Florida Governor Ron DeSantis responded to former President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that he is “disloyal” because he is daring to challenge Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination by saying that no one is entitled to automatic support from voters.

DeSantis made the remarks during a special interview on Thursday with Fox News’ Jesse Watters.

“Trump says you’re disloyal. Do you feel that way?” Watters asked.

“Disloyal to who? I mean, you know, politicians have to earn support. They’re not entitled to support,” he responded. “I did a lot for him in 2016 and 2020. By the way, I was happy to do it. But at the end of the day, you know, I’m loyal to my family, to our Constitution, and to the good Lord.”

“And I have a vision. I think I’m the guy that can beat Biden,” he continued. “But even more importantly, no more excuses on these issues. I’m going to get all of this stuff done. We’ll have a plan on day one to get going and get cracking. We’ll give you two great terms for eight years and really get the country on a fundamentally different path. I think I’m the guy that do it. And so I have the responsibility to step up and serve.”

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WATCH:

“Trump says you’re disloyal. Do you feel that way?”@RonDeSantis: "Disloyal to who? Politicians have to EARN support. They're not entitled to support. I did a lot for him in 2016 and 2020 by the way. I was happy to do it. But at the end of the day, I’m loyal to my family, to our… pic.twitter.com/ufuHLE7fBY

— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) June 29, 2023

TRANSCRIPT:

JESSE WATTERS: Trump says you’re disloyal. Do you feel that way?

GOVERNOR DESANTIS: Disloyal to who? I mean, you know, politicians have to earn support. They’re not entitled to support. I did a lot for him in 2016 and 2020. By the way, I was happy to do it. But at the end of the day, you know, I’m loyal to my family, to our Constitution, and to the good Lord. And I have a vision. I think I’m the guy that can beat Biden. But even more importantly, no more excuses on these issues. I’m going to get all of this stuff done. We’ll have a plan on day one to get going and get cracking. We’ll give you two great terms for eight years and really get the country on a fundamentally different path. I think I’m the guy that do it. And so I have the responsibility to step up and serve.

Related: DeSantis: I’ll Abolish Education, Energy, Commerce Depts — And The IRS

A lawyer for Daniel Penny told Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro in an interview on Thursday that accusations of racial bias against the former Marine were utterly “baseless.”

Penny pled not guilty to one count of second-degree manslaughter and one count of negligent homicide on Tuesday after he was accused of killing Jordan Neely, a homeless man with a violent criminal record, on a Manhattan subway train on May 1.

Some in the media seemed to turn the incident into a racial issue because Penny was white and Neely black. Tom Kenniff, a lawyer representing Penny, told Shapiro on his Thursday podcast that it was nothing other than “reckless, vitriolic speculation” to turn the incident on the subway into a racial incident, saying that Penny “doesn’t have any racial animus.”

Kenniff told Shapiro that he had no doubt that Penny would be exonerated. Last month, Penny placed Neely in a chokehold on the floor of a Manhattan subway car to subdue him after witnesses said Neely was making threatening comments toward passengers on board the vehicle.

“We have absolutely no doubt that ultimately our client will be exonerated. But, you know, the law recognizes and we as a people should recognize that the mere act of being the subject of a criminal prosecution, regardless of how it turns out, is a life-altering, traumatizing thing for anyone,” he said.

Neely reportedly said he was ready to go to jail for the rest of his life and was ready to die.

“Anyone who knows anything about the New York criminal justice system knows that there is only one way that one could go to prison for the rest of their life, and that’s to take another life,” Kenniff told The Daily Wire co-founder. “So that’s the environment that my client was in, and this case is all about, you know, what he reasonably perceived and what a person in his situation would have reasonably perceived.”

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Penny was indicted on June 14 after New York officials promised to investigate the incident. The indictment was praised by attorneys for Neely’s family.

A GiveSendGo campaign set up to pay Penny’s legal expenses has already raised more than $2 million. Penny’s next court appearance is set for September 25.