Fact Check: Was Donald Trump Jr. Booed at Turning Point Action Event?

Stumping for his father at a conference of the conservative Turning Point Action organization on Sunday, Donald Trump Jr. was delivering one-liners while discussing political opponents and hot topics such as affirmative action, to cheers of approval.

But a recorded quip about Republican presidential candidate and Donald Trump Sr. rival Ron DeSantis elicited boos from the audience in West Palm Beach, Florida.

While discussing other GOP primary contenders, Trump Jr. noted that DeSantis was absent from the political action conference. The Florida governor's team later said he had been on the campaign trail in other states, something the former president's son described in his speech as a "perpetual book tour."

It is not the first time Trump Jr. has launched an attack on DeSantis; in various tweets, the Trump Organization executive has described the Florida Republican leader as a "RINO," which stands for "Republican in name only."

The Claim

Online news outlet 2Paragraphs reported on Monday that Trump Jr. received "a low smattering of boos" after a joke about DeSantis "fell flat" at the event, in a story headlined: "Donald Trump Jr. Booed After DeSantis Joke Fails."

The article references a clip of Trump Jr., in which the president's son says of Asa Hutchinson: "Listen, I was impressed; he's made an incredible recovery since being murdered by Tucker Carlson on Friday," referencing the former Fox News anchor's heated interview with the former Arkansas governor and GOP hopeful.

"Hey, I'll say this: at least he had the balls to actually be here," Trump Jr. then went on to say, which elicited a round of applause from the audience. "Unlike our absentee governor, who's been on a perpetual book tour."

Newsweek approached the DeSantis campaign via email for comment on Tuesday.

Trump Jr.'s criticism of DeSantis echoed that of his father, who on Saturday took to the Turning Point stage and in a trademark lengthy speech mocked his Republican presidential primary rival.

"I don't know why he's not here," the former president said. "He should be here, he should be here representing himself."

When asked to comment on those remarks, Bryan Griffin, a DeSantis campaign spokesperson, told Newsweek that the governor had spent the day with Iowans and Tennessee GOP leaders.

"This was a day after he delivered the strongest interview at the Family Leadership Summit, which Donald Trump notably skipped," he added. "Ron DeSantis is campaigning to win."

The Facts

Following Trump Jr.'s "book tour" remarks, some faint boos are audible in the background but it is unclear if the audience in the footage are showing their dissatisfaction with his remarks or with DeSantis.

2Paragraphs claimed in its piece that Trump Jr. "quickly pivoted" as evidence of his apparent "reading the room." The former president's son continues "so, guys" in the clip, approximately three seconds after he finishes making the DeSantis joke.

Previous applause lines in his speech in the same clip all receive either applause, cheers or a mixture of both. Trump Jr.'s allusion to the Florida governor is the only line to elicit a few, dispersed boos in the audience.

Newsweek approached Trump Jr. via the Trump Organization for comment on Tuesday.

The Ruling

Needs Context.

While you can hear a number of people in the audience booing the allusion to DeSantis, it is unclear if this is directed at Trump Jr. himself or DeSantis.

Elsewhere in his speech, Trump Jr. had largely received cheers and applause, and it is plausible that a Florida audience may react negatively to a framing of their governor as an "absentee."

According to the Associated Press, DeSantis attended the conference along with Trump in 2022, but only Trump attended this year. It reported that the crowd was largely in favor of the Republican front-runner.

But it is also plausible that the Florida audience might not want their governor—who has enacted numerous pieces of conservative legislation in recent years—to be besmirched.

A poll of GOP voters in Florida, conducted by Mason-Dixon between March 27 and March 30, found 44 percent supported DeSantis at the time to 39 percent who supported Trump. The survey gave DeSantis a 59 percent approval overall among the caucus.

FACT CHECK BY NEWSWEEK