DeSantis destroys smug reporter pressing him on viral ‘Brandon administration’ joke

By Joe Kovacs

Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla. (Video screenshot)

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida — A TV news reporter for a CBS affiliate got schooled by Ron DeSantis on Monday when he pressed the Florida governor about a recent joke in which the Republican referred to the Biden administration as “the Brandon administration.”

“Do you feel that that is the proper level of exchange between a governor and a president?” Jay O’Brien of WPEC-TV in West Palm Beach, Florida, asked DeSantis.

“Well, let me ask you how he’s treated us. Well, look, I think it’s a joke but honestly, one of the reasons why that has taken on is because a lot of your folks in the national media, they get very sensitive to it,” DeSantis said. “Because what happened was people were chanting something else very colorful.”

O’Brien interjected: “It’s a swear about the president.”

Reporter Jay O’Brien of WPEC CBS12 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Video screenshot)

DeSantis continued: “You had a reporter though, say it was ‘Let’s Go, Brandon’ when that’s not really what was said.

“And so I think the reason why it’s caught on is because I think it needles the national media a little bit because look, they’ve become very partisan. They were very much against Trump, they’re very much ahead of Biden, so I think we view it as fun.”

“But it’s a swear about the president,” O’Brien insisted again.

“Well, right, but I mean here’s what I would say,” responded DeSantis.

“Was there hand wringing about this about the stuff that was said about Trump for four years? No, there wasn’t.”

The “Let’s Go, Brandon” chant became a national phenomenon when NBC reporter Kelli Stavast tried to cover up the mantra of fans at a NASCAR race who were chanting “F*** Joe Biden.”

(WARNING: The following video contains vulgar language that some viewers will find offensive.)

Stavast claimed the fans were chanting “Let’s Go, Brandon” in support of race-car driver Brandon Brown.

On Saturday, NASCAR president Steve Phelps said the racing company wants no connection to the controversial phrase.

“I feel for Brandon,” Phelps said. “I think, unfortunately, it speaks to the state of where we are as a country. We do not want to associate ourselves with politics, the left or the right. We obviously have and we’ve always had, as a sport, tremendous respect for the office of the president — no matter who is sitting.”

“Do we like the fact that it kind of started with NASCAR and then is gaining ground elsewhere? No, we’re not happy about that. But we will continue to make sure that we have respect for the office of the president.”

He also said NASCAR would crack down on those who use its trademarks in ways it doesn’t like.

“We will pursue whoever [is using logos] and get that stuff,” Phelps said. “That’s not OK. It’s not OK that you’re using our trademarks illegally.”

His remarks have done nothing to slam the brakes on people using the phrase.

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Joe Kovacs

Executive News Editor Joe Kovacs is the author of the new best-selling book, "Reaching God Speed: Unlocking the Secret Broadcast Revealing the Mystery of Everything." His previous books include "Shocked by the Bible 2: Connecting the Dots in Scripture to Reveal the Truth They Don't Want You to Know," a follow-up to his No. 1 best-seller "Shocked by the Bible: The Most Astonishing Facts You've Never Been Told" as well as "The Divine Secret: The Awesome and Untold Truth about Your Phenomenal Destiny." He is an award-winning journalist of more than 30 years in American TV, radio and the internet, and is also a former editor at the Budapest Business Journal in Europe. Read more of Joe Kovacs's articles here.


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