WASHINGTON – Ron DeSantis made another rite of passage as a Republican presidential candidate Thursday: a confrontation with a reporter.
“What are you talking about? … Are you blind? Are you blind?” DeSantis barked at an Associated Press reporter who asked why the candidate didn’t take questions from the crowd at a New Hampshire event.
DeSantis, who is on a tour of early delegate contest states, indicated that he preferred to mingle after speeches: “People are coming up to me, talking to me whatever they want to talk to me about.”
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From Richard Nixon to Donald Trump, Republicans candidates have a storied history of arguing with reporters – it doesn’t seem to hurt them much with conservative voters who have long been suspicious of the mainstream media.
DeSantis himself has largely avoided what he calls “the legacy media,” and has dealt mostly with conservative outlets.
In its report on DeSantis’ first appearance in New Hampshire as a bona fide presidential candidate, the Associated Press said DeSantis “left the stage without inviting any questions from voters, which is typically expected of presidential candidates competing for voters in the first-in-the-nation primary state. Asked why he hadn’t taken voter questions, DeSantis lashed out at a reporter.”
AP also noted: “DeSantis also didn’t take audience questions over two days in Iowa, though he did mingle with supporters in the crowd after making remarks.”
DeSantis opponents, meanwhile, enjoyed the spectacle.
Democratic Party spokesman Ammar Moussa tweeted: “Kinda early to be snapping at reporters.”
After a recording of the confrontation surfaced on social media, Moussa added: “There’s that famous thin skin!”
