United States | Lexington

Ron DeSantis has some lessons for America’s politicians

He is showing how hard it is to run for president in general, and against Donald Trump in particular

Ron De Santis in hunting gear shooting himself in the face whilst Donald Trump as a rabbit looks on unharmed
Illustration: KAL

“God looked down on his planned paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker’—so God gave us Trump.” Thus intones the narrator of a video Donald Trump shared on his social-media platform, Truth Social, earlier this month. Amid the huffing and puffing, a mischievous, even puncturing note can also be heard: Mr Trump, as God’s chosen agent, will not only “fight the Marxists” but also pause to “eat supper”. After taming the “cantankerous” World Economic Forum, the gravelly voice deadpans, Mr Trump might “come home hungry” yet he will wait “until the First Lady is done with lunch with friends—then tell the ladies to be sure and come back real soon”.

Explore more

This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “Back to DeFuture”

From the January 13th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

More from United States

Xiaohongshu And TikTok Logos

A protest against America’s TikTok ban is mired in contradiction

Another Chinese app is not the alternative some young Americans think it is

Joe Biden drives a machine that's rolling out a carpet of the US flag for Donald Trump to walk on

How Joe Biden wound up serving Donald Trump

In some ways, his administration will look less like an interregnum than like MAGA-lite


Kids skate at the Venice Skatepark in LA, which is covered in ashes as smoke rises from the Palisades Fire

How bad will the smoke be for Angelenos’ health?

Expect more sickness and disrupted schooling


Should you have to prove your age before watching porn?

America’s Supreme Court weighs a Texan law aimed at protecting kids

Tulsi Gabbard, Sean Penn and the hunt for an American hostage

A controversial trip to Syria in 2017 produced a possible sighting of Austin Tice, an imprisoned journalist

How flush Americans feel depends on their views of Donald Trump

Republicans expect a Trumponomics boom, Democrats dread a bust