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Category: Politics
August 28, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics

Desperate DeSantis PAC Dumps $12M of Donor Cash Into New Ads.

Ron DeSantis’ super PAC ‘Never Back Down‘ has poured over $12.3 million into a new advertisement campaign in a desperate attempt to reinvigorate the Florida Governor’s 2024 Republican presidential nominee campaign.

The vast majority of the funds was allocated to the state of Iowa, in which the Florida Governor trails former President Donald Trump by over 20 points. Around $11.4 million has been spent targeting media markets in the state, with the rest used for a national buy on the already DeSantis-sympathizing Fox News, according to AdImpact data.

The ads are due to start on September 6 and are expected to run through until Halloween.

Never Back Down’s total spend is up to $31 million, outspending Donald Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc, by nearly $10 million. Only Tim Scott’s TIM PAC has spent more at $37 million.

However, Never Back Down has announced its intention to increase ad spending to as much as $25 million in Iowa and New Hampshire, where DeSantis is polling fourth behind the 45th President, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Chris Christie. The campaign will include TV bookings, digital and direct advertisement – such as mailers and text messages – and will shift focus onto the Governor of Florida’s “personal qualities” and his wife, Jill “Casey” DeSantis.

Despite the staggering financial commitments the super PAC has made to DeSantis, rumors abounded last month that it may look to abandon the Florida Governor due to his crumbling numbers and support.

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Ron DeSantis' super PAC 'Never Back Down' has poured over $12.3 million into a new advertisement campaign in a desperate attempt to reinvigorate the Florida Governor's 2024 Republican presidential nominee campaign. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
A case of throwing bad money after bad
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A case of throwing bad money after bad show more
for exclusive members-only insights
trump dollar cash money
August 28, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics

Trump Campaign Raises Over $20M in 3 Weeks.

Donald Trump raised over $7.1 million since the release of his mugshot on Thursday, with over $20 million raised in the past three weeks. The latest haul comes amidst sales of mugshot merchandise, including the already infamous photo of the 45th President and the words ‘NEVER SURRENDER,’ including shirts, posters, bumper stickers, mugs, and even drinks coolers.

Trump’s presidential campaign raised $4.18 million last Friday alone, representing a record for the highest 24-hour fundraising effort in his campaign to date.

The merchandise, costing anywhere between $12 to $34, forms part of Trump’s dominance over small-dollar donations as his 2024 presidential campaign has been overwhelmingly reliant upon grassroots support.

Last month, the former President’s small-dollar donations made up a whopping 81.8 percent of all his campaign finances – far ahead of second-place Vivek Ramaswamy with 57.5 percent, and Ron DeSantis who counts less than 20 percent of his campaign funds as coming from small dollar donors.

By the end of the 2016 primaries, Ted Cruz, Trump’s top opponent at the time, had spent $163M. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to spend at least $200M in his attempt to defeat the man who got him elected.

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Donald Trump raised over $7.1 million since the release of his mugshot on Thursday, with over $20 million raised in the past three weeks. The latest haul comes amidst sales of mugshot merchandise, including the already infamous photo of the 45th President and the words 'NEVER SURRENDER,' including shirts, posters, bumper stickers, mugs, and even drinks coolers. show more
single digit midget
August 26, 2023
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics

‘Single-Digit Midget’ DeSantis Collapses Into 4th in New Hampshire.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has fallen behind both Chris Christie and Vivek Ramaswamy in the early GOP battleground state of New Hampshire, dropping to just 9 percent of the vote as former President Donald Trump continues to dominate the field.

A poll by Echelon Insights, quizzing 800 likely Republican Primary Voters, puts Chris Christie in second at 14 percent. Previously little-known Ohio businessman Vivek Ramaswamy is also in double digits at 11 percent – putting him in third place. Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is polling at 7 percent, just two points behind the Florida Governor.

Donald Trump stands at 34 percent in the Granite State.

Interestingly, New Hampshire voters listed “political corruption” as their number one issue, with the cost of living in second, jobs and the economy in third, immigration in fourth, and national security fifth.

The DeSantis campaign continues to slump in both state and national polling while bleeding cash – despite multiple attempts to reboot the campaign. Seemingly unable to gain traction in the polls or raise campaign cash, DeSantis have increasingly become reliant on support from the Never Back Down SuperPAC which The National Pulse has exposed for being a hive of Never Trumpers and actual Democrats. The Echelon Insights poll is just the latest to show DeSantis being overtaken by Ramaswamy.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has fallen behind both Chris Christie and Vivek Ramaswamy in the early GOP battleground state of New Hampshire, dropping to just 9 percent of the vote as former President Donald Trump continues to dominate the field. show more
gerow schlapp
August 25, 2023
News
Politics

CPAC Vice Chairman Resigns, Demands Investigation into Matt Schlapp.

