President Donald Trump is traveling to Tampa Tuesday night to hold his first campaign event in the Sunshine State this election cycle.
The president is set to trumpet his endorsement of Republican candidate for governor, Rep. Ron DeSantis, who has been a staunch defender of the president against the Mueller probe looking into possible Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Trump first endorsed DeSantis via Twitter back in December 2017, before DeSantis even announced he was running. The president made it Twitter-official in June, even though many believed Vice President Mike Pence’s close relationship with DeSantis’ primary opponent, Florida Agriculture Commissioner and former Rep. Adam Putnam, meant Trump would support Putnam.
Ahead of the president’s rally, the Democratic Governors Association released a statement saying “DeSantis is the latest Trump wannabe catering to the fringe-far right while everyday Floridians wait to hear a real plan for Florida.”
The president’s visit will also include an economic round table with Gov. Rick Scott at Tampa Bay Technical High School. Scott is running in a competitive race for the Senate against Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson.
Florida’s primary is only a month away, scheduled for August 28th.
