Democratic strategist Van Jones criticized Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R) speech at the Republican National Convention (RNC) on Tuesday night, saying it “sounded like a chat-up line for mean people.”
“He was awful. Ron was awful,” Jones told a CNN panel in response to the convention speech. “He sounded like a chat room GPT for mean people.”
“So he said every mean thing a Republican can say really fast,” he continued, “and it didn’t go over very well.”
The second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee concluded with speeches from many notable figures, including Senate candidates, House leadership and former President Trump’s one-time rival for vice presidential nomination. The former president chose Sen. J.D. Vance, who will speak on Wednesday, as his running mate on Monday.
DeSantis, once seen as the Republican front-runner to beat Trump in 2024, drew loud applause from the crowd at the start of his speech after he criticized President Biden, calling the administration “Bernie Weekend” amid concerns about Biden’s age and mental health.
“Our adversaries don’t limit their planning to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. We need a commander in chief who can lead 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” DeSantis said. “America cannot afford four more years of a ‘Bernie’s Weekend’ presidency.”
The Florida governor, who dropped his presidential bid in January, dismissed the idea that the state would be a battleground for the Democratic Party this fall.
“For decades, elections in my home state have been decided by slim margins. Today, bold leadership has seen the Democratic Party crumble and the left retreat,” DeSantis said. “Florida is a strongly Republican state.”
Biden and his campaign have said they will seek to win Trump’s home state in November.
Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor who was Trump’s final rival before he suspended his campaign in March, was added to the list of speakers at the last minute for the Republican National Convention. Haley opened her speech by acknowledging that she was attending “in the name of unity” at the former president’s request.
After a tough primary battle with the Republican nominee, Haley said at the party’s convention on Tuesday that she was a “strong supporter” of Trump.
Jones criticized her performance.
“Nikki Haley looked like someone who had to go to her ex-husband’s wedding and give a toast,” he said Tuesday. “She was miserable to say it and Trump was miserable to hear it. So all of that was totally ineffective.”
Jones said Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a former press secretary for President Trump, gave a “speech tonight.”
“But Sarah Huckabee Sanders was incredibly compelling to me,” Jones said. “She told a personal story that resonated with me. I think what conservatives feel is a resentment that the liberal culture has belittled them and attacked them and ignored them. She didn’t use rhetoric. She told a personal story that was moving and powerful.”
“I think it worked really well for them to have a Southern storyteller bring that story back to their hometown,” he added, “so I think she gave the speech that night.”
