On ‘Full Grassley’ tour, Ron DeSantis casts himself as a red wave catalyst

Gov. Ron DeSantis naturally doesn’t want a blue Congress for his hypothetical presidency and, while touring the Hawkeye State, he’s making the pitch to voters that he has what it takes to create a red wave, describing himself as the “rising tide” that “lifts all boats.”

DeSantis, a Republican presidential contender, last week visited three more counties in Iowa, meaning he’s now 16 counties shy of completing the ‘Full Grassley’ tour. His message to the state’s voters — who enjoy heightened influence because of the front loaded primary caucuses — as he rounds out the tour? Trust me, I’ll make Congress red.

“I think with me on the top of the ticket, that’ll provide some positive lift like we did in Florida, and hopefully we’ll be able to expand the House and then recapture the Senate majority,” DeSantis said on a podcast as part of his mission to go “Full Grassley,” named for the campaign feat of visiting all of the Hawkeye State’s 99 counties — something longtime Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley has historically accomplished with frequency.

“It’s not just going to be about me at the top of the ticket,” DeSantis added. “I’m going to work to help all the Republicans up and down the ballot.”

It’s an interesting message from DeSantis. On one hand, as he mentioned, he is credited with energizing Republican voters in Florida and his popularity at home has heralded the death of Florida’s swing state status.

But he hasn’t seemed to catch traction outside of the Sunshine State especially when compared against former President Donald Trump, who some say is responsible for turning the balance of power over to Democrats.

During the interview, DeSantis also seemed to suggest that a Republican President might have some difficulty if Congress remains split or Democrats pick up the House.

“You got to have people in the Legislative Branch that are going to support the agenda,” DeSantis said. “You can’t govern through just executive orders.”

That’s another surprising message, given that DeSantis has framed his candidacy around the idea of a robust Executive Branch and repeatedly called for strong-arm Executive actions. He recently doubled down on his ability to fire DOJ prosecutors, who he believes have been “weaponized” against conservatives like Trump.

He also has a well-established record of testing the limits of his own current Executive power by suspending independently elected officials, for example.

But now he’s downplaying that, and delivering a new message of government coordination.

During the interview, DeSantis spoke of politics being “a team effort” which no doubt surprised many who’ve firsthand felt isolated by DeSantis, whose team-playing abilities aren’t known to extend beyond his time on Yale’s baseball squad.

Perhaps DeSantis knows that Executive power is easier to wield when one party controls the government. That’s something he’s enjoyed for his entire gubernatorial tenure with a GOP-dominated Legislature and Supreme Court padded with Republican appointees, five of whom he’s handpicked.