Donald Trump Jr. Warns DeSantis Could Face the Same Weaponization as His Father

Donald Trump Jr. warned during an appearance on the Full Send podcast that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) could face the same weaponization as former President Donald Trump down the road, contending that it is easy to disassociate yourself from that reality when big donors are using you to take down Trump.

Donald Trump Jr. first noted DeSantis’s “flip flop” on Ukraine as a demonstration of the governor’s connections to big donors and the influence they may wield.

“He tried sort of taking the Trump approach, like, maybe war bad and then, like, the donors — that’s a difference,” he said, explaining that DeSantis “sort of took a, like a weak Trump stance on it, you know, and then he was like, well, we must stop it. Putin is an evil dictator, you know, it’s like, holy shit. Your donors got to you.”

That is, perhaps, one of the starkest differences between the two, Don Jr. said, noting that his father is not beholden to donors or the establishment class. Don Jr. continued to build the case that DeSantis is steered by the establishment class and RINO donors, even pointing to his seeming lack of concern when Trump first announced his suspected indictment. Initially, DeSantis dismissed it as a non-issue, shocking and angering many conservatives.

DeSantis — who has not formally announced a presidential bid —  initially said his administration was “not going to be involved” with a “manufactured circus by some Soros DA.”

“I’ve got so many things pending in front of the legislature. I’ve got to spend my time on issues that actually matter to people. I can’t spend my time worrying about things of that nature, so we’re not going to be involved in any way,” he said.

WATCH: Ron DeSantis Breaks Silence on Rumored Trump Indictment

Ron DeSantis / Rumble

After backlash, DeSantis responded fairly quickly to the news of the official indictment, noting that Florida would not assist with any extradition request. However, he did not use Trump’s name.

“If you can’t call out like literally the weaponization of governmental institutions against your citizens — come on, guys,” Don Jr. said before getting into the nitty gritty details of DeSantis’s donor situation.

WATCH:

While he said there are, indeed, big donors on all sides, the Trump campaign “had probably the greatest small dollar donor campaign in the history of America.”

“Blue-collar Americans, you know, like $33 average kind of donation,” he said, explaining that anyone can look this up and see for themselves.

Notably, Trump’s campaign saw $4 million in donations in the 24 hours following the news of his indictment. One-quarter of those were individuals who had never donated to Trump before, and the average contribution was $34, Trump adviser Jason Miller told Breitbart News Saturday earlier this month.

“The people donating to the other side, you know, this guy is worth $9.12 billion. You know what? They want a president that when they call, picks up the damn phone. When they say jump, they jump because you need — you need that check, you need that lifeline, right?” Don Jr. said, explaining the psyche of the donor class.

“Make no mistake, guys, like the donor class, even in Republican … they don’t have the same viewpoint as like the blue collar …  MAGA Republicans, right?” he said, highlighting the hypocrisy of many of these individuals.

Unlike DeSantis, Trump does not need those donors, and they know it, Don Jr. pointed out.

“Trump doesn’t sort of look the same way. You know, DeSantis, who’s a, you know, career politician, like, guess what? He needs that money,” he explained, suggesting that DeSantis is beholden to these donors, who could influence his decisions.

“He needs that money again to further the goal and again, and so he’s got to act. When they say jump, he says how high,” he explained.” And that’s the nature of politics. It’s why they went after Trump so hard in my opinion because they don’t want other people who don’t need them in power, right?”

Don Jr. issued a warning to DeSantis, noting that those same people who are coming after Trump will eventually turn on him if he ever becomes “the guy.”

“It’s easy when you’re trying to pit someone against Trump, because they’ll do whatever they can to help you so you can take out Trump,” he said.

“When you’re the guy, that’s a whole different world. That’s a whole different story. And that’s the way you’re gonna handle it when they’re doing it, you know, generally speaking, how are you gonna do when you’re in the big show?” he asked.

“When Paul Ryan’s  going out and endorsing and Jeff Roe comes and runs his super PAC and Karl Rove is out there —  like, really? You want another Bush administration? That’s fine,” he added.

In January, Trump sharply criticized DeSantis and his donors, asserting both he and they are “Globalist.”