Ron DeSantis Hints of Not Backing Donald Trump in 2024 Election as More Than 30 Ex-Trump Officials Convene to Stop 45th President’s Return

More than 30 former Trump officials reportedly met on Monday evening to discuss how to stop former President Donald Trump from entering office again in 2024.

CNN reported that among those who participated in the Zoom call were former White House chief of staff John Kelly, former White House communications directors Alyssa Farah Griffin and Anthony Scaramucci, former Homeland Security and counterterrorism adviser to Vice President Mike Pence Olivia Troye, former Department of Homeland Security official Elizabeth Neumann, former DHS chief of Staff Miles Taylor, and former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Chris Krebs, among others.

According to Breitbart News, the group agreed on two things: the difficulty of successfully plotting opposition to Trump and that their efforts are way behind those of the former president and his allies to set the stage for 2022 and 2024 elections.

Taylor reportedly led the call and told CNN that the group was "overflowing with ideas" on how to impede Trump's 2024 presidential return.

He noted that these ideas included "shining a light" on Trump's corporate contributors or targeting to defeat each of the candidates he endorses in state and local elections.

Taylor is the author of the famed "Anonymous," a book critical of the White House under Trump's presidency. He said they all agreed that letters and statements would not do any good.

"The two operative words are 'electoral effects.' How can we have tangible electoral effects against the extremist candidates that have been endorsed by Trump?" Taylor noted.

On the other hand, Kelly told CNN that he was only able to "monitor" about 10 minutes of the call, which had lasted for about an hour. According to Troye, the call was a "preliminary discussion," and they plan to convene again soon.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Not Backing Donald Trump's Presidential Bid

On Monday, Alyssa Farah Griffin, now a CNN commentator, urged Republicans to challenge Donald Trump. Griffin tweeted that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other "credible Republicans with governing experience" should run and challenge Trump.

"There's zero reason to nominate Trump again when R's have a bench & Biden is polling in the 30s," Griffin noted.

Ron DeSantis, who has been a once-loyal member of Trump's camp, is reportedly refusing to bend a knee to the former president.

Daily Mail reported that DeSantis said backing Trump in the 2024 election "is too much to ask" after the former president publicly attacked his character.

Last week, Trump appeared to take direct aim at DeSantis in an interview when he called politicians who refuse to disclose their booster vaccination status as "gutless."

Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis Feud

According to recent reports, Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis, two of the most popular Republicans in the country, appeared to have a political feud.

DeSantis recently went on the "Ruthless" podcast and said that one of his biggest regrets since taking office in 2018 was not speaking out "much louder" against Trump at the start of the COVID pandemic.

The Florida governor noted that he was surprised when Trump made the decision that led to much of the U.S. economy shutting down.

Meanwhile, Trump is reportedly "trashing" DeSantis in private. Sources who've recently talked to the former president about the Florida governor told Axios that Trump called DeSantis an ingrate with a "dull personality" and "no personal charisma."

The sources noted that DeSantis' popularity and his refusal to rule out running against him in the 2024 election irked Trump, as others have stated pretty clearly they will not challenge him.

DeSantis is extremely popular in GOP circles. He is widely seen as a leader who can push Trump's popular policies but without a similar level of drama or baggage.

Last September, a poll among Republicans showed that DeSantis was their number one pick for president if Trump will not run.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Donald Trump Back in Campaign Mode to Hint at a 2024 Run - From 7NEWS Australia