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Tomorrow’s conversation, tonight. Know where the news is going next. | | | | |  | | By Catherine Kim | |  Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks to guests during a campaign event at Refuge City Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Oct. 8. | Scott Olson/Getty Images | GETTING SASSY — If you are a regular consumer of TikTok, you know that we are in a “sassy man apocalypse,” a reference to the seeming surge in men with a cheeky attitude, often expressed in flamboyant and feminine ways. It’s meant to be a harmless joke — women will often post tongue-in-cheek clips of themselves as victims of their sassy male partners — and has generated an avalanche of videos for laughs. While there’s nothing inherently political about the trend, one politician has nevertheless become a casualty of the so-called sassy man epidemic — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Millions of people have viewed videos explicitly targeting and teasing DeSantis, and have also left comments that further taunt the presidential hopeful. An audio clip from Vice News that features the governor responding, in an annoyed fashion, to a question about Guantanamo is at the center of his alleged sassiness. Users have created hundreds of videos with the audio of his voice spliced over them acting out his speech in an exaggerated manner. One top video, which pokes fun at the governor’s tone, has over two million views. Another that’s received over 160,000 views, which also teases the governor’s “sassy” persona, highlights the governor’s anti-LGBTQ record. And there lies the reasoning behind the brutal beatings DeSantis endures on social media: DeSantis has tried to differentiate himself from other candidates by presenting himself as a paragon of toughness, an aggressive culture warrior who’s signed anti-LGBTQ measures in Florida like the controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill and a bill that would ban transition-related care for minors. For many young Americans, a group with the highest support for pro-LGBTQ measures like same-sex marriage, TikTok offers a platform for pushing back. To them, DeSantis has become a caricature of the kind of Republican that younger, more progressive Americans scorn: a politician who censors books in the classroom, takes over small liberal arts colleges and feuds with Disney over LGBTQ rights. Meanwhile, rivals like Nikki Haley, Tim Scott and Chris Christie — candidates who have waded into the culture war waters more carefully — have escaped such pointed attention on TikTok. Recent polling provides some evidence of his precarious standing among young people: Among voters between the ages 18 and 34, DeSantis has the highest unfavorable ratings of Trump’s Republican rivals. According to an October poll, 33 percent had unfavorable views of DeSantis, slightly higher than Haley’s 27 percent, Scott’s 26 percent and Ramaswamy’s 25 percent. “On TikTok, and for Gen Z in general, diversity is really important. They express themselves in terms of gender and sexuality in really open, fluid, progressive ways,” said Ioana Literat, an associate professor at Teachers College, Columbia University who researches young people’s civic participation in online spaces. “And so when you’re trying to introduce this kind of legislation... of course you’re going to be a target.” The DeSantis campaign did not respond to requests for comment by press time. It’s not just his policy positions that have attracted the attention of TikTokers. DeSantis has built an extremely online persona fueled by his campaign’s own edgy memes and by far-right social media influencers who have trolled their critics online — a posture that closely resembles the approach of Donald Trump’s most devoted fan base. That online presence, however, has also gained a reputation for being thin-skinned and combative, a combination that makes the Florida governor ripe for ridicule from young Americans who incessantly poke at him for being defensive. When DeSantis comes out swinging against allegations of wearing lifts in his boots — a longstanding subject of derision on TikTok — users simply create more memes and leave comments like “short king panic.” “They’re talking about heels and making fun of his voice and all that, but they’re clearly making a bigger point about what is acceptable to them and what is not,” Literat said. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com. Or contact tonight’s author at ckim@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @ck_525.
| | | | GO INSIDE THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO is proud to partner with the Milken Institute to feature a special edition of our Future Pulse newsletter at the 2023 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit from November 6-8. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of global health industry leaders and innovators solving the biggest public health issues to ensure a healthier, more resilient future for all. SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE. | | | | | | | | | — Top U.S. law firms press universities to address antisemitism: Some of the nation’s biggest law firms have a message for law school deans amid an uptick in antisemitic hate crimes: rein in discrimination and harassment on your campuses. In a letter to deans of the top law schools late Wednesday, 24 prominent law firms urged the institutions to denounce anti-Israel protests and take the “same unequivocal stance against such activities as we do.” The letter’s signatories included Davis Polk & Wardwell — which recently rescinded job offers to Harvard and Columbia law students over their statements on Israel — as well as Kirkland & Ellis, Skadden and Sullivan & Cromwell. — FBI searches home of fundraiser to NYC mayor: Federal authorities searched the home of a key ally and fundraiser to New York City Mayor Eric Adams today, the same morning the mayor abruptly canceled a slate of meetings in Washington, D.C., and returned to the city. Federal agents searched the home of Brianna Suggs, who raised money for the mayor’s 2021 election campaign and is involved in his reelection effort ahead of the 2025 race for reelection, according to a report first in The New York Times. — Pelosi launches an all-out attack against No Labels: Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi today became one of the highest-profile elected Democrats to go public with her concerns about the centrist group No Labels’ third-party presidential bid. “No Labels is perilous to our democracy,” she told reporters. “I hesitate to say No Labels because they do have labels. They’re called no taxes for the rich. No child tax credit for children. They’re called let’s undo the Affordable Care Act.”
