It’s official: Sarah Palin is endorsing Donald Trump for president.
“I’m proud to endorse Donald J. Trump for president of the United States of America,” Palin said in a statement from the Trump campaign. In the statement, Trump said he is “greatly honored” to receive Palin’s backing.
“She is a friend, and a high quality person whom I have great respect for,” he said. “I am proud to have her support.”
Palin’s endorsement was first reported by The New York Times.
Earlier this week Trump said on Twitter that he’d be making a “big announcement” on Tuesday in Ames, Iowa. A Facebook post from Trump on Sunday indicated he would have “a very special guest in attendance.”
Ahead of the event, speculation focused on Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee and former Alaska governor, as Trump’s “very special guest” and that she would announce her endorsement of his White House bid.
A Ted Cruz adviser even pre-emptively sought to dismiss the possible endorsement as damaging to Palin’s brand.
“I think it’d be a blow to Sarah Palin, because Sarah Palin has been a champion for the conservative cause, and if she was going to endorse Donald Trump, sadly, she would be endorsing someone who’s held progressive views all their life on the sanctity of life, on marriage, on partial-birth abortion,” Cruz spokesman Rick Tyler said on CNN’s New Day.
That didn’t sit well with a certain member of the Palin family. Daughter Bristol Palin made clear on Tuesday what she hoped her mom would do in a blog post titled “Is THIS Why People Don’t like Cruz?” She wrote that she liked Cruz and believed all of the candidates were better choices than Hillary Clinton. However, she added, “after hearing what Cruz is now saying about my mom, in a negative knee-jerk reaction, makes me hope my mom does endorse Trump.” She also noted that her mom supported Cruz in the past and blasted him for “turning against my mom.”
Bristol Palin’s broadside against Cruz seemed to be based on Tyler’s comments on CNN, not anything said by the Texas senator. In fact, Cruz himself was more conciliatory in a tweet Tuesday, saying he “will always be a big fan” of Sarah Palin’s no matter what she decides about the 2016 race.
“I love @SarahPalinUSA Without her support, I wouldn’t be in the Senate. Regardless of what she does in 2016, I will always be a big fan,” Cruz wrote.
Palin emerged as a leading voice of the Tea Party movement following the 2008 presidential election and was active during the 2010 midterm campaign, backing dozens of conservative GOP candidates across the country.
She’s been a less prominent figure in recent years as other outsider, conservative candidates — such as Cruz — have emerged as favorites of the party’s grass roots. In its statement, though, Trump’s campaign touted her endorsement as “amongst the most sought after and influential amongst Republicans.” Her support could aid his campaign as he finds himself in a close battle with Cruz in the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses, which open the 2016 nominating process.
Palin and Trump have said kind words about each other during the campaign. Last summer, Trump indicated he’d love to have Palin as part of a Trump administration. The former Alaska governor told CNN in September that she’d be interested in serving as Energy secretary for Trump — “energy is my baby,” she said — though she also noted she wanted to eliminate the department altogether, so it’s unclear how that might affect her prospects for the job.
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