Reichman dumps Trump

Trump dump

"It’s no secret Trump is outspoken and we expect that, but when you throw mud in your own camp - that got to me."”

State Sen. Jeff Reichman (R-Montrose)

MONTROSE – The gloves are coming off early in the GOP race in Iowa, Florida, and Arkansas, and that scuffle spread into Lee County Thursday.
State Sen. Jeff Reichman (R-Montrose) threw his support for the 2024 election behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis after former President Donald Trump threw shade at Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday.
Reynolds has positioned herself as neutral in the early portions of the campaign, a move that has bristled the former president. Reynolds has not been invited to Trump events in Iowa.
Trump has posted on his Truth Social Media outlet that he was responsible for putting Reynolds in the Governor’s seat when he promoted then-Governor Terry Branstad to the post of Ambassador to China.
Reynolds won re-election in 2018 and 2022 in large-margin victories.
Reichman said he’d had enough when he heard about the comments Trump made about Reynolds on his social media outlet.
"I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind I ENDORSED her, did big rallies, & she won. Now, she wants to remain 'NEUTRAL.' I don’t invite her to events.”
Reichman said he was on his way to Des Moines when he heard about the comment.
“I was on my way to Des Moines and a friend forwarded that comment he made,” Reichman said. “I think part of this is that the governor has remained neutral and has not declared for a candidate.”
Trump also came out against Reynolds’ effort to pass a bill limiting abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected. Trump said many women don’t even know they're pregnant at that stage.
Reichman said there could be something internal going on in the Trump campaign when it comes to Reynolds, but the campaign hasn’t been reaching out to the Governor. He said he’s spoken with the Governor recently about the event.
 “I don’t know if there’s something internal going on. His campaign wasn’t contacting her about events. She said she had a state to run but every other candidacy reaches out - he doesn’t. She said that’s all she’s asked of candidates, and he doesn’t do it.”
Reichman said he’s come to know the Governor as a caring leader and didn’t appreciate the attack on Reynolds.
“He took a swipe at the Governor and I’ve come to know her over the past three years. Not only do I respect her professionally, she’s a wonderful person and she truly cares about the state and the people,” Reichman said. “It was a long drive to Des Moines that day thinking about this.”
Reichman said a DeSantis staffer reached out to him after the comment and then set up a 10-minute conversation with DeSantis.
“We talked for about 10 minutes and I think we’re going to meet him in Des Moines.”
DeSantis will be in the state this week for a candidate forum hosted by Family Leader, a Christian group. Trump has decided to skip the event.
“It just didn’t feel right and didn’t feel right being in the camp anymore. It’s ok to throw rocks, but when you throw them internally – it’s time to cut away,” Reichman said.
When asked what he favors about the DeSantis campaign, Reichman said he delivers the agenda without all the nonsense.
“He keeps his eye on the ball. Doesn’t let other things pull him away and distract from that. The policy will be similar, initiatives will be similar, but we don’t have all the distractions,” he said.
“It’s no secret Trump is outspoken and we expect that, but when you throw mud in your own camp - that got to me.”
Reichman said potential financial support for future campaigning in Iowa had nothing to do with the switch.
“Absolutely not. It wasn’t a factor in it. I had a 10-minute conversation with (DeSantis) and I told him Trump flipped this area. The eastern portion of Iowa was the last holdout from going back to red. He made people believe we can recover our economy from what has happened over the past 30 years since NAFTA and we’ve started to see it and people in this area need to believe it, so I told him we need to see you in southeast Iowa. That was my ask.
“The biggest headline is that this was a direct result of his comments towards Reynolds.
"We really admire her. She’s a wonderful woman and truly cares about Iowa.”