Yahoo Finance Trump Lashes Out at Ron DeSantis Amid Rumors of a 2024 Campaign: 'It's Always About Loyalty'
Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Ron DeSantis (left), Donald Trump
Donald Trump, in one of his first public appearances since announcing his 2024 campaign, lashed out at another Republican who is rumored to be mulling a run for the presidency: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Following a campaign event in South Carolina over the weekend, 76-year-old Trump told the Associated Press that it would be "a great act of disloyalty" if DeSantis, 44, were to run against him in the Republican primary.
"If he runs, that's fine. I'm way up in the polls," Trump told the AP, before claiming that his endorsement of DeSantis is what led the Republican to clinch his first race for governor. "He's going to have to do what he wants to do, but he may run. I do think it would be a great act of disloyalty because, you know, I got him in. He had no chance. His political life was over."
RELATED: Donald Trump Officially Announces He Will Run for President in 2024
Later, while speaking to reporters on board his plane, CNN reports that Trump doubled down on the remarks, saying: "So then when I hear he might run, you know, I consider that very disloyal. But, it's not about loyalty — to me it is, it's always about loyalty. But for a lot of people, it's not about that."
Though Trump and DeSantis were considered close allies while Trump was in office, recent reports have suggested a growing rift leading into the next election cycle.
DeSantis' office has called rumors of a falling out a "fabricated media narrative," though Trump and his allies haven't shut down the reports. Some sources close to the former president even told Rolling Stone that Trump believes the governor is "stealing" some of his mannerisms, such as hand gestures and body language.
DeSantis has demurred when asked about his plans to run for president, telling reporters last September that a White House bid was not on his radar. "I just do my job and we work hard … I hear all this stuff and honestly it's nonsense," he said at the time.
But in an October gubernatorial debate, the Florida governor didn't respond when asked by his Democratic opponent whether he planned to serve his full, four-year term as governor, which would conflict with a run for the presidency.
RELATED: Donald Trump Reportedly Thinks Ron DeSantis Is 'Stealing' His Speaking Style, Mannerisms
Trump officially announced his 2024 presidential campaign in November, an announcement that came amid investigations into his conduct on Jan. 6, 2021 — when a mob of rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol on his behalf in an attempt to stop Joe Biden's election victory from being certified — and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.
The former president has stayed tapped into politics since leaving office, hitting the midterm campaign trail alongside several controversial Republican candidates this year.
Republicans' lackluster performance on Nov. 8 — and voters' clear hesitance to support Trump-backed candidates — led members of his own party to request he sit the 2024 election out.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.
Meanwhile, calls for DeSantis to run for higher office — particularly as he won his gubernatorial race in a landslide amid Republican losses in many other parts of the country — have grown.
Buts Dave Aronberg, state attorney for Palm Beach County, told PEOPLE in an earlier interview, DeSantis would have his work cut out for him in a presidential run. "The Republican Party is still Donald Trump's party, and it's too late now for GOP leaders to throw him overboard. Most of his supporters are loyal to him, not the Republican Party, so if Trump is not the nominee in 2024, he will direct his base to sit home or go elsewhere. And they will."
