US elections 2024, Trump and DeSantis: insults and attacks between the two right-wing extremists

Former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have traded banter about who could fix the economy faster and reform government agencies as the battle between the two main Republican contenders turns increasingly bitter.

Trump, who currently holds a large lead over DeSantis in a distant second in polls for the 2024 Republican nomination, has also criticized other candidates further down the rankings, suggesting they drop out of the party primaries. Trump's comments were made to Fox News host Sean Hannity at a town hall in Clive, Iowa.

Hannity is one of Trump's strongest media allies and has tasked him with blasting opponents including DeSantis, who he believes has slipped further in the polls. It remains to be seen whether there is still time to catch up with Trump now that Ron DeSantis put aside his fears of challenging his mentor and ran for the Republican presidential primary. And then it will be necessary to understand whether Elon Musk has become the new "kingmaker" of the Grand Old Party, replacing Rupert Murdoch's Fox.