Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis repeatedly referred to President Joe Biden as “Brandon” during an interview broadcast on Monday.
DeSantis made the comments during a discussion on the podcast “The Truth with Lisa Boothe.”
“I think we’ve got a lot of problems in the country. I think you look at some of these big institutions, we see with corporate America, big tech censorship, we see our bureaucracy totally out of control. Obviously, Brandon in the White House is a total disaster,” DeSantis said.
“Stand for the right things, but show courage, show backbone, and not back down from these people. If we back down, they’re gonna steamroll us!” he added.
The governor’s references to Biden as “Brandon” are based on the popular “Let’s go Brandon” phrase that turned viral in October after NASCAR driver Brandon Brown won a race in Talladega, Alabama. During Brown’s interview, the crowd loudly chanted “F**k Joe Biden.” The NBC Sports host claimed the people were shouting support for the driver, saying, “Let’s go Brandon.” The phrase soon became the basis for using the phrase in other venues, with “Let’s Go Brandon” finding its way to everything from bumper stickers to shirts as a way to disparage the president’s woeful leadership.
During Monday’s podcast, DeSantis also argued that conservatives in Florida have been unwilling to back down from the Left’s censorship.
“I think in Florida, we’ve been willing to stand time after time, when it gets hot, when we’re facing the fire and we do not back down,” the governor added.
The podcast concluded with Boothe stating, “I feel like we should end it with a, ‘Let’s go, Brandon!’”
DeSantis used the remark to double down on his take regarding Biden’s failures in the White House.
“You know, it’s funny, the media doesn’t like that when you say Brandon,” DeSantis responded.
“But what I tell them is, as long as he’s treating my state the way he is, stiffing seniors of relief from disasters, not doing anything to lower gas prices, allowing all these illegals across the border, as long as he’s doing that, he’s Brandon to me,” he added.
.@GovRonDeSantis: “The media doesn’t like that when you say Brandon, but what I tell them is, as long as he’s treating my state the way he is, stiffing seniors of relief from disasters, not doing anything to lower gas prices…he’s Brandon to me.”
Listen: https://t.co/OBnBigUEBW pic.twitter.com/CaDx9ebdMZ
— Lisa Boothe (@LisaMarieBoothe) May 2, 2022
The 38-minute episode also covered a variety of other controversies faced by the Florida governor, including the issue of gender identity among young children.
The podcast was released after DeSantis vowed on Friday to challenge Biden’s proposed “Disinformation Governance Board,” comparing it to an Orwellian “Ministry of Truth.”
“You cannot have a Ministry of Truth in this country,” DeSantis said in remarks made Friday morning in Williston, Florida.
“Let’s get real here. Let’s make sure we are doing things to benefit Floridians and Americans, but we’re not going to let Biden get away with this one. We will be fighting back,” he added. “Let’s get real here. Let’s make sure we are doing things to benefit Floridians and Americans, but we’re not going to let Biden get away with this one. We will be fighting back.”
.@GovRonDeSantis: “I would ban the sex change…you can’t get a tattoo if you’re 12 years old. When they say gender-affirming care, what they mean a lot of times is…you’re castrating a young boy, you’re sterilizing a young girl…”
Full interview: https://t.co/OBnBigUEBW pic.twitter.com/lpM4zcx9Tt
— Lisa Boothe (@LisaMarieBoothe) May 2, 2022
The governor compared Biden’s efforts to war on conservatives protesting the “decaying and discredited ruling elite in this country,” according to Florida Politics, calling the Biden administration’s proposed board a “belated April Fool’s Joke” intended to “stifle dissent.”
“They want to be able to put out false narratives without people being able to speak out and fight back,” DeSantis continued. “They want to be able to say things like ‘Russian collusion’ and perpetuate hoaxes and have people like us be silenced.”