The left considered former President Donald Trump the most hated man in America. Now they're attempting to redirect that hatred to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The campaign to paint DeSantis as the next Trump has begun, Issues & Insights reported. However, the publication's editorial board believes this transparent attempt to redirect Trump's detractors is dead in the water.

This new narrative was apparent in New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie's recently published opinion piece, "What the Martha's Vineyard Stunt Says About the Trump Wannabes" about DeSantis. The author's comparison of DeSantis to Trump's "soft edges and eccentricity" proved this to be "an opening salvo by the press to start demonizing the next Republican," I&I said.

Previously, Bouie had been rabidly anti-Trump, but his "new-found love of Trump has nothing to do with a change of heart and everything to do with portraying the other leading presidential contender — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — as far worse than Trump," the editorial stated. "And the only reason to do so now is because of the fact that DeSantis' recent actions have raised his profile nationally and increasingly endeared him to conservatives."

Other commentators also noticed that this is a playbook frequently recycled by Democrats. "What's surprising is how clueless Bouie — and all those who will inevitably follow him down this path — are to the fact that they are just repeating a tired ritual," the editorial said.

"When Trump his campaign and his presidency, he was a fascist. Now that DeSantis looks as though he could claim the nomination for 2024, he's the fascist," the editorial pointed out.

Before Trump, other Republican candidates and presidents were smeared with the same charge, which removed its bite. "Whoever the Republican nominee is, the press will attack him, or her, as a dangerous extremist," the editorial stated before going on to praise DeSantis and Trump because they "don't seem to care about these vile attacks."

The left is scared of DeSantis. Unfortunately, they already used up their only weapons.