I Knew the DeSantis Campaign Reminded Me of Something...
DeSantis and Cruz both went all-in on anti-trans politics in their presidential bids.
Hey all! Parker here.
I’d like to offer a big thanks to Assigned Media’s Evan Urquhart for contributing yesterday’s guest essay about Ron DeSantis, ambition, and bigotry. I loved it. If you missed it, please check it out here:
The Anti-Trans Crusade Was Supposed to Make DeSantis President. What Happens Now That He’s Gone?
Hey everyone, a quick note from Parker here. I’d planned to try to write something about Ron DeSantis dropping out of the presidential race, but I’ll be honest: anything that requires diving head-first into the anti-trans world (as most things involving DeSantis do, by necessity) takes a pretty massive toll on my mental health. That’s why I was grateful …
When editing that piece, I was reminded that this was exactly how Ted Cruz’s 2016 campaign played out, as well.
Deep into the primary, Cruz needed what amounted to a miracle to overcome Trump. He decided to go all-in on arguing that Trump was insufficiently anti-trans. By this point, Trump had endorsed some wildly transphobic policies, many of which he would enact, so it was pretty goofy on Cruz’s part — as it was on DeSantis’s part — to think this would work.
For instance, this is what Cruz’s late-stage campaign rallies looked and sounded like:
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