Charlie Gerow – a long-time ally of Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) chairman Matt Schlapp – has now resigned from his position as Vice Chairman of CPAC’s parent organization, the American Conservative Union (ACU), as pressure continues to mount on Schlapp over his alleged sexual misconduct and financial irregularities in the group.

His resignation follows several recent resignations of other officers and directors of ACU/CPAC/ACUF, including Treasurer Bob Beauprez, who described a “cancer” metastasizing inside the once-esteemed conservative conference host, exclusively revealed by The National Pulse less than three months ago.

Gerow said on Friday: “It is with deep sadness and true regret that I have joined several of my colleagues in resigning from the Board of ACU/CPAC. I have consistently exercised my fiduciary duties to the organization and always done my very best to fulfill all of my responsibilities to this very vital organization. I know I have done the right things.

“It was a great honor to serve the conservative movement in my leadership roles at CPAC/ACU/ ACUF and I will continue to pray that the difficulties they are encountering will be dealt with openly and honestly.

“Although I will not now be able to participate in the August Board meeting, I am calling on my former colleagues to authorize an independent investigation into the charges against Matt Schlapp, to conduct an independent forensic audit of the organizations finances, to obtain a written opinion of counsel that the organization is in full compliance with its own by-laws and all applicable law and to thoroughly review all the exit interviews of the large number of staff who have recently left CPAC/ACU/ACUF.”

The National Pulse has previously revealed that Schlapp has “gatekept” the CPAC stage, giving friends, allies, and benefactors more prominence and even creating a “do not invite” list that included the Trump family. Schlapp and his wife Mercedes are reported to have discussed reneging on their support for Donald Trump over his position on immigration. The National Pulse also exposed his six-figure donation from a Soros-linked fund.

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Charlie Gerow – a long-time ally of Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) chairman Matt Schlapp – has now resigned from his position as Vice Chairman of CPAC's parent organization, the American Conservative Union (ACU), as pressure continues to mount on Schlapp over his alleged sexual misconduct and financial irregularities in the group.

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Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
Regular readers and long-time Raheem readers will be able to chant along with me, on this one: “I told you so!” Yes, that has become my favorite phrase
for exclusive members-only insights
Regular readers and long-time Raheem readers will be able to chant along with me, on this one: “I told you so!” Yes, that has become my favorite phrase show more
for exclusive members-only insights
August 25, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

Post-Debate Poll Shows NO CHANGE, Despite Trump Absence.

A post-debate poll from Morning Consult shows former President Trump losing no ground after the declining to participate in the first Republican primary debate earlier this week. According to the poll, Trump’s position remains unchanged with 58 percent support among the Republican electorate before the debate and 58 percent support after. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis comes in a distant 2nd place with only 14 percent support – also unchanged from before the debate.

The only two candidates seeing any shift in support were tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Both candidates saw a one percent bump in support, polling at 11 percent and four percent post-debate respectively.

Morning Consult quizzed over 1,256 potential Republican primary voters, with an unweighted margin of error of up to +/-3 percentage points.

In Donald Trump’s absence, Ramaswamy was the candidate who appeared to garner the most press attention. The energetic debater traded barbs with nearly every candidate on stage – having especially heated exchanges with former Governor Christie, former Vice President Mike Pence, and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. At least one betting odds bookmaker has Ramaswamy now as the 2nd place favorite for the Republican presidential nomination following his debate performance.

The Morning Consult poll offers little in the way of good news for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Ramaswamy is now only three points back from over taking the Florida Governor for second place. The trend does not bode well for the Florida Governor’s campaign, with several polls over the past two weeks showing the tech entrepreneur and political neophyte Ramaswamy having already pushed DeSantis out of 2nd place contention for the nomination.

