In South Carolina, Ron DeSantis prepares a last stand – and a way out

Lexington, South Carolina CNN —

With most of the political world closely watching New Hampshire this weekend, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis instead spent Saturday 900 miles away in South Carolina, laying the groundwork for his presidential campaign’s last stand.

“I’m asking for your support as we get into this primary next month,” DeSantis told supporters at a Florence restaurant. “I’ll be a candidate that will be able to bring our party together up and down the ballot, just like I did in Florida. I will always be a candidate that you can be proud of. As president, I will get the job done.”

In a marker of the confusion surrounding his unclear path forward, DeSantis’ campaign late Saturday was still scrambling to figure out which state their candidate would appear in on Sunday. The scheduling fluctuations resulted in DeSantis abruptly canceling plans to appear Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” and NBC’s “Meet the Press.” His campaign quickly chimed in publicly to end speculation about his political future to note that DeSantis will appear in New Hampshire on Sunday.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks to supporters at LaBelle Winery on January 17, 2024, in Rockingham County, New Hampshire.

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Yet, even as he soldiers on, DeSantis increasingly sounds like a candidate wrestling with his relevancy. In the days following his distant second-place finish in Iowa, DeSantis has lashed out at Fox News, bemoaned the money spent against him, blamed cold weather and “very low” enthusiasm for his performance, trivialized the sway of the Hawkeye State Republicans who endorsed him, conceded former President Donald Trump’s edge going forward,