It looked bad for Ron DeSantis.
It looked timid. Like he wanted the assurance of others.
At the Wednesday debate Fox host Bret Baier asked a direct question:
"If former president Trump is convicted in a court of law would you still support him as your party's choice. Please raise your hand if you would."
The eight candidates looked like this as the question was asked. The candidates were facing the hosts.
What happened next took place in two seconds. Vivek Ramaswamy immediately raises his hand and held it over his head. Ron DeSantis turned his head to his right -- our left. We saw him looking at Pence, Christie, and Hutchinson. They had not yet raised their hands. Pence later would.
Then DeSantis turned to his left and saw Ramaswami, Haley, Scott, and Burgum. Their hands were up.
We saw DeSantis jerk his hand up. It looked like he was seeking the safety of a crowd.
It is an uncharitable view, but that is what it looked like to me. It is how the Trump campaign saw it. They tweeted this:
DeSantis' side-to-side glance provides a body language insight into DeSantis' character: He is inauthentic. This is jumping to conclusions on my part, but our impressions on the unguarded actions of others is a big part of how we frame our opinions. I have been writing about the body language of politics in this blog for eight years. It is why my seeing events live and up close is so useful. I can observe what the candidate is doing before and after the camera is on and their performance is underway. We understand that people attempt to construct a useful presentation of themselves. It is conscious and therefore artificial. But sometimes our bodies betray us. While DeSantis' mind was racing and deciding how to sound like a decisive leader, his body was revealing an inner truth. At least, that is what it looks like.
A Politico article makes this point, too. It shows live video of the moment.
Speaking of body language: I LOVE your new, smiling "mug shot"!