Florida Governor Ron DeSantis arrived in Des Moines, Iowa, Saturday evening for an unplanned last minute stop to meet with local conservatives after former President Donald Trump canceled a rally that he was supposed to host there over weather concerns.

DeSantis arrived at Jethro’s BBQ after crossing the state earlier in the day, traveling nearly 300 miles from Sioux Center in the morning to Cedar Rapids in the afternoon.

The restaurant was close to where Trump was supposed to hold a rally, but canceled at the last minute over concerns that there could be stormy weather.

Hours after speaking in Cedar Rapids, FL Gov. Ron DeSantis made an unscheduled stop in Des Moines – shaking hands with Iowans at a BBQ restaurant. Trump was set to hold a rally in Des Moines tonight but canceled this afternoon due to weather. @KCCINews pic.twitter.com/SCvctEBrg7

— Amanda Rooker KCCI (@ARookerKCCI) May 14, 2023

DeSantis added a stop at a barbecue restaurant in Des Moines, where Trump’s scheduled rally tonight was canceled. pic.twitter.com/NC2Z9J9gIa

— Natalie Allison (@natalie_allison) May 14, 2023

Florida @GovRonDeSantis makes an unscheduled appearance in Des Moines this evening.

He says if you’re willing to deliver results “the people will follow” adding “we’re gonna have a chance pretty soon to make sure that’s done in every state in the country.” pic.twitter.com/TDDYXogdAA

— Musadiq Bidar (@Bidar411) May 14, 2023

DeSantis was in Cedar Rapids a few hours ago.

He made a brief stop in Des Moines to greet supporters and take photos. pic.twitter.com/oHqyRblnkB

— Musadiq Bidar (@Bidar411) May 14, 2023

After Donald Trump canceled his Des Moines rally for inclement weather, Ron DeSantis added an unscheduled stop at a BBQ restaurant just down the road from where Trump was set to appear. He and his wife Casey are standing on a table talking to the crowd now pic.twitter.com/Ybxz2CVgva

— Brianne Pfannenstiel (@brianneDMR) May 14, 2023

.@RonDeSantisFL decided to make a pit stop in Des Moines to meet with supporters on a beautiful Iowa evening pic.twitter.com/IUUiYYSrRJ

— Erin Perrine (@ErinMPerrine) May 14, 2023

The National Weather Service had issued a tornado watch for a large portion of the state earlier in the day, leading to Trump’s decision to cancel the rally.

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However, the weather appeared to be good at the time Trump was supposed to speak at the venue in Des Moines, according to videos posted online.

Meanwhile, here is how things look at the venue where Trump’s rally was supposed to start 16 min ago. pic.twitter.com/ctivtI4R0p

— AG (@AGHamilton29) May 14, 2023

The Des Moines Register reported that the Trump campaign released a list of approximately 150 pro-Trump activists and elected officials who endorsed the former president in the state, including “about a dozen state legislators.”

The pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down released a list of endorsements this week of 37 state-level Iowa lawmakers this week, including Senate President Amy Sinclair, Senate Majority Whip Waylon Brown, House Majority Leader Matt W. Windschitl, and House Speaker Pro Tempore John H. Wills.

Speaking in Sioux City earlier in the day, DeSantis said, “We got to demonstrate the courage to lead and the strength to win. If we do that, if we make 2024 election a referendum on Joe Biden and his failures, and if we provide a positive alternative for the future of this country, Republicans will win across the board.”

“If we do not do that, if we get distracted, if we focus the election on the past or on other side issues, then I think the Democrats are going to beat us again,” he said. “And I think it’ll be very difficult to recover from that defeat. And here’s the thing — I used to think our country was locked and loaded. Nothing can go wrong in terms of a free society. But freedom is fragile.”

President Joe Biden ginned up racial tensions at the graduation ceremony for Howard University on Saturday, claiming that America’s greatest threat comes in the form of “white supremacy.”

Biden gave the commencement address for the historically black college and university (HBCU) at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. In the speech, the president took a pessimistic view of America’s fight against racism, claiming that it is “a battle that’s never really over.”

Then, Biden told graduates to be on guard for what he views as the greatest threat to our nation.

“The most dangerous terrorist threat to our homeland is white supremacy,” Biden told the crowd who responded with applause. “And I’m not saying this because I’m at a Black HBCU. I say it wherever I go.”

BIDEN AT HOWARD UNIVERSITY: "The most dangerous terrorist threat to our homeland is white supremacy — and I'm not saying this because I'm at a Black HBCU. I say it wherever I go.”

pic.twitter.com/ujnnA3AgZI

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) May 13, 2023

The Democrat president also took a veiled shot at his opponent, former President Donald Trump.

“Let’s be clear: There are those who don’t see you and don’t want this future,” Biden said. “There are those who demonize and pit people against one another. And there are those who do anything and everything, no matter how desperate or immoral, to hold onto power. And that’s never going to be an easy battle.”

The president attempted to encourage the graduates by telling them that they represent the future of America, a future that showcases the “strength of our diversity at the center of American life.” Some Howard students in the crowd, however, still protested the Biden administration’s apparent failure to stand up for African Americans, according to POLITICO.

“A Black child was lynched yesterday!” one sign read, referring to the death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway earlier this month.

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Biden concluded by telling the Howard grads that they represent “the best” of America.

“I know this,” the president said. “The oldest, most sinister forces may believe they’ll determine America’s future, but they are wrong. We will determine America’s future. You will determine America’s future. And that’s not hyperbole.”