Ron DeSantis is āfundamentally authoritarianā, but Donald Trumpās quest for āvengeanceā poses an even greater threat to democracy, Californiaās Democratic governor Gavin Newsom said on Sunday.
Newsom took aim at the leading two candidates for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination during a hard-hitting and wide-ranging interview on NBCās Meet the Press, the final episode with its long-time host Chuck Todd.
āI worry about democracy,ā he said. āI worry about the fetishness for autocracy that weāre seeing not just from Trump, but around the world, and notably across this country.
āIāve made the point about DeSantis that I think heās functionally authoritarian. Iām worried more, in many respects, about Trumpism, which transcends well beyond his term and time in tenure.ā
Newsom added: āThe vengeance in Donald Trumpās heart right now is more of a threat.ā
And I wouldnāt put it past the Democratic Party to try to force him on us.
He would be less awful than Trump, and as long as that bar is cleared, the party will select the rightmost candidate they think they can get away with.