In response to a question about Biden’s trip to Ukraine, DeSantis sniffed that Russia was no threat to NATO, and said that Biden should put more effort into controlling the border. This presumably was an effort to find some middle ground between Tucker Carlson (Putin is a great guy, because he isn’t woke) and the mainstream of the GOP on Ukraine. Effectively, it means DeSantis has no interest in protecting Ukraine from Russian aggression; he only promises to defend NATO countries, and doesn’t expect to have to do it.
DeSantis appears to be running hard after the Trump vote, but he isn’t going to get it, at least not during the primaries. By doing so, he is opening up a huge lane to his left for a candidate who will promise to be tough on Putin. Nikki Haley undoubtedly will have taken notice.