It was supposed to be a clash of 2024 GOP presidential primary titans in Iowa on Saturday, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had the state to himself — meeting with voters at several stops — as the threat of tornadoes forced former President Donald Trump to cancel an outdoor rally.
DeSantis, seizing on Trump’s absence, hurriedly scheduled an unannounced stop late Saturday at Jethro’s, a Des Moines barbecue joint a stone’s throw from the park where Trump had planned to hold his rally. Roughly 100 DeSantis supporters packed the restaurant’s patio and the sidewalk outside to take pictures, shake hands and hear him give a short version of his stump speech.
