Ron DeSantis Sparks Controversy with Fabricated Winston Churchill Quote Amidst Campaign Pause
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis abruptly announced on Sunday on social media that he was suspending his presidential campaign, but the move was not without controversy.
DeSantis shared a quote falsely attributed to former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, a revelation that drew immediate attention from critics and historians.
The quote, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts,” was prominently featured in both the caption of the post and DeSantis’ video.
However, the International Churchill Society (ICS) quickly debunked the attribution, stating that there is no documented evidence of Churchill ever uttering those words or expressing a sentiment similar to it.
The ICS, an organization devoted to conserving Churchill’s historical legacy, stressed that their findings were the result of a painstaking investigation that examined fifty million words penned by and about Churchill. Social media users quickly pointed out DeSantis’ inaccuracy, demonstrating that his blunder was not overlooked.
DeSantis’ Defiant Declaration
The governor was criticized for not paying close attention to details. One user wrote, “Wrong, DeSantis ends his pathetic presidential campaign, endorses Trump, and attributes a quote to Winston Churchill, who never said those words. So on point.”
The controversy further deepened when DeSantis, in his video, claimed that Winston Churchill once remarked before stating the inaccurate quote. ICS Director of Publications David Freeman, in response to Newsweek’s inquiry, reiterated that there was no recorded evidence supporting DeSantis’ attribution to Churchill.
DeSantis’ decision to suspend his campaign came just a week after his defeat in the Iowa Republican caucus, where he received 21.2 percent of the votes compared to Donald Trump’s commanding 51 percent.
Endorsing Trump in his announcement, DeSantis stated, “It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance,” signaling a shift in the political landscape.
Despite the controversy surrounding the misattributed quote, DeSantis remained resolute in his decision, asserting, “I’m proud to have delivered on 100 percent of my promises, and I will not stop now.”
