Donald Trump Predicts Which Member of DeSantis Super PAC Will Fall Next

Donald Trump took to his social media platform to celebrate the reported departures of several members of a super PAC backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis—and predicted who would be next to go.

"The Ron DeSanctimonious campaign people are dropping like flies," the former president and current frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Politico first reported that Never Back Down fired Kristin Davison, its interim chief executive officer, on Friday, just nine days after she replaced Chris Jankowski. He resigned on November 22 after days of infighting in the super PAC.

Never Back Down's departures come as DeSantis is struggling to retain his second place standing in the race for the GOP nomination, with rival Nikki Haley surpassing him in some of the states that play crucial roles in the Republican primaries.

Scott Wagner, a longtime DeSantis ally who had been a member of the group's board, was named interim CEO and board chairman. He is also replacing former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt as board chairman after Laxalt submitted his resignation on November 26. The decision was first reported by The New York Times.

Communications director Erin Perrine was also fired, according to Politico. And director of operations Matt Palmisano left on Saturday, The Associated Press reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.

In his post, Trump said he predicted that Jeff Roe, a top Republican strategist who has close ties to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, would be next to leave Never Back Down.

"JEFF ROE, who heads 'Always,' and is known for spending Top Dollars on failing campaigns (doing massive surgery on a candidate's wallet!), will, I predict, soon follow," Trump wrote.

"I beat him when he ran the Ted Cruz 2016 campaign—It was great fun!"

Asked for comment, Jessica Szymanski, a spokeswoman for Never Back Down, said in a statement to Newsweek that Never Back Down "has the most organized, advanced caucus operation of anyone in the 2024 primary field, and we look forward to continuing that great work to help elect Gov. DeSantis the next president of the United States."

She did not confirm if Roe remained with Never Back Down. The super PAC's staff contains many employees taken directly from Roe's political consulting firm, Axiom Strategies, including Perrine and Szymanski.

Never Back Down has played a prominent role in DeSantis' White House bid, but while the Florida governor's campaign has relied on the committee for basic campaign functions, the two cannot directly coordinate under federal campaign rules.

The recent departures at Never Back Down, which launched earlier this year with more than $80 million in seed money, are viewed by those close to the situation as an aggressive move by DeSantis' loyalists to regain control over the super PAC, the AP reported.

Amid the tensions, a newly formed pro-DeSantis super PAC, Fight Right, has said it would focus its efforts on television advertising.

Newsweek has contacted a Trump campaign spokesperson and the DeSantis campaign for comment via email.