‘Are you blind? Are you blind?’ Ron DeSantis hits out at Associated Press reporter for asking why he didn’t take any voter questions – as he posed for selfies and signed autographs
Ron DeSantis exploded in front of an Associated Press reporter Thursday for asking why he wasn’t taking any questions from voters during a campaign stop in Manchester, New Hampshire.
The Republican presidential hopeful of 2024 started the event alongside his wife Casey with a speech covering his priorities, including the “war on revival” and “sending Joe Biden to his basement.”
He then met some of the 250 supporters in the crowd to pose for selfies and sign autographs, when he lashed out at reporter Steve Peoples.
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Ron DeSantis exploded in front of an Associated Press reporter on Thursday for asking why he wasn’t taking any questions from voters during a campaign stop in Manchester, New Hampshire
“People come up to me, talk to me. What are you talking about? Are you blind? Are you blind? People come up to me, talk to me about whatever they want to talk to me about,’ he said in the moment captured by BNC News.
The Florida governor was speaking one-on-one with voters, but did not respond to questions from reporters.
His security guard then took him away from the press.
“It’s disappointing to hear,” said Vikram Mansharamani, an entrepreneur and former Republican Senate candidate, after watching video of the exchange first published by NBC News.
After refusing to take questions from the public after his first campaign event in New Hampshire today, Ron DeSantis lashed out at a reporter for asking him about it while chatting one-on-one with crowd members.
Here is the video, via @NBCNews ¿> pic.twitter.com/Z2WtLy0JNj
—Jonathan Allen (@jonallendc) June 1, 2023
The Republican presidential hopeful of 2024 started the event alongside his wife Casey with a speech about his priorities, including the “war on revival” and “sending Joe Biden to his basement.”
He then met some of the 250 supporters in the crowd to pose for selfies and sign autographs, when he lashed out at reporter Steve Peoples.
“I didn’t want a monologue; I wanted to see how he interacted with the public,” the 49-year-old added.
DeSantis publicist Bryan Griffin slammed the media after the tense exchange.
“This AP reporter asked this question while surrounded by New Hampshire voters asking him questions and taking photos,” he tweeted.
“Perfectly illustrative of modern media closing their eyes and ears to the truth to push their narrative.”
DeSantis’ speech to the mostly retiree audience mostly included lines from previous campaign stops.
But he received a round of applause when he explained that he had banned gender transition surgery for minors.
DeSantis, dressed casually in blue jeans and black leather boots, was flanked by his glamorous television journalist wife, Casey.
The 42-year-old gave a thinly veiled nod to her Sunshine State husband’s politics as she wore a fitted blue sweatshirt with an Alligator logo warning: ‘Don’t tread on Florida’
Scott Nelson, a 75-year-old retired entrepreneur, said the governor’s performance was “great” but insisted it was “too early to make a decision” on how to vote.
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