CLEVELAND — Any tension between fellow Republicans Donald Trump and Mike DeWine appears to have subsided.
The former president on Wednesday offered his "Complete and Total Endorsement" to Ohio's current governor as well as Lt. Gov. Jon Husted in their ongoing campaign for a second term. Trump described DeWine as someone who "quietly, but professionally and patriotically, goes about doing his job, and really well."
"Running alongside his very talented and loyal Lieutenant Governor, Jon Husted, Ohio has been in strong hands with the Economy 'roaring,'" Trump wrote, "especially in the four years that I was President."
Ironically, DeWine has often made headlines by being different from Trump, particularly with his response to the COVID-19 pandemic when he strongly promoted strict health measures to keep the virus at bay. The governor's approval ratings soared and Trump still publicly praised him, but the then-president later questioned DeWine's political future when the latter refused to go along with the former's lies that the 2020 presidential election had been "stolen."
"Who will be running for Governor of the Great State of Ohio?" Trump tweeted on Nov. 16 of that year. "Will be hotly contested!"
Later, DeWine condemned Trump's actions on the day of the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, saying he "started a fire that has threatened to burn down our democracy." However, the governor eventually said he would still accept an endorsement from the former president, and Trump ended up declining to back any of DeWine's challengers in this past spring's GOP primary as the incumbent bested former U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci, farmer Joe Blystone, and former state Rep. Ron Hood.
True to his word, DeWine graciously accepted Trump's support, and took to Twitter Wednesday to personally thank the former president.
DeWine is facing Democratic nominee and former Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley in the November general election, and Trump referred to her as "a terrible person" who "would send Ohio back to the Stone Ages." Whaley responded to the endorsement with a scathing statement of her own:
"It’s been clear for years that Governor Mike DeWine goes whichever way the political winds blow, looking out solely for himself regardless of what's best for our state. After avoiding being seen with Trump for years, he's happy to take his endorsement now that he needs it. DeWine might not want to say what he stands for, but we’re more than happy to tell the truth to Ohio voters: he'll ban all abortion, make our communities less safe, and sell out working families for corrupt, special interests."
Republicans have won seven of the past eight gubernatorial elections in Ohio, with only Democrat Ted Strickland claiming victory in 2006 before being ousted by John Kasich four years later. A recent Emerson College poll showed DeWine leading Whaley by 16 points.