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Protesters carrying a "Palestinian Lives Matter" sign walk past a statue of Martin Luther King Jr. wearing a keffiyeh and holding a Palestinian flag in downtown Detroit, Michigan, during a rally and march calling for a ceasefire on Oct. 28. | Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images | MICHIGAN MISERY — Democrats in Michigan have warned the White House that President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict could cost him enough support within the Arab American community to sway the outcome of the 2024 election in a state he almost certainly can’t afford to lose in his bid for reelection, the Associated Press reports. The situation has prompted the White House to discuss ways to alleviate tensions with some of the state’s prominent Democrats, including several who have been vocal critics of the president about the war. VIVEK’S BIG AD BUY — Vivek Ramaswamy is planning to spend a massive sum of money on an ad campaign designed to reverse his decline in the polls, reports POLITICO. The 38-year-old biotech entrepreneur will drop an eight-figure buy across broadcast, cable, radio, digital and direct mail in two key early voting states. All told, the expenditure will be to the tune of as much as $8 million in Iowa and $4 million in New Hampshire, beginning Saturday. The campaign is reserving time for the ads through each of those state’s contests, according to his campaign.
| | | | EU REFORM — The European Union needs to embark on bold reforms as it prepares to expand, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock today, reports Suzanne Lynch. In comments that will cause alarm in some of the EU’s smaller member countries, Baerbock proposed the abolition of the current system which assigns each of the 27 countries a commissioner, as the EU gears up to allow new members to join the club by the end of the decade. “The European Parliament and the Commission cannot be simply allowed to grow and grow, become ever bigger,” she said at a gathering of foreign ministers and representatives from the EU and academia in Berlin. “We need to take brave, courageous decisions. A country like Germany, for example — we are ready to do without our own commissioner for a limited period of time.” Among the possibilities would be to divide large Commission portfolios among several member countries, Baerbock said. In addition, the Green politician proposed amending the “unanimity” rule which allows a single member country the ability to veto EU initiatives in certain cases, including in highly sensitive areas like taxation and foreign policy. Baerbock’s comments come as the debate about enlarging the EU to admit countries like Ukraine and Western Balkan nations heats up ahead of a key summit of EU leaders in Brussels next month. REVOKED RATIFICATION — Russian President Vladimir Putin today signed a law effectively revoking Russia’s ratification of a key nuclear treaty, opening up the possibility the Kremlin could conduct new atomic weapons testing, reports Claudia Chiappa. Putin previously said revoking Russia’s 2000 ratification of the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) is a move that would merely “mirror” the position taken by the United States, which has signed but never ratified the treaty. The revocation was approved unanimously by the lower and upper houses of Russia’s parliament last month, before being sent to Putin for final approval.
| | | | GET READY FOR POLITICO’S DEFENSE SUMMIT ON 11/14: Russia’s war on Ukraine … China’s threats to Taiwan … a war in Gaza. The U.S. is under increasing pressure to deter, defend and fight in more ways — but not everyone agrees how. Join POLITICO's 3rd Annual Defense Summit on November 14 for exclusive interviews and expert discussions on global security and the U.S.'s race to bolster alliances and stay ahead of adversaries. Explore critical topics, including international conflicts, advanced technology, spending priorities and political dynamics shaping global defense strategies. Don’t miss these timely and important discussions. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | | | | | | | BIRD’S THE WORD — Dozens of North American birds are getting new names in 2024. After months of debate over what to do with bird names tied to problematic historical figures, the American Ornithological Society found a solution: rename all birds named after people. The society will start with about 70 to 80 birds and create a new committee to get public input on the new names. The organization said they are hoping the inclusive language brings a new generation of bird enthusiasts — especially as North America bird populations decline. Smithsonian Magazine’s Sarah Kuta has more on the bird renaming process.
| | | |  On this date in 1983: President Ronald Reagan signs the bill making Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday into a national holiday, as Coretta Scott King watches along. From left are Vice President George Bush, Sen. Charles McCurdy Mathias (R-Md.), King, Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.), Rep. Jack Kemp (R-N.Y.), Reagan and Rep. Katie Hall (D-Ind.). | Barry Thumma/AP | | Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
