Trump, DeSantis both slated to speak at Moms for Liberty summit at end of month

Add one more battleground to the contest between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump, the two current favorites to be the GOP presidential nominee: winning the support of the conservative parent group, Moms for Liberty.

DeSantis had already locked in a speaking role at the Moms for Liberty National Summit in Philadelphia at the end of June, and on Monday, the group announced Trump would be there, too, as a keynote speaker.

The addition of Trump to the lineup could raise the question: How will that play with the Florida governor who has aligned himself so closely with Moms for Liberty priorities?

Any kind of political dissension is not what Moms for Liberty had in mind, said Tina Descovich, co-founder of Moms for Liberty.

The group, who has voiced support for both Trump and DeSantis in the past, invited a number of both conservative and liberal politicians to the summit, she said, including South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. and President Joe Biden, though DeSantis, Trump, Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy were the only four presidential candidates to confirm their attendance as of Monday.

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Having those candidates agree to speak at the second National "Joyful Warriors" Summit is exciting, said Descovich.

"With presidential candidates agreeing to come and speak to us, it absolutely says that this is going to be an issue for the 2024 election," she said. "We're excited to be bringing our issues to the forefront and that elected officials are listening, and we're looking forward to (hearing) what they have to say about them."

Those issues cover a variety of topics that fall under the umbrella of "parental rights." Moms for Liberty, founded by former Brevard school board member Descovich and former Indian River school board member Tiffany Justice in 2021, has been outspoken about topics such as COVID-19 restrictions, critical race theory and LGBTQ issues, with with the group garnering national attention for its members' protests at school board meetings. The organization now has 280 chapters in 45 states with more than 115,000 members.

Moms for Liberty has supported both DeSantis and Trump since 2021. Though the two are leading candidates in the presidential race, Descovich said she doesn't think it will create a tense political situation at the summit.

"It's not a debate; they're not going to be on the stage together," she said, adding that they will be at separate events over the course of three days. "We've asked them to speak to us about the issues that our moms are concerned about."

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This will be Trump's first time speaking at the National "Joyful Warriors" Summit. DeSantis spoke at the inaugural summit in July 2022 in Tampa, where he encouraged attendees to be "leading the way when it comes to their school boards."

DeSantis and Moms for Liberty in 2022

DeSantis and Moms for Liberty often partnered in endorsing conservative school board candidates during the 2022 election, despite those races being nonpartisan.

However, that doesn't mean they've always agreed.

In February, DeSantis released a list of school board members who he said did not protect parental rights and/or shield students from "woke" ideologies, with the goal of "targeting" these members during the 2024 election.

At the July 2022 summit, DeSantis told attendees to stand strong against their detractors.

“You need some courage,” he said. “You just gotta be willing to stand by your convictions … Now’s not the time to let them grind you down. You gotta stand up, and you gotta fight.”

Finch Walker is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at 321-290-4744 or fwalker@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @_finchwalker.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Rivals Trump. DeSantis in speaker lineup at Moms for Liberty summit