Trump tweets support for DeSantis for governor
As he arrived in South Florida on Friday, President Donald Trump shook up the 2018 Florida governor’s race by heaping praise on one of the Republicans who wants the job, Congressman Ron DeSantis.
Trump delivered the early Christmas present to DeSantis via his favorite communications medium: Twitter.
“Congressman Ron DeSantis is a brilliant young leader, Yale and then Harvard Law, who would make a GREAT Governor of Florida. He loves our Country and is a true FIGHTER!” the president wrote as he landed at Palm Beach International Airport.
Trump might have gotten some inspiration for his tweet from his second favorite form of communication: Fox News.
A report from the pool of reporters traveling to PBIA with Trump on Air Force One said that Fox News was playing on the cabin televisions. Toward the end of the flight, a segment with DeSantis was featured.
The president is spending the coming days at his Mara-Lago Club in Palm Beach, which the Trump administration calls the Winter White House.
DeSantis, who hasn’t officially announced his candidacy, thanked Trump in a press release with the headline, “President Trump Backs Ron DeSantis for Governor of Florida.”
“I’m grateful to have the president’s support and appreciate what he has done,” DeSantis said, adding praise for Trump achievements that have pleased conservatives: recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, signing the tax reform legislation, and appointing conservative judges.
DeSantis, a Republican from Ponte Vedra Beach, has been a strong supporter of Trump.
In August, he proposed cutting off funding for special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russian efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election.
DeSantis’ proposal, which went nowhere, would have stopped money for the investigation 180 days after it becomes law. And it would have prevented Mueller from investigating “matters” that occurred before Trump announced his presidential campaign.
Also in August, DeSantis used an appearance at the Palm Beach County Republican Party’s annual lobsterfest to advertise his pro-Trump credentials.
As he delivered a combination political speech and invocation, the big screens at the front of the room flashed a picture of DeSantis, his wife, their infant daughter, the president and First Lady Melania Trump White House.
At that Palm Beach County appearance, and at events throughout the state, DeSantis has been laying the groundwork for a 2018 candidacy for the Republican nomination to run for governor.
He’s known for railing against big government and Democrats, and is one of the most conservative members of the House.
Steve Schale, a prominent Florida Democratic strategist, said on Twitter that a Trump endorsement doesn’t guarantee success. Several of candidates the president has endorsed recently in statewide primary and general election contests have gone on to defeat.
“Based on outside Trump the recent success in picking candidates, this might be the kiss of death. Though given Trump’s incredibly thin skin & long memory, it’s not surprising,” Schale wrote on Twitter.
Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, a former member of Congress, also is seeking the Republican nomination in 2018.
Richard Corcoran, speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, is expected to run, but like DeSantis, hasn’t announced his candidacy.
A fourth Republican, state Sen. Jack Latvala, is a candidate. But he’s announced his resignation from the Legislature over a sexual harassment scandal that may have involved trading sex for official legislative action.