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A post-debate poll from Morning Consult shows former President Trump losing no ground after the declining to participate in the first Republican primary debate earlier this week. According to the poll, Trump's position remains unchanged with 58 percent support among the Republican electorate before the debate and 58 percent support after. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis comes in a distant 2nd place with only 14 percent support – also unchanged from before the debate. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
Meanwhile, the DeSantis campaign is pushing a poll by their in-house “POS Strategies” pollster, which doesn’t go into the “cross tabs” i
for exclusive members-only insights
Meanwhile, the DeSantis campaign is pushing a poll by their in-house “POS Strategies” pollster, which doesn’t go into the “cross tabs” i show more
for exclusive members-only insights
biden pilates
August 25, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

Biden, Still Vacationing, Went to Pilates & Got BOOED.

President Biden remains on vacation in Lake Tahoe, Nevada – where he has spent much of the past week at radical environmentalist and billionaire Tom Steyer’s home. The official White House pool report from Friday says Biden arrived at Pelodog Pilates and Cycle around 11am this morning to enjoy a pilates class with his family.

It isn’t the first visit from the first family, with Pelodog’s Instagram account boasting of their visit just a few days ago. Today, when he left the pilates location, the public were scarcely supportive:

Per the Wall Street Journal‘s Annie Linskey, serving as today’s White House pool reporter, the drive from Steyer’s  mansion to the pilaties studio came with “…stunning views of Lake Tahoe.”

Last month, The National Pulse reported that Joe Biden has spent 39 percent of his presidency on vacation. Biden has often been away during international or domestic emergencies, choosing, for example, to vacation during the international crisis of the fall of Kabul in August 2021.

Biden’s most recent vacation was only briefly interrupted when the President and First Lady took a day to travel to the Hawaiian island of Maui to save face after his government offered almost no public comment or support in the three weeks since wildfires ravaged the communities there – killing at least 115 people.

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President Biden remains on vacation in Lake Tahoe, Nevada – where he has spent much of the past week at radical environmentalist and billionaire Tom Steyer's home. The official White House pool report from Friday says Biden arrived at Pelodog Pilates and Cycle around 11am this morning to enjoy a pilates class with his family. show more
field of dreams
August 25, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

SPLIT SCREEN: Trump Persecuted by State, DeSantis Roleplays on ‘Field of Dreams’ Movie Set.

While former President Donald Trump was being booked and having his mugshot taken at the Fulton County jail facility, one of his primary opponents, Ron DeSantis, stood in the “Field of Dreams” in Iowa, making for a dramatic “split screen” moment where one candidate is being actively persecuted by the state, while the other – the Florida governor – plays catch on a movie set.

DeSantis was pressed by CBS News reporter Aaron Navarro about President Trump’s arrest, with DeSantis flippantly responding, “Well I’m glad I’m at the Field of Dreams. I’m happy to be here.”

The gaffe is just the latest in a string of tone-deaf responses his campaign has given regarding the Biden government’s political prosecution of former President Donald Trump. Jeff Roe, chief strategist for the pro-DeSantis SuperPAC Never Back Down, responded to question in recent interview regarding the numerous DeSantis campaign restarts stating, “Well, I guess we’ll have as many restarts as they have indictments… I guess is how that will go…” – ‘they’ referring to former President Trump.

The National Pulse has reported on an alarming trend among Ron DeSantis and his campaign surrogates of bashing Trump and his fans – including an incident earlier this week were DeSantis called Trump supporters “listless vessels“. In Iowa, a county chairman for Never Back Down refereed to Trump voters as “degenerates” and said he wouldn’t piss on the former President even if he were on fire.

On social media, a cadre of pro-DeSantis trolls have been celebrating Donald Trump’s arrest – one troll even threatening journalist and National Pulse’s editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam that his own indictment was “coming soon” due to this website’s critical reporting of DeSantis.

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While former President Donald Trump was being booked and having his mugshot taken at the Fulton County jail facility, one of his primary opponents, Ron DeSantis, stood in the "Field of Dreams" in Iowa, making for a dramatic "split screen" moment where one candidate is being actively persecuted by the state, while the other – the Florida governor – plays catch on a movie set. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
I think at this point being indicted might be a badge of honor, anyway
for exclusive members-only insights
I think at this point being indicted might be a badge of honor, anyway show more
for exclusive members-only insights
trump mughsot
August 24, 2023
Raheem J. Kassam
Breaking
News
Politics

The (Mug)Shot Heard Around The World.

Former U.S. President Donald J. Trump has once again been arrested and booked, this time in perhaps the most brazenly political prosecution yet – a tall order given the litany of ludicrous charges which have already befallen the ex-Commander in Chief.

