"Real Time" host Bill Maher suggested that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis can defeat former President Trump in a GOP primary in 2024.
During Friday night's "Overtime" segment on YouTube, Maher kicked off the panel discussion by reading a viewer question, which was, "If you had to make a bet on who will win the GOP nomination in 2024, Ron or Don… who would you bet it will be?"
"It's going to be Trump or DeSantis," Maher agreed with the premise of the question.
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While panelists Lis Smith and Matt Taibbi quickly replied, "Don," actor David Duchovny went with "Ron."
"I'm leaning more toward Ron," Maher sided with the "X-Files" star.
"I think DeSantis has a shot," Duchovny said.
"Oh, he's got more than a shot," Maher replied. "I mean, I think he won the straw poll in New Hampshire."
Smith, a Democratic strategist, pushed back, telling Maher that DeSantis is "Christie-esque," referring to former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who famously chose not to run for president in 2012 despite GOP enthusiasm behind him at the time.
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"He's peaking right now but he's not going to actually, like, land the plane," Smith said.
"Oh, no… well he's not Christie-esque… Christie's twice the man he is," Maher quipped.
The HBO star previously argued that DeSantis would be "way better" as president than Trump's hypothetical return to the White House.
"He's not certifiably insane," Maher said in June. "You know what Ron DeSantis won't be doing? He won't be poop-tweeting every day. It won't be, like, having feuds with Bette Midler on Twitter. He's not an insane person."
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Maher further insisted Trump could win the 2024 election "so easy" if he'd move on from the 2020 presidential election and said DeSantis is "more vibrant, if you like people who don't lose elections and, you know."
"Anybody could beat Biden," Maher said in June. "Trump might be the one guy who can lose to Biden. With DeSantis, you're right because he's a winner. He runs the third-largest state. Trump is a hotel greeter who lost. His insurrection failed."
Both Trump and DeSantis performed the best in CPAC's straw poll over the weekend which showed the former president earning a whopping 69% of support among attendees while the Florida governor received 24% support. All other Republicans polled in the single digits.
In a hypothetical primary without the former president, DeSantis topped the straw poll with 65%. Placing second was Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., with 8% backing, followed by Cruz with 6% and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with 5%. No one else topped 2% on the second ballot question.
Trump has repeatedly hinted at another bid for the White House in 2024, which now faces uncertainty after the FBI raided his Mar-a-Lago home Monday, increasing the likelihood that President Biden's DOJ intends to prosecute him.
