Ron DeSantis loses his cool with a reporter after failing to answer a question on how his Ukraine policy would differ from Biden's
Ron DeSantis got irate with a reporter from The Times of London.
He was challenged over how his Ukraine policy would differ from President Joe Biden's.
DeSantis is rumored to be considering a 2024 presidential bid.
Ron DeSantis lost his cool with a reporter when challenged over how his policy on the war in Ukraine would differ from President Joe Biden's, amid speculation the Florida governor is poised to launch a 2024 presidential bid.
DeSantis was profiled Thursday by The Times of London, which was granted a relatively rare level of access to the Republican rising star. The Times is owned by Rupert Murdoch, whose Fox News network frequently interviews DeSantis.
David Charter, a US Editor at The Times, wrote that DeSantis showed a "flash of temper" when asked about Ukraine.
"I ask about Ukraine and he says that 'there's a critique of Biden, and I think I'm sympathetic to it in the sense that, is our policy just do whatever Zelensky wants? Or do we have a concrete idea of what we're trying to achieve exactly?'" Charter wrote.
"When I ask him how it should be handled differently, he refers to Biden being 'weak on the world stage' and failing at deterrence, but as that is not answering how it should be handled now, I ask again. DeSantis does not have anything to add: 'Perhaps you should cover some other ground? I think I've said enough.'"
In a recent appearance on Fox News, DeSantis criticized Biden after the president made a surprise visit to Kyiv to underline the US' support for Ukraine in battling Russia's unprovoked invasion.
DeSantis in the interview questioned whether Russia, which has menaced the West with nuclear weapons, posed a threat to NATO, and said China was a greater concern.
Some Republican lawmakers on the hard right of the party are stirring opposition to the Biden administration's Ukraine policy, saying that the president should be more focused on events at home.
Both DeSantis and former President Donald Trump have echoed those criticisms, but neither has spoken in much detail about how their policy would differ from Biden's.
Trump has said he would bring the countries to the negotiating table but has not said how or what the conditions for an effective peace agreement might look like. Like other Republicans, he has called for aid to Ukraine to be cut.
Biden has pledged open-ended support for Ukraine in battling the Russian invasion but could face obstacles in getting new aid packages through Congress amid opposition in the Republican-controlled House.
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