The “kingmaker of the Iowa Caucus” is Team DeSantis.
Bob Vander Plaats, a prominent Iowa Christian evangelical leader, announced his endorsement of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president on Tuesday.
Vander Plaats, CEO and president of the conservative group Family Leader, argued that DeSantis, 45, is Republicans’ best chance of winning the 2024 general election and said his endorsement should not come as a surprise.
“What we saw in 2022, the so-called ‘red wave,’ actually only happened in Florida and Iowa,” Vander Plaats told Fox News “Special Report” host Bret Baier.
“Governor. DeSantis took a reliable state in Florida and left it completely red (he won by 20 points, he won in a demographic we haven’t won in), but he also did it by being a bold and courageous leader.
“So, right away, losing was kind of a backup,” he added.
Vander Plaats noted that DeSantis “closed the sale” with his performance at The Family Leader’s Thanksgiving Family Forum last week in Des Moines, which featured a panel discussion between Vander Plaats, DeSantis, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy , 38, and the former governor of South Carolina. Nikki Haley, 51 years old.
Former President Donald Trump, 77, a favorite of the Iowa caucus, was not invited to the event by Vander Plaats’ group.
“I am delighted to lend my personal endorsement and support to Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida,” Vander Plaats said Tuesday.X / Ron DeSantis
“I was very clear [how] We need a president who can serve two terms, not one. We don’t need a president who runs out of life on day one. You need a president who surrounds himself with the best and brightest people, rather than struggling to attract them back. And someone who is really going to do what he says he’s going to do, and I think he has the courage to do it. And I think he has the experience to win for us,” Vander Plaats explained.
The last three candidates Vander Plaats has endorsed won the Iowa caucuses, but none of them became the Republican nominee.
He endorsed former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee in 2008, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum in 2012 and Texas Senator Ted Cruz in 2016.
DeSantis earned the endorsement of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds earlier this month.AP
“I think the country needs to look at Iowa a little bit more,” Vander Plaats said of his past endorsements.
The evangelical leader also predicted that if Trump wins in Iowa “he will be their eventual nominee.”
“I think America could do with having an option, and I really think Ron DeSantis is that guy and I think Iowa is tailor-made for him to win this,” he added.
The DeSantis campaign celebrated the endorsement of the “kingmaker of the Iowa Caucus,” noting in a statement that Vander Plaats’ endorsement comes just days after the governor of the Sunshine State earned the endorsement of Iowa’s governor, Kim Reynolds, the first time since 1996 that an incumbent Iowa governor has endorsed a Republican presidential primary candidate.
The DeSantis campaign called Vander Plaats a “kingmaker of the Iowa Caucus.”
“As he toured 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties, Iowans have shared the critical role Bob Vander Plaats plays in engaging Iowa’s faith community in the key battles that matter,” DeSantis said. “Your support tells Iowans that they can trust me to fight and win for them.
“We are delighted to have Bob and Darla [his wife] on Team DeSantis and we are grateful for their friendship as we have gotten to know them throughout this campaign. “The road to reviving America begins in Iowa and we will get the job done.”
Trump’s campaign accused Vander Plaats of demanding money in exchange for his endorsement, a claim the religious leader denies.
“More than 150 religious leaders in Iowa are organizing their congregations for President Trump and none demanded nearly $100,000 like Bob Vander Plaat$ did to Ron DeSanctus,” the campaign said in a statement. “When you are actually the leader of a movement like President Trump is, people are willing to support you for free. “Kim Reynolds’ endorsement won’t save Ron DeSanctus, nor will Vander Plaat$’s endorsement.”
“President Trump knows better than anyone that my endorsement has never been and will never be for sale,” Vander Plaats told Baier. “So he has nothing to do with any kind of money being paid or anything like that.”
He explained that candidates, including DeSantis, Ramaswamy and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), had paid his organization to attend dinners and be promoted at the group’s programs.
“They had to pay for that,” Vander Plaats acknowledged.
DeSantis is currently polling second in the Hawkeye State, well behind Trump, who leads the Florida governor by nearly 30 points, according to a RealClearPolitics polling average.
Vander Plaats argued that the key for DeSantis in the January 15 caucuses will be getting “between 60% and 65%” of Iowans “open to choosing someone” other than Trump to rally behind the governor. from Florida.
“And that will be up to Governor DeSantis and those of us like Kim Reynolds, myself and others who have endorsed the governor to join him and see if we can get him over the finish line in the state of Iowa so that America has a real choice.” , said.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn