Ron DeSantis’s declaration last night that he was running for president was a milestone in the history of modern American conservatism – a moment when the right abandoned its old champion and moved to a new one. Not from Trump to DeSantis, but from Fox News to Twitter. The Florida governor’s campaign was announced on Twitter Spaces, the platform’s live audio tool. So it was a shame for him and Twitter’s new owner, Elon Musk, that the start of their interview was delayed by glitches and thousands of listeners were dropped or had left by the end because of intermittent sound. DeSantis said without mentioning Trump that government wasn’t about building a brand, and later attacked “gender ideology” in the military. Trump supporters outnumber his rival’s two to one, but the race is long and Twitter may yet lend DeSantis a hand. Musk told the WSJ this week America needs a “normal” president.
