Tallahassee, Florida - Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis criticized Donald Trump for his recent anti-immigration rhetoric, which DeSantis says isn't helping "move the ball forward."

On Wednesday, the Florida Governor sat down for an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network, where he was asked for his reaction to the controversy surrounding Trump recently telling his supporters that immigrants are "poisoning the blood of our country."

"I think when you have millions and millions of people coming in like this – it's been a disaster," DeSantis responded.

"There's a lot of people from countries that don't mean us well that are coming from Iran, from Russia, from China."

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DeSantis echoed some of Trump's sentiments – describing some immigrants as "criminal aliens" and arguing that they present a national security threat, as "the chance of having a terrorist attack is very high."

He went on to say the subject is great for Republicans to use against President Joe Biden going into the 2024 elections, as it is what he described as "one of the biggest presidential failures of our lifetimes," but noted that he doesn't quite agree with Trump's choice of language.

"When you start talking about using those types of terms, I don’t think that that helps us move the ball forward," he said. "I would not put it in those terms."

Trump's anti-immigration rhetoric, which he has been ramping up in recent weeks as Republican candidates prepare for next month's caucus in Iowa, has been criticized as being racist and xenophobic, and some have drawn comparisons to similar words spoken by Adolf Hitler.

DeSantis has always been an outspoken proponent of addressing problems at the southern border and has used bizarre tactics to ensure his message is heard.

Earlier this year, he and Texas Governor Gregg Abbott began a campaign of sending buses and planes filled with migrants to Democrat-run cities in an attempt to troll the left and Biden administration.

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He has also vowed to allow law enforcement at the border to use deadly force against people attempting to cross illegally if he is elected president in 2024.

During the interview, DeSantis noted that "massive numbers of people" that come to the country legally can even present a "big problem" if they fail to "assimilate" properly.

"Legal immigration," he added, "should really be only for people that buy into our core values as a country, and that actually want to assimilate into American society."