Trump, 77, arrived in Georgia on Thursday evening just one day after trouncing his own party’s ratings with an exclusive interview with Tucker Carlson. At the same time, his futile challenger Ron DeSantis played baseball, instead of protesting the arrest of the man he once claimed to be a “pitbull defender” for, while begging for votes in his home state.

Now, Trump has been booked in, with the following mugshot heard around the world produced by the Fulton County jail in Georgia, at the behest of political prosecutor Fani Willis.

On Wednesday night, DeSantis campaign chief joked along with corporate media, mocking the 45th president for his endless persecution by the state.

Asked about the number of resets the DeSantis campaign has been through, Roe glibly shot back: “Well, I guess we’ll have as many restarts as they have indictments… I guess is how that will go.”

Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, suggested the mugshot will soon become iconic, turned into t-shirts and posters, and will even hang in college dorm rooms.

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Former U.S. President Donald J. Trump has once again been arrested and booked, this time in perhaps the most brazenly political prosecution yet – a tall order given the litany of ludicrous charges which have already befallen the ex-Commander in Chief. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world
for exclusive members-only insights
By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world show more
for exclusive members-only insights
anchor babies
August 24, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics

GOP ‘Unserious’ If It Doesn’t Impeach Biden, Says Gaetz.

House Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) argued that the Republican-led House of Representatives would risk appearing ‘unserious’ if they fail to bring articles of impeachment against President Joe Biden over his crooked financial dealings with his son Hunter, stating further that an increasing number of House Members would support the measure.

Gaetz explained that even some of the more ‘moderate’ members of the Republican Conference have suggested that they would at least back an impeachment inquiry, adding: “I was heartened by the full-throated support for that position that we received from our Judiciary colleagues.”

He insisted that impeachment proceedings would merely follow the evidence brought to public attention by the Chair of the House Oversight Committee, James Comer, such as the millions the Biden family received from foreign nationals and companies and the proximity it had to Chinese government officials.

Chairman Comer recently announced that he is preparing to subpoena the entire Biden family if they are unwilling to testify before Congress over their financial affairs, explaining: “We’re putting together a case, and I think we’ve done that very well. We’ve shown the bank records… We have put together a case that I think would stand up in any court of law in America.”

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House Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) argued that the Republican-led House of Representatives would risk appearing 'unserious' if they fail to bring articles of impeachment against President Joe Biden over his crooked financial dealings with his son Hunter, stating further that an increasing number of House Members would support the measure. show more
chris nelson
August 24, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

DeSantis’s Twitter Trolls Celebrate Trump Indictment, Threaten Others.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s social media troll army is celebrating former President Trump reporting to Georgia for yet another political indictment. Wedding DJ and always-online DeSantis booster Chris Nelson said of Trump’s surrender Thursday night: “Enjoy IndictmentFest 3!” He also bizarrely suggested to The National Pulse’s editor-in-Chief Raheem Kassam that his own indictment “is coming soon!”

Within minutes, Nelson’s tweet had been seen by over 10,000 users on X (formerly Twitter). Voter exposure to the cavalier online behavior of some of DeSantis’s most ardent supporters appears to be a major factor in the Florida Governor’s collapse in Republican primary polls. MAGA voters within the Republican Party represent a significant political block that any serious presidential hopeful would want to capture, yet DeSantis trolls like Nelson have routinely gone out of their way to disparage and alienate them.

Another DeSantis campaign troll, infamous internet celebrity and alleged scam-artist, Bill Mitchell, used AI generated images to portray MAGA voters as a ‘redneck’ stereotype, while DeSantis himself blasted them as “listless vessels”.

Multiple national and state primary polls now show DeSantis falling from second place to third, and in one poll even fourth in the fight for the Republican presidential nomination. Both the FiveThirtyEight and the RealClearPolitics polling averages show a steady decline in support for Governor DeSantis since he officially announced his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.

Nelson himself has a checkered past. In 2017, his ex-wife filed a restraining order against Nelson, whom she accused of domestic battery. It appears Nelson has been legally barred from owning a firearm under the Baker Act due to drug and alcohol abuse, as well as mental health issues. He currently spends much of his time tweeting late into the night about his fandom of DeSantis, and occasionally DJing at weddings.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's social media troll army is celebrating former President Trump reporting to Georgia for yet another political indictment. Wedding DJ and always-online DeSantis booster Chris Nelson said of Trump's surrender Thursday night: "Enjoy IndictmentFest 3!" He also bizarrely suggested to The National Pulse's editor-in-Chief Raheem Kassam that his own indictment "is coming soon!" show more