Donalds, DeSantis aides clash over Florida’s new education guidelines

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) clashed Wednesday with aides to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and his presidential campaign after the congressman expressed reservations about new education guidelines in the state focused on African American history.

Donalds, the lone Black Republican in the Florida congressional delegation and a supporter of former President Trump’s 2024 bid, said the state’s new standards for African-American history are “good, robust, & accurate.”

“That being said, the attempt to feature the personal benefits of slavery is wrong & needs to be adjusted. That obviously wasn’t the goal & I have faith that FLDOE will correct this,” Donalds posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Florida’s new guidelines, which passed last week, require lessons on race to be taught in an “objective” manner that does not seek to “indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view.”

One update requires teachers to instruct on “how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” 

DeSantis aides were quick to criticize Donalds, accusing him of parroting White House talking points in the wake of sharp criticism from Vice President Harris and other administration officials.

“Supposed conservatives in the federal government are pushing the same false narrative that originated from the @WhiteHouse,” Jeremy Redfern, DeSantis’ press secretary, posted on X in response to Donalds. “Florida isn’t going to hide the truth for political convenience. Maybe the congressman shouldn’t swing for the liberal media fences like @VP.”

Donalds responded with surprise that he was taking incoming after expressing support for most of the changes.

“Anyone who can’t accurately interpret what I said is disingenuous and is desperately attempting to score political points,” Donalds posted. “Just another reason why l’m proud to have endorsed President Donald J. Trump!”

Christina Pushaw, who served in the governor’s office and works on the DeSantis campaign’s rapid response team, replied with a GIF of Harris giving a thumbs up.

Redfern retweeted Pushaw’s message, and in a separate response to Donalds wrote that the congressman was “repeating false talking points pushed by the Biden @WhiteHouse.”

The online sparring between DeSantis’s team and Donalds comes as the governor’s presidential campaign has undergone something of a reset in the face of difficulties gaining ground on Trump in the polls and questions about the operation’s spending strategy.

DeSantis entered the presidential race in May and was widely viewed as Trump’s most formidable challenger, but the governor has struggled to put a dent in the former president’s sizable polling lead nationally and in early voting states like Iowa.

His campaign has faced blowback for multiple online missteps, including its initial launch on Twitter Spaces and the sharing of a video criticizing Trump as too friendly to the LGBTQ community.

Jason Miller, a senior adviser for the Trump campaign, called it a “disgrace” for a DeSantis spokesperson to be attacking the congressman.

“Congressman Byron Donalds is a conservative hero,” Miller said in a statement to The Hill. “The Republican Party is lucky to have him as a leader, and President Trump is honored to have his endorsement.”

“The Congressman also calls it like he sees it, and if he thinks something is BS, he’ll tell you,” Miller added. “That’s why we like him so much.”