DeSantis says Trump can't win in a general election: 'Those are just the realities'

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sat down with "Special Report" on Monday for a wide-ranging interview, offering insight into Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings and whether former President Donald Trump can win in a general election. 

DeSantis said he doesn’t believe Trump can win in 2024 because there are "too many voters who just aren't going to vote for him going forward." 

"I saw it in Florida in my re-election. You know, I won the first time by less than a percent, [the] second time by ‘20. Why did people vote against me in ‘18 but then voted for me in ‘22? The number one reason they gave was because of Trump because in ‘18 they said that they were voting against Trump… voting against me to vote against Trump, even though they didn't know much about me," he said. "By ‘22, that was there."

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The Florida governor handily won re-election in November 2022, defeating Democratic candidate Charlie Christ by nearly 20 points. 

DeSantis told host Bret Baier that Trump can’t win crucial states like Georgia and Arizona in a general election. 

"The polls that come out… I beat Biden in Georgia. Trump doesn't. I beat Biden soundly in Arizona. Trump doesn't. Those are just the realities," he said.

"And I also think in terms of the base, you need to have a cadre of personnel. If you want to slay this administrative state, you've got to be disciplined, you've got to be focused, and you've got to have people surrounding you that are going to go and support the mission. I think the former president would have [a] very difficult time getting the type of personnel to join the administration that you would need to actually bring this stuff to fruition," he continued. 

Trump continues to hold a commanding lead over the field in some GOP primary polls.

The Florida governor rejected criticism from Ed Rollins, a longtime Republican political consultant, who said DeSantis is a "flawed candidate."

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"I think he’s been a very flawed candidate. I know some of the people around him, and some of them are good, talented people. But every time he opens his mouth, he has a tendency to — shall we say — think out-loud, and he clearly doesn’t understand the game. … When you get into these culture wars the way that he has, the vast majority of people don’t understand what they are," Rollins said in an interview with Rolling Stone.

DeSantis explained that Rollins' remarks were "obviously nonsense" and that he governs boldly and unapologetically.  

"I delivered big results and we won by 20 points. You don't win a state like Florida that big if you're not doing things that are resonating. And I would push back when I hear about [the] culture war, standing up for the rights of parents, standing up for the well-being of children, that's not some, 'culture war," he said. "That is central to the lives of tens of millions of people throughout this country. It is the right thing to do to stand with our kids. It is the right thing to impose indoctrination in the schools. And I totally reject being in Iowa and New Hampshire that people don't think that those are important."

Baier also asked the Florida governor about former Hunter Biden business partner Devon Archer speaking before Congress about the Biden family's foreign business dealings and allegations of influence peddling. 

DeSantis said if the first son were a Republican, he'd "be in jail by now."

"You look at all this smoke. And yet the FBI, where's the search warrants? Where's the grand jury? Where's the aggressiveness that they've shown going after some Republicans you just don't see," he explained. 

Fox News senior congressional correspondent Chad Pergram reported that Devon Archer said Hunter Biden put his father, then-Vice President Joe Biden, on speakerphone while meeting with business partners at least 20 times. 

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Archer also described how Joe Biden was put on the phone to sell "the brand."

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