Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is publishing a book hailing his COVID-19 pandemic response and leadership, a sign some believe points to a 2024 GOP primary challenge to former President Donald Trump.
"The Courage to Be Free: Florida's Blueprint for America's Revival" is being released by HarperCollins on Feb. 28.
"No American leader has accomplished more for his state than Gov. Ron DeSantis," the book's pitch reads. "Now, he reveals how he did it."
The hardcover version is available for pre-order on Amazon at $28.99.
"He played baseball for Yale, graduated with honors from Harvard Law School, and served in Iraq and in the halls of Congress," the synopsis continues. "But in all these places, Ron DeSantis learned the same lesson: He didn't want to be part of the leftist elite.
"His heart was always for the people of Florida, one of the most diverse and culturally rich states in the union. Since becoming governor of the sunshine state, he has fought — and won — battle after battle, defeating not just opposition from the political left, but a barrage of hostile media coverage proclaiming the end of the world."
The book will delve into DeSantis' COVID-19 policies that permitted Florida to grow as many northern blue states and California saw mass outmigration amid lockdown policies.
"When he implemented evidence-based and freedom-focused COVID-19 policies, the press launched a smear campaign against him, yet Florida's economy thrived, its education system outperformed the nation, and its COVID mortality rate for seniors was lower than that in 38 states," the synopsis continues. "When he enacted policies to keep leftist political concepts like critical race theory and woke gender ideology out of Florida's classrooms, the media demagogued his actions, but parents across Florida rallied to his cause.
"Dishonest attacks from the media don't deter him. In fact, DeSantis keeps racking up wins for Floridians."
Critical race theory is defined by the Encyclopedia Britannica as the concept in which race is a socially constructed category ingrained in American law intended to maintain social, economic, and political inequalities between whites and nonwhites. It holds that the U.S. society is inherently or systemically racist.
The book also hails DeSantis' rejection of Dr. Anthony Fauci's positions on handling the pandemic.
"A firsthand account from the blue-collar boy who grew up to take on Disney and Dr. Fauci, 'The Courage to Be Free' delivers something no other politician's memoir has before: stories of victory," the synopsis concludes. "This book is a winning blueprint for patriots across the country. And it is a rallying cry for every American who wishes to preserve our liberties."
A burgeoning rivalry between Trump and DeSantis is emerging before a potential 2024 GOP primary, with Trump having called his endorsed candidate "Ron DeSanctimonious" for his 2022 gubernatorial campaign ads that suggested he was delivered to Florida by the hand of God on the eighth day — a biblical reference to Genesis.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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