'Thank God!' Ron DeSantis mocked as Florida Gov says he will not consider being Trump’s running mate

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has declined to be considered as former President Donald Trump's running mate, despite being mentioned as a potential candidate for the position.

The 45-year-old Republican is currently exploring other opportunities, including the possibility of running for the White House in the next election cycle, according to the New York Post.

During a thank-you call with Republican delegates who were recruited to this summer’s nominating convention, Governor DeSantis expressed his gratitude and clarified that he is not interested in the vice-presidential position.

“People were mentioning me (as a potential vice president). I am not doing that,” DeSantis explained on Wednesday, one day after Trump disclosed the former GOP rival was on his ‘short list’.

What did DeSantis say about Trump’s potential VP picks?

Governor DeSantis also discussed who he believes former President Trump should appoint as his running mate.

“I know some people are really actively seeking it. It seems to me, just from watching kind of the body language and stuff, that you have a handful of folks who seem to be auditioning for it,” he said.

“I think my criteria (for running mate) was different than what probably Donald Trump’s criteria will be,” the governor continued.

“My criteria was, basically, I need someone who can do the job if it came to that, and I would have been the third-youngest president elected. So chances are, actually I would probably be in pretty good shape, but you never know what else can happen, it’s happened before,” he argued.

“So you need someone who can just go in, day one, no problem, they can do the job,” DeSantis added, claiming that he would have been “partial to governors” had his campaign ventured that far.

“I’m not sure that those are necessarily going to be the criteria that Donald Trump uses. I think he’s going to probably use different criteria. I’ve heard that they are looking more at identity politics. I think that’s a mistake,” DeSantis remarked, adding, “I think you should just focus on who you think the best person for the job would be.”

DeSantis on potential 2028 White House run

Regarding a prospective 2028 presidential bid, DeSantis, who is scheduled to vacate his current position in January 2027, stated he hasn't "ruled anything out."

“We’re still in this election cycle, so it’s presumptuous to say this or that,” the Florida Governor said.

“I think a lot happens in politics,” he remarked, noting he had heard a “lot of people on the ground” in early states who said they would support him next time around.

On January 21 this year, Governor DeSantis suspended his campaign for the presidency after receiving fewer votes than Trump in the Iowa caucus held six days earlier.

In addition, the Florida governor endorsed Trump over their mutual 2024 rival, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.

DeSantis also opened up about the severe criticisms he faced from Trump and his supporters during the campaign.

“I think (Trump’s) got people in his inner circle who were a part of our orbit years ago that we fired, and I think some of that is they have an ax to grind,” the governor claimed.

“The dynamic of the race is not that they were attacking me and Republican voters all of a sudden didn’t like me,” DeSantis argued. “That wasn’t it at all. The dynamics of the race were, he kept getting indicted and he drew more support out of sympathy for that, and then he had the conservative media that basically rallied to him and made it where a lot of voters thought his nomination was inevitable.”

“In Iowa, the reason why turnout was so low,” he asserted, was because “a lot of conservative voters … had just tuned out the process because they thought he was inevitable… That was our responsibility to try and change that dynamic. That’s why we were on the ground so much in Iowa.”

Donald Trump said Tuesday evening during a Fox News Town Hall that he had selected Ron DeSantis, former Democratic Rep Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, Sen Tim Scott (R-SC), Rep Byron Donalds (R-Fla), biotech multimillionaire Vivek Ramaswamy and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to be on his “short list” for the probable 2024 Republican ticket.

Internet trolls DeSantis for saying 'no' to being Trump's running mate

People on X mocked the 45-year-old Florida Governor for choosing to sit out this election cycle and prepare for the next one in four years.

One X user remarked, "Thank GOD!!!"

Another quipped, "2028 isn't happening and he knows it."

Someone else said, "His 2028 dreams are just that. No one is ever voting for him again."

One user claimed, "Trump will throw the VP under the bus as soon as he is able to. If he doesn’t go to prison first."

Another noted, "Hey Ronny. No one asked you. So chill TF out."

"Good. Wasn't gonna happen anyway," a tweet read.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.