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The Washington Post sent shockwaves across social media on Sunday after reporting a meeting between President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that broke “a years-long chill” between the pair.
The outlet said that its sources “spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private deliberations,” which appeared to revolve around fundraising efforts.
Florida real estate investor Steve Witkoff reportedly asked the 45th president’s team if Trump would be willing to meet with DeSantis. Witkoff was also present for the meeting, according to the outlet.
The Post wrote that the brokers of the meeting hoped for a reconciliation between the two men after both spent several months during the GOP primary taking political shots at one another.
The outlet claimed that its sources said Trump’s advisers wanted DeSantis to “tap his donor network to help raise significant sums of money for the general election.” After holding friendly talks for “several hours,” the two-term governor reportedly “agreed to help Trump.”
At the end of March, the Biden campaign reported $192 million in cash. Trump’s campaign had $93.1 million on hand just before a fundraising event that brought in more than $50 million in donations. The Post wrote that DeSantis “built a wide network of wealthy patrons whose assistance would be valuable in helping Trump try to close the gap.”
Additionally, DeSantis could be looking to improve his relationship with Trump “as he eyes his political future,” according to the Post, which wrote that DeSantis was viewed “as weakened after a shellacking by Trump in the primary.”
Following reports of the meeting, social media flurried with speculation that DeSantis was going to be Trump’s pick for vice president, but that was quickly shut down by Politico reporter Kimberly Leonard.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Leonard emphatically wrote, “No – the meeting was NOT about a VP spot. Gov. DeSantis wants to help with fundraising for Trump for the general election.” She continued, writing, “It’ll help make peace, positioning him for influence and a future run.”
During a press conference last month, DeSantis was asked if he would be campaigning for President Trump in the months leading up to the election. He pointed out that Florida would not “be a state that’s competitive in November,” but indicated that he was interested in helping out on the national level.
