Donald Trump is in Miami this weekend, enjoying rounds of golf while watching his poll numbers soar, making space between him and Ron DeSantis, after the former was indicted in New York several days earlier.
The former president and current White House candidate played a round Saturday morning at the Trump National Doral Hotel in Miami, which has four full golf courses.
Trump, who was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat, looked relaxed as he made the round with some friends, even in the chaos of his indictment earlier this week.
On Tuesday, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office indicted Trump on 34 criminal counts, most of which revolve around hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
He pleaded not guilty in New York and immediately returned to Florida to give an impassioned speech, affirming his position of innocence and claiming that the witch hunt was on.
Former President Donald Trump played a round of golf Saturday morning on one of four courses at the Trump National Doral Hotel in Miami
Trump, who was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat, looked relaxed as he made the round with some friends, even in the chaos of his indictment earlier this week.
While Trump has been officially in the presidential race since November, his leading rival – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis – has yet to officially announce his candidacy for the White House.
DeSantis won another term in the Florida governor’s mansion in November by a margin of nearly 20 points in a state that has in the past been torn between Democrats and Republicans.
In fact, the district where Trump was playing on Saturday had voted blue in the last several elections until Gov. DeSantis switched the district the other way during the last midterm elections.
However, some of that momentum appears to be slowing as Trump rises in the polls at the expense of the governor.
A Yahoo poll released days after Trump’s impeachment showed Trump with a nearly 30-point lead over DeSantis, showing Trump’s gain of about 20 points in the polls since January.
Regardless of Trump’s big lead over DeSantis, according to the Yahoo poll, the same poll showed voters are largely unsupportive of Trump taking a second term if the indictment results in his conviction.
When asked: “If Donald Trump is convicted of a crime in this case, do you think he should be allowed to serve as president again in the future?” 52 percent said it shouldn’t.
Thirty-one percent of respondents said that he should still serve another term. That split among Republicans was 56 percent think he should be president again, 24 percent think he shouldn’t, and 20 percent aren’t sure.
A poll after the indictment showed Trump leading DeSantis
Trump sits in court in Manhattan Tuesday surrounded by his defense team. On Wednesday, he sent a statement praising the professionalism of the police and court staff he met the day before
During his final speech, DeSantis, who has not yet announced his bid for the Republican presidential nomination, did not mention Trump by name, but instead called on Bragg to file a “flawed indictment against a former president of the United States.”
Donald Trump’s allies remain optimistic that his indictment has increased his popularity as their research shows he is winning the Republican leadership race.
A poll by the Trump campaign team finds that 51% of Republicans see him as their favorite candidate for 2024 – what puts him ahead of his biggest threat, Ron DeSantis, who scored 21 percent.
Team Trump claims the former president has raised more than $10 million since his indictment last week.
On Wednesday, following his court appearance, Trump wrote to his followers about the experience:
“The great patriots on and off the court on Tuesday were incredibly nice, in fact, they couldn’t have been nicer,” he said. “The court attendance, police officers, and others were all very professional, and represented New York City well.”
Trump blasted Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, saying he campaigned “about the fact that he’s going to get President Trump.”
