How Ron DeSantis became a presidential candidate and what could happen next

"nn"I think (DeSantis') rather indirect approach has been driving the Trump campaign crazy," he said."

This is a negative sentiment.

"Cuccinelli said it's not guaranteed that even as an announced candidate, DeSantis will choose to directly engage with Trump's attacks."

This is a negative sentiment.

"Trump has also been attacking DeSantis unrelentingly."

This is a negative sentiment.

"nnOther observers have noted that DeSantis can't afford to hit back too hard, for risk of alienating the base that he and Trump share."

This is a negative sentiment.

"That final point, in addition to the many Republican victories up and down the ballot in Florida in November, poses a direct contrast to Trump, who has been widely blamed for Republicans' lackluster results nationally during the midterms."

This is a negative sentiment.

"The contest will be a test of whether Republicans are ready to look to the man who has branded himself as Trump's successor -- measuring how much control the former president still has over the populist MAGA movement he created.nn"

This is a negative sentiment.

"And as Trump's growing list of endorsements from Florida's members of Congress shows, DeSantis has not invested in building deep relationships with other politicians."

This is a negative sentiment.

"President Trump, he's had three election cycles where he has hurt Republicans running for office instead of helped them," said Ken Cuccinelli, founder of the pro-DeSantis super PAC, Never Back Down, which has been running TV ads across the country."

This is a negative sentiment.

"But Trump has more experience under the national microscope."

This is a positive sentiment.

"When one U.S. representative, Greg Steube, a Republican from Sarasota, was asked why he endorsed Trump, he told Politico that DeSantis had never once reached out during Steube's five years in Congress."

This is a negative sentiment.

"When one U.S. representative, Greg Steube, a Republican from Sarasota, was asked why he endorsed Trump, he told Politico that DeSantis had never once reached out during Steube's five years in Congress."

This is a negative sentiment.

""Gov. DeSantis gets into the race with a lot of positive attributes that suggest he can run an effective and potentially wiing campaign, but like in any case, you have to earn it.""He starts in an enviable position," he added."

This is a positive sentiment.

"That's exactly what DeSantis is doing," said David Jolly, a former Republican member of Congress who served with DeSantis and is now a political commentator."

This is a negative sentiment.

""There is still time, and especially given the current and looming legal woes of former President Trump, I still believe anything is possible," she added."

This is a positive sentiment.

"Or say ... 'Maybe we need a new general.'"nnSo far, polling suggests the 2024 Republican primary is Trump's to lose."

This is a negative sentiment.

""Are they going to hunker in with Trump and go one more time up the hill?"

This is a negative sentiment.

"nnCuccinelli was formerly a high-ranking official in the Department of Homeland Security in the Trump administration."

This is a negative sentiment.

""He needs to come out of the gate as a serious contender in the early primary states," said Lauren Zelt, a Republican strategist who splits her time between Key Largo and Washington and formerly worked on Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential bid."

This is a positive sentiment.

""Whether it's the House, the Senate, governors, state legislative races, Ron DeSantis (as the nominee) will result in more members ... being Republican.""

This is a negative sentiment.

"Just a little over four years ago, Ron DeSantis took the reins of the nation's third-largest state as a fresh-faced young governor with no executive experience who benefitted heavily from Florida's embrace of Donald Trump."

This is a positive sentiment.

"Just a little over four years ago, Ron DeSantis took the reins of the nation's third-largest state as a fresh-faced young governor with no executive experience who benefitted heavily from Florida's embrace of Donald Trump."

This is a positive sentiment.