Florida Gov Ron DeSantis’ wife Casey DeSantis says she “loves” her nickname “Walmart Melania,” explaining that she appreciates being likened to the former first lady because she’s “gorgeous,” while the women’s husbands, Mr DeSantis and former President Trump, compete for the 2024 GOP nomination.
“You know it’s funny, these hits from the media. Some of them are so funny they are just laughable,” Ms DeSantis said to a crowd at the Florida Republican Party’s “Freedom Summit” in Kissimmee.
She recalled when her friend called to tell her the media was “hitting” her. Ms DeSantis told the crowd, “They’re ‘hitting’ me? Like what did I do? I’m just standing up for parents’ rights and the innocence of our children, those sorts of things, but they’re hitting me?”
That’s when her friend let her in on the press’s nickname for Florida’s First Lady: “Walmart Melania.”
Ms DeSantis said she told her friend in response: “Awesome! That’s the greatest thing you could call me. For me to be in the same sentence as Melania is a wonderful thing. She’s gorgeous. That’s great!”
“I love it. Score,” she beamed. “And yes, guilty as charged I shop at Walmart. I have a six, five and three-year-old. Do you know how quickly they grow out of these clothes?”
Then she threw in a jab at President Joe Biden. “I need $2 t-shirts, and especially with Biden-flation and ‘Bidenomics,’ everything is getting more expensive.”
She continued, “Speaking of Joe Biden, how nice would it be, by the way, to have a president of the United States, to have their kids bring home homework to the White House instead of cocaine?”
This comment was a reference to cocaine found in the White House in July.
Despite the repeated allegations from the GOP that Hunter Biden, the president’s son who has been transparent about his struggle with addiction and recovery process, was the owner of the cocaine found at the White House, Biden family members were not at the White House on the day the bag of the drug was discovered.
Ms DeSantis’ alignment with Melania Trump is notable, as their husbands’ relationships with their wives appear dramatically different, not to mention the two men are fierce competitors in the 2024 race.
The former first lady rarely appears with her husband — prompting signs asking “Where’s Melania?” and reports that she is renegotiating her prenup with Mr Trump. The Florida governor’s wife, on the other hand, is often seen arm-in-arm with Mr DeSantis, who is positioning himself as the Trump alternative in the next presidential election.
As FiveThirtyEight polling averages showed on 6 November, Mr Trump is carrying 59.3 per cent of the vote, while Mr DeSantis trails in second place with a mere 14 per cent. Some polls are also indicating that Mr DeSantis is falling behind former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley.
