Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds made it official Monday night in Des Moines as she endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for President of the United States.
The move comes after Reynolds previously said she would remain neutral in an effort to protect Iowa’s future as First-in-the-Nation.
She told the Des Moines Register:
“I want to welcome everyone to this state. And if I weigh in, I don’t know if they’ll feel all that welcome. But, you know, I’ve made it clear, I will be happy to help introduce you, help travel the state, connect in any way that I can — especially to make sure that if we’ve got big things going on that they know about it.”
Jeff Kaufmann, the Republican Party of Iowa chairman, said the “fact” Reynolds would not weigh in makes her “even more appealing” to candidates.
Reynolds said she talked with President Donald J. Trump and let him know she would not weigh in on behalf of any one candidate.
“I talked to President Trump, I suppose it’s been about a month ago now, and we had a good conversation,” she told the Des Moines Register. “If you’re coming to Iowa, we’d be happy to meet with you and, you know, travel the state.”
However, Monday marked a reversal of her neutrality and commitment to help protect Iowa’s First-in-the-Nation status.
Reynolds acknowledged the unique opportunity Iowans have because of its First-in-the-Nation status.
“We get to shake their hand, we get to look them in the eye and we get to know them on a personal level,” she said. “And that is an opportunity that we as Iowans take very seriously.”
She expressed concern about the border, fentanyl, inflation, spending as well as the escalating international conflicts.
“On caucus night, on Jan. 15, I mean we’re in trouble, but we are resilient,” she said. “We can turn this country around. But if we don’t get this next election right, if we don’t choose right, we are not going to get this country back.”
Reynolds said it is important to elect someone who can beat Joe Biden as well as has the “skill and resolve” to reverse the “madness” we see every day.
“We need someone who will fight for you and win for you,” she said. “We need someone who won’t get distracted but will stay disciplined — who puts this country first and not himself. That leader, that leader, that leader is Ron DeSantis.”
Reynolds shared her relationship with DeSantis as fellow governors. She talked about his leadership through COVID, which showed how leaders respond to a true crisis.
“More importantly, it tells us how they’ll respond to the next one,” she said. “And there will be a next one. The pressure to shut down, to ‘shelter-in-place,’ to keep our kids out of school was unbelievable and it came from every corner — even from the White House.”
While most leaders buckled under that pressure, Reynolds said, one person running for President did not.
“Ron DeSantis,” she exclaimed. “When the Trump Administration let Fauci lead their response, Ron had the courage to say not in Florida.”
She also credited DeSantis for his response and rebuilding efforts in Florida following major hurricanes before pivoting to social issues.
“Someone that knows when life begins and thinks it’s a beautiful thing to save a beating heart,” she said. “Someone who calls out our moral decline for what it is. Who looks to the future and not the past. Someone who most importantly can win, and that person is Ron DeSantis. And it is why I am so proud to stand here tonight and give him my full support and endorsement for President of the United States of America.”
She said she thought long and hard about making her endorsement, noting she has played hostess to the entire presidential field.
“As governor, I felt it was my responsibility to provide all of the candidates a platform to share their mesage and vision with Iowans,” she said. “But I also believe that as a mom and as a grandma and as a parent I could not, cannot sit on the sidelines any longer.”
Reynolds’ endorsement is the first caucus endorsement from an Iowa governor since 1996.
She flip flopped. Why? Follow the money.