DeSantis campaign comes to Mt. Pleasant, Washington

MT. PLEASANT — Presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made low-key campaign stops at a grocery store in Mt. Pleasant and a church in Washington Sunday morning, which were not widely publicized ahead of time by Never Back Down, the super PAC organizing his bus tour of Iowa.

Never Back Down National press secretary Dave Vasquez said the majority of DeSantis’ events in Iowa followed a similar format, hitting up coffee shops and small venues rather than holding massive campaign rallies.

"We’ve seen Gov. DeSantis take the time to meet Iowans in over 70 counties in hometown diners, small businesses and family farms,“ Vasquez said in an email. ”That’s how he’s earned the support of caucus goers and community leaders across the state.“

The weekend was the first since the Florida governor doubled down his bet on the first-in-the nation primary contest. New York Times reported last week that the campaign had moved $15 million and a third of its staff to the Hawkeye State.

While the visit to Marion Avenue Baptist Church in Washington was closed to news media at the congregation’s request, the stop in Mt. Pleasant saw the governor sitting at Hy-Vee Market Grille tables a few feet away from the cameras and microphones of his press corps.

Several guests dining in the store that morning said they were unaware the campaign would be in town.

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Miriam Pacha, of Brighton, said she and her husband were undecided voters, but “interested in” DeSantis as a candidate, though they were only in town Sunday morning for breakfast.

She said the unexpected appearance by Florida’s governor — who currently clocks in at second place for the Republican nomination according to most pollsters — helped move the needle on her own opinion.

“He came to small-town Iowa,” she said. “We’re not just a spot on the map.”

Travis Cisco and his wife showed up knowing about the visit. Both spoke with DeSantis during the event, and said the tableside conversation clarified some areas of concern.

“I like his strong positions on Israel being our ally, and standing behind them in this time that they need us,” Mr. Cisco said, before adding that visits like Sunday’s, “Let you know that you matter, that you’re being seen. You’re not just a number, it’s nice for him to actually come and talk to you.”

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While the event was a small-town affair, the subjects discussed were anything but. DeSantis fielded questions exclusively about Israel from his press corps Sunday morning, a day after fighting broke out between the country and militant group Hamas, causing more deaths in 24 hours than any other conflict for the area in decades.

DeSantis said the U.S. needed to be “unified in supporting (Israel’s) ability to respond” to attacks.

“The images are revolting, to see what Hamas has done,” he said. “It’s the worst of humanity. We’ve been supportive, of course, of Israel for a long time. They’re a special ally, a great ally for us, and we all need to be standing with them in this really, really dark message.”

Washington already provides $3 billion of military support to the nation annually according to Reuters, but ordered several ships and aircraft closer to the country Sunday afternoon.

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The governor stopped short of explicitly endorsing new aid to Israel, however. He said it was not yet clear whether the nation would require American assistance, and that he wasn’t aware of any formal request for it.

“Israel, one thing that I’ve always appreciated about them, is even though the U.S. has a good relationship, even though we’ve provided support over the years, that is not displacing their responsibility,” he said. “I think they’re going to have the firepower they need for this response.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com