specifically targeting Iowa as a way to push him past the former president.
Never Back Down said the ad in Haley did not signal a shift in strategy, and insisted that the campaign was a “two-person” race between Trump and DeSantis.
“DeSantis is the only candidate positioned to defeat Trump in Iowa and beyond. We called Nikki Haley out when she stood up for Disney in April and we’re calling her out now because she’s wrong about refugees,” Never Back Down Communications Director Erin Perrine told The Post.
Haley’s campaign saw the attack as evidence of her momentum in the polls.Getty Images
Nationally, DeSantis is now in second place with 12.8%, according to the Real Clear Politics average, compared to Haley’s 7.4% and Trump’s 59.1%.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
