Gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds said Democrats in Washington have persecuted President Donald Trump worse than Richard Nixon.
“He’s been persecuted more than any modern politician,” Donalds told attendees of the Florida Freedom Forum. “They probably did more than to Nixon, whether it’s the indictments, the impeachments, the investigations, now we’re realizing just how disgusting the Democrats are and how they manipulated the intelligence community just because they couldn’t take losing.”
The U.S. Representative already has Trump’s endorsement for Governor, and at the Republican Party of Florida gathering in Orlando, he reminded voters of the personal relationship he enjoys with the Commander-in-Chief.
That included discussing sitting in Trump’s audience box at the Republican National Convention and visiting with him at stock car races at the Daytona International Speedway. He shared stories in a “Fireside Chat” interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson on the Orlando stage.
He said the party should continue to rally around Trump, but also to avoid Primary divisions heading into the 2026 Midterms.
“In the state of Florida, we are winning,” Donalds said, “and the only way to stop winning is when we start fighting each other, because this person wants to be in charge and that person wants to be in charge, or I want my committee, or you can’t have your committee.”
For the moment, Donalds faces only minor opposition for the Republican nomination for Governor, but rumors continue to swirl he will have a GOP opponent.
State Sen. Jay Collins, a Tampa Republican, spoke after Donalds, hours after telling press he believes Florida voters deserve a choice in the Primary.
And many allies of Gov. Ron DeSantis still say First Lady Casey DeSantis may run to succeed her husband since he is term-limited next year.
Donalds, for his part, praised Gov. DeSantis’ leadership, while declining to say how many of his policies he will aggressively pursue.
He declined to weigh in on the Governor’s push for congressional reapportionment and redistricting mid-decade.
“As a member of Congress I will not engage in redistricting conversations, and the reason why is I don’t want to be in a redistricting lawsuit,” he said. “What I would say to the governor and to my colleagues in the legislature, I believe that you should always be looking at The makeup of congressional districts to make sure they’re representative.”
Johnson also asked Donalds about Alligator Alcatraz, a migrant facility he visited when DeSantis gave a tour there last month. But Donalds said he doesn’t know how long the facility needs to be in use.
“My hope is that after we called this last victory in the country about illegal immigration that the Democrats decide to change course and make sure that border security is non-negotiable,” he said. “You may not need a facility like Alligator Alcatraz.”
He said Florida will continue to require every law enforcement agency in the state to maintain cooperative agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport undocumented migrants. But with a sound immigration system, he hopes facilities to handle thousands of detainees won’t always be necessary.
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