Trump films video for Kansas Republican Derek Schmidt in final weeks of race for governor
Former President Donald Trump released a video Sunday calling Kansas Republican gubernatorial nominee Derek Schmidt “outstanding in every single way.”
Trump endorsed the state attorney general in January when Schmidt had a clear path to winning the Republican nomination to take on Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. Trump’s support at the time may have served as a powerful deterrent to potential right-wing opponents considering entering the GOP primary, but now Schmidt is grappling with an independent campaign from conservative state Sen. Dennis Pyle who could draw votes away from the Republican.
“He’s strong on the border, he’s strong on crime, he’s going to fight taxes as soon as he gets elected,” Trump said in the video Schmidt shared on Twitter. “He’s going to be a governor like few others. He’s tough, he’s smart and he’s got a big heart.”
He went on to proclaim that “everything (Schmidt) touches turns out right.” Schmidt was among the attorneys general to sign onto a Texas-led case that unsuccessfully sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
Trump’s video offering more detail on his support for Schmidt came two days after former Vice President Mike Pence visited Wichita to stump for Schmidt. Pence’s relationship with Trump has soured following the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol last year, in which a mob of Trump supporters attempted to prevent certification of President Joe Biden’s victory and some called for Pence’s hanging.
When Pence came to Kansas last week, Kelly’s campaign took it as an opportunity to tout the praise Trump heaped on her in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic with a full page ad in The Wichita Eagle. The ad referenced a May 2020 meeting in which Trump said Kelly was doing a “fantastic job.”
Kelly’s campaign responded to Trump’s Schmidt video with a statement that distanced Kelly from Biden, her fellow Democrat.
“Governor Kelly has proven she’ll always put party politics aside and work with anyone to do what’s right for Kansas, from working with President Trump to keep meatpacking plants running during the pandemic to opposing President Biden’s vaccine mandates,” Kelly’s campaign spokeswoman Lauren Fitzgerald said in a statement.
This story was originally published October 24, 2022 at 10:10 AM.
