Trump attorney says Ron DeSantis will be left a ‘bloodied pulp’ if he takes on former president

Comments come at a time when Trump has been both upping his attacks on the Florida governor and drawing condemnation for his violent rhetoric against the likes of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg

Donald Trump’s attorney has said that Ron DeSantis will be left a “bloodied pulp” if he takes on the former president in the 2024 White House race – in what marks the latest violent rhetoric to come from Mr Trump’s camp.

Christina Bobb, Mr Trump’s lawyer and a contributor to the pro-Trump Right Side Broadcasting Network, gave the fighting talk at the former president’s campaign rally in Waco, Texas, on Saturday.

“I would not want to enter the octagon with Donald Trump. Nobody comes out of that and looks pretty,” she said, according to The Daily Beast.

“In order for Ron DeSantis to mildly stand a chance with Donald Trump… he has to attack Donald Trump, and people who attack Donald Trump don’t fare well.

“If he actually does try to enter this race, [he] will come out a bloodied pulp.”

Ms Bobb’s comments come at a time when Mr Trump has been both upping his attacks on the Florida governor and drawing condemnation for his violent rhetoric against the likes of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

Mr DeSantis – who is yet to announce a 2024 bid – has emerged as Mr Trump’s biggest Republican rival in the White House race.

As a result, Mr Trump has been furiously taking aim at Mr DeSantis in recent weeks.

At his Waco rally, Mr Trump claimed that Mr DeSantis – who he nicknamed “Ron DeSanctimonious” – wept back in 2018 when he begged for his endorsement in the Florida gubernatorial race.

“I’m a loyalist and when a man comes to me tears in his eyes, he’s had almost nothing in the polls,” he told rallygoers.

Mr Trump’s rally speech – which kickstarted the campaign trail for his third bid for the White House – was filled with violent rhetoric and imagery as he railed against what he described as “demonic forces” and described the 2024 presidential race as “the final battle” for the nation.

“If we don’t win this election in 2024, I truly believe our country is doomed,” he told the crowd.

“Either the Deep State destroys America or we destroy the Deep State.

“They’re flooding your towns with deadly drugs selling your jobs to China, mutilating your children … setting fire to your life savings, releasing violent criminals to prey on innocent people.”

Man holds an ‘arrest Alvin Bragg’ t-shirt at the Trump rally in Waco, Texas (Josh Marcus)

He continued: “I am your warrior. I am your justice. And I took a lot of heat for this one, but I only meant it in the proper way — to those who have been wronged and betrayed, of which there are many people out there, I will be your retribution.”

Mr Trump’s choice of location also appeared to be symbolic, with Waco being the site of a deadly anti-government siege three decades earlier.

Meanwhile, he also chose to open the event with the song recorded by the “Jan 6 Choir” – a group of suspects arrested over the January 6 riot at the US Capitol.

The violent rhetoric comes after Mr Trump has been condemned for sharing an image on Truth Social of himself wielding a baseball bat next to a photo of Mr Bragg’s head.

The former president’s own attorney Joe Tacopina has described the image as “ill-advised” and the post has since been taken down.

Over the past few weeks, Mr Trump has been railing his supporters against Mr Bragg as the DA’s office investigates his role in hush money payments to Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election.

On Friday – hours after he warned of “potential death and destruction” if he is criminally indicted in the probe – an envelope containing white powder was sent to Mr Bragg at his Manhattan office.

The powder was later found to be harmless but it raised concerns about threats directed towards Mr Bragg and others seeking to prosecute the one-term former president.

New York officials have been bracing for potential protests or unrest if or when an indictment lands.

Barricades have been around the Manhattan Criminal Court where Mr Trump could appear to face charges and local, state and federal officials are working together on security plans.

Trump has been condemned for sharing an image on Truth Social of himself wielding a baseball bat next to a photo of Alvin Bragg’s head (Truth Social)

Manhattan prosecutors have been investigating whether Mr Trump falsified the Trump Organization’s business records when Mr Trump’s former lawyer and “fixer” Michael Cohen made a payment of $130,0000 to Ms Daniels days before the 2016 election.

Prosecutors claim that the money was used to silence Ms Daniels about an alleged affair she had with Mr Trump.

Mr Trump has long denied having an affair with the adult film star.

Mr Trump’s former fixer and personal attorney Cohen was convicted of tax evasion, lying to Congress and campaign finance violations related to the payments to Ms Daniels. He was sentenced to three years in prison.

The former president claimed he was going to be arrested last Tuesday (21 March) in the case and called on his supporters to protest.

But Tuesday came and went with no indictment and the grand jury did not hear the case on 22 and 23 March as had been expected, pushing back any potential indictment.

Now, Monday (27 March) is the next time the panel could hear the case as, typically, it has been meeting on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

At least one more witness is expected to appear and Cohen could also be called back to the stand as a rebuttal witness before the grand jury will vote on whether or not Mr Trump will make history as the only former or current US president to ever be indicted on criminal charges.