This lawmaker is running for governor partly because Trump tweeted that he should

Ron Desantis.
(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/FoxNews)

Two weeks ago, President Trump tweeted effusive praise of Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis (R), calling the congressman "a brilliant young leader" and encouraging him to run for governor. On Friday morning, DeSantis officially heeded the president's call — doing so on Trump's favorite show, Fox & Friends.

"A few weeks ago the president tweeted support for me as a candidate for governor of Florida, so today we are going to be filing the paperwork to begin that effort," DeSantis said. He also invoked one of Trump's favorite slogans, explaining that "with the support of the president, I'm in a position to exercise the leadership that can ... drain the swamp in Tallahassee, which needs to be drained, just like Washington."

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Kelly O'Meara Morales

Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.