WATCH: Trump Declares That ‘The Problem With Ron DeSanctimonious Is That He Needs a Personality Transplant’

AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File

Former president Donald Trump launched a new attack on Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) on Friday, declaring that his likely soon-to-be rival for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination needs a “personality transplant.”

“The problem with Ron DeSanctimonious is that he needs a personality transplant and those are not yet available,” declared Trump. He continued:

Almost all congressmen and women who served with him and knew him well supported me. Some of them surprisingly so because of their relationship with Ron. I would say that when it comes to lack of personality, Ron would be in a class with [former Arkansas governor] Asa Hutchinson — and that’s not good.

Ron’s foreign trip was a total bomb. They didn’t even know what he was doing there — “What’re you doing here, Ron? Why are you here?” It was a mess. Thank you.

Trump leads — and DeSantis comes in second — in every major national survey of the GOP primary electorate. Prior to Trump’s indictment by a Manhattan grand jury earlier this year, DeSantis had been steadily eating into Trump’s lead despite not having announced his candidacy yet.

Trump has been endorsed by a number of Republican legislators, including GOP Florida Congressmen Matt Gaetz, Byron Donalds, and Vern Buchanan. Before the official launch of his campaign, DeSantis has been endorsed by conservative congressional firebrands Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Chip Roy (R-TX) as well as ex-Trump advisor Steve Cortes.