‘Angry’ DeSantis asks reporter ‘Are you blind?’ at New Hampshire campaign event

Florida governor Ron DeSantis snapped at a reporter at a campaign event in New Hampshire on Thursday after the journalist persisted in asking him why he was posing for pictures with local voters but not taking their questions.

“Are you blind?” Mr DeSantis snarled at him, insisting he was making himself available.

The exchange was leapt upon by Republican presidential rival Donald Trump, addressing a Fox News town hall event in Iowa, who told host Sean Hannity: “I don’t think he’s going to be second that much longer. I think he’s going to be third or fourth. He had a very bad day today, he got very angry at the press. You’re not allowed to get angry at the press.”

Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma sparked a round of laughter in a Senate hearing room after misspeaking and snapping “I don’t want reality!” at a witness.

Abe Asher has the details on what made the senator make the bizarre outburst.

The 45th president on Wednesday claimed that Mr DeSantis was looking to “change his name”.

“Have you heard that ‘Rob’ DeSanctimonious wants to change his name, again,” Mr Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

“He is demanding that people call him DeeeSantis, rather than DaSantis. Actually, I like “Da” better, a nicer flow, so I am happy he is changing it.

“He gets very upset when people, including reporters, don’t pronounce it correctly. Therefore, he shouldn’t mind, DeSanctimonious?”

Underestimated from the start, the Republican who cruised around his California hometown of Bakersfield and stumbled into a career in Congress was never taken too seriously by the Washington establishment.

With overwhelming House passage of the debt ceiling and budget deal he negotiated with President Joe Biden, the emergent speaker proved the naysayers and eye-rollers otherwise. A relentless force, he pushed a reluctant White House to the negotiating table and delivered the votes from his balky House GOP majority to seal the deal.

“You still ask the same questions each week: Do you think you can pass the bill this week. Do you think you will still be speaker next week,” McCarthy chided reporters after Wednesday’s late night vote.

“Keep underestimating us,” he said, “and we’ll keep proving to the American public that we’ve never given up.”

The president dropped to his knees but was quickly helped back to his feet during the event at the service academy in Colorado Springs on Thursday, to cheers from the crowd.

The 80-year-old President had been handing out diplomas and thanking the Academy graduates for choosing “service over self” before the fall.

Mr Biden pointed to a black sandbag on the stage seemingly blaming it for the stumble.

The woman who made the accusation was led out of the facility where the rally was being held. As she was walking out of the event, the woman threw down a DeSantis hat she was holding and vowed to replace with a hat representing former President Donald Trump.

Donald Trump returned to a familiar refrain on Thursday, insisting once again that he had done nothing wrong even as new challenges pop up seemingly every day for the ex-president who faces a bevy of criminal and civil investigations.

John Bowden filed this report.