Governor DeSantis rejected an offer to appear on ABC’s “The View” on Tuesday because of comments the hosts have previously made about the Florida leader.

Deputy Press Secretary Bryan Griffin tweeted Friday that the show had invited the governor on and would be “honored” for him to make an appearance.

On Tuesday, however, Mr. Griffin posted a letter on Twitter rebuking the show, citing remarks made in the past by hosts Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin, and Ana Navarro.

The statement said Ms. Behar characterized Mr. DeSantis as a “homicidal sociopath” who resisted mask mandates so he could “appeal to his white supremacist base.”

According to Mr. Griffin’s letter, Ms. Hostin referred to the governor as “Death-Santis” and a “fascist and a bigot,” and said his policies were harming Black Floridians, gay and lesbian Floridians, and other “marginalized groups” in the state.

Mr. Griffin said in the letter that Ms. Navaro once proclaimed that Mr. DeSantis’s policies were “anti-American” and akin to the actions taken by left-wing strongmen in places like Nicaragua and Venezuela.  

Which of the “statements from the hosts of the View do you recommend our team consider when deciding if the interview will be a genuine pursuit of the truth. Or worth the time,” Mr. Griffin wrote in his statement. 

“We will pass on this offer.”

Mr. DeSantis, a likely presidential contender, has recently been surging in national polls in a theoretical 2024 Republican primary faceoff against President Trump. He is up for re-election in November and is being opposed by a Democratic congressman, Charlie Crist.