Make Tallahassee Trumplandia?

The Donald Trump-aligned Make America Great Again Inc. strutted into the state capital Thursday, purchasing billboard space across town ridiculing Gov. Ron DeSantis’ performance as governor and presidential candidate.

In a brazen display of confidence in their candidate’s 30-point lead in the Jan. 15 Iowa presidential caucuses, the super PAC purchased billboards along the one-mile route between the state capital and governor’s mansion, and two others along the route from the airport to the capital.

The billboards mock DeSantis’s response to rising property insurance rates, his fall in the polls, and for a reliance on big money benefactors.

In March 2023, DeSantis trailed Trump among primary voters by 5%, but the latest numbers out of Iowa have him jockeying with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for second place.

“Welcome Home, RON!” proclaims one billboard on the route from the airport to the state capital, no doubt referring to his return for next week’s State of the State speech Tuesday to open the yearly 60-day legislative session. “The only thing worse than your poll numbers is (Florida’s) Insurance Rates!”

Another features a cartoonish DeSantis swinging a golf club and advises, “Get to work lowering our insurance costs, not your handicap!” That’s a swipe at “a golf simulator that reportedly was given to the governor’s mansion by a wealthy political donor with close ties to the Republican governor,” CNN reported.

“This is what happens when you go from being the great savior to an also-ran. It also shows the Trump philosophy that when your opponent is down, kick him,” said Nova Southeastern University political scientist Charles Zelden about DeSantis’ inability to wrest the GOP nomination from the former president.

Property insurance on lawmakers’ session agenda

Legislators will consider DeSantis’ proposed budget that reduces insurance taxes, as well as other bills that address insurance costs. According to the Insurance Information Institute, Florida premiums have gone up 300% in the last five years. The average cost of home insurance in the United States is $1,700; Floridians pay over $4,200.

Leon County Democratic Party chair Ryan Ray said he was amused by the billboards, but added they also highlight a complaint common among the opposition: “People are tired of state government being used for presidential theater rather than addressing the issues taxpayers and residents are facing.”

Trump continues to lead by more than double digits in the first three contests of the primary season: Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. The New Hampshire primary is Jan. 23, and polls indicate DeSantis places fourth with 6%, behind Trump, Haley, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. The current gap between DeSantis and Haley is 23 points.

And in another kick to the DeSantis campaign, Haley has scheduled three Florida fundraisers for Jan. 31, according to Puck News.

The billboards in Tallahassee, meantime, will be up through the end of January.

James Call is a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jcall@tallahassee.com. Follow on him Twitter: @CallTallahassee

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Trump PAC mocks DeSantis in billboards, hitting him on polls, insurance