Former President Donald Trump questioned why Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds would endorse his fellow GOP presidential candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, calling him a “wounded bird.”
“Why would anybody endorse Ron DeSanctimonious, who is like a wounded bird falling from the sky?” Mr. Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Monday. “His poll numbers are terrible, he is totally against Ethanol, and fought to destroy Social Security and Medicare.”
“Well, the ’Nation’s most unpopular governor,’ Kim Reynolds of Iowa, just endorsed him. What’s that all about?” he wrote.
Ms. Reynolds, a Republican, endorsed Mr. DeSantis Monday at a campaign rally, saying a “big reason” is because she doesn’t think Mr. Trump can win the general election.
“We need someone who will fight for you and who will win for you,” she said. “We need someone who will not get distracted, who puts this country first, and not himself. That leader is Ron DeSantis.”
The endorsement by Ms. Reynolds, who is the Hawkeye State’s most popular Republican, could mean an uptick in support for Mr. DeSantis. The first-in-the-nation Iowa caucus will be on Jan. 15.
Mr. Trump first attacked Ms. Reynolds for the endorsement on Sunday before she announced it publicly. He said on Truth Social that it would be the end of her “political career in that MAGA would never support her again.”
“Two extremely disloyal people getting together is, however, a very beautiful thing to watch,” he said of Ms. Reynolds and Mr. DeSantis. “They can now remain loyal to each other because nobody else wants them!!!”
Ms. Reynolds said she had planned to stay out of the race, but ultimately changed her mind when the former president started attacking her for not endorsing him, and taking credit for her gubernatorial wins.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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