KISSIMMEE, Fla. - lorida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam made jabs at U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis over time the congressman has spent in Washington, D.C., instead of in Florida on Thursday night during a live-televised debate that covered immigration, shootings and the potential for a trade war.
Putnam opened the debate between the two leading Florida GOP gubernatorial candidates at a resort near Orlando by “welcoming” DeSantis to Florida, tongue-in-cheek.
“What an exciting time to be in front of a live audience of a thousand Florida Republicans,” Putnam said. “It’s completely different than a Washington, D.C., studio, and I just want to say ‘Welcome to Florida, congressman.’”
DeSantis defended himself, saying he was doing his job and fulfilling his duty as a congressman by being in Washington.
During the debate televised live on Fox News, moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum asked about President Trump’s policies on immigration, trade and Russian meddling in the U.S. election in 2016.
DeSantis said he believes Russia tried to do “cyberstuff” during the election but that there was no collusion between Russia and Trump’s campaign. Putnam said Trump “would more than hold his own” in a summit with Russia’s leader.
“But I’m running a Florida-first campaign,” Putnam said. “I care more about the schools in Washington County than what’s going on in Washington, D.C.”
On trade, DeSantis said Trump was trying to win concessions from other nations by threatening trade tariffs, even if retaliatory tariffs threaten to hurt some Florida industries, like citrus.
“Donald Trump wrote ‘The Art of the Deal.’ He knows how to negotiate,” DeSantis said.
Putnam said “trade wars” hurting Florida began a quarter century ago with the signing of the North American Free
