Campaign Almanac: Nikki Haley announces dozens of Iowa endorsements

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley announced she had been endorsed by more than 70 Iowa officials and community leaders on Tuesday, including current and former state lawmakers.

The slate of endorsements comes after Haley’s campaign announced it was spending $10 million on advertising in Iowa and New Hampshire starting in December.

The new endorsers include state Reps. Jane Bloomingdale of Northwood and Brian Lohse of Bondurant, as well as longtime Iowa Republican operative David Oman, who was chief of staff to Govs. Robert Ray and Terry Branstad.

“Often, our best presidents have been governors,” Oman said in a campaign news release. “I like to support governors — proven winners who lead, who assemble a great team, who manage, and get things done. We’ve had some good former governors in this race. Now, only one brings serious foreign policy experience at a critical time with threats in both hemispheres.”

Other notable new endorsements include the following:

• Former state Rep. Carmine Boal

• Former state Sen. Bob Brunkhorst

• Don Lamberti, Casey’s founder

• Doug Gross, former chief of staff to Gov. Terry Branstad

• Former state Rep. Kevin Koester

• Mike Richards, former Iowa Board of Regents president

Haley super PAC hits DeSantis in new ad

The super PAC backing former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for president released an ad targeting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the two struggle over a distant second place in the GOP presidential primary.

The 30-second ad from SFA Fund, Inc. accuses DeSantis of opposing fracking and embracing climate change action while running for governor of Florida, an accusation Haley has often levied against him in recent advertisements and debates.

The ad references a video in which DeSantis says yes when a voter asks him if he supports a ban on fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, a technique used to crack open underground rock formations to extract oil and gas.

Environmentalist organizations oppose fracking over a range of environmental concerns, including its effect on water supply and quality, earthquakes and contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

The ad includes a clip from a 2018 gubernatorial debate, in which DeSantis, then a U.S. representative, said he opposed President Donald Trump over offshore drilling.

In the debate, DeSantis said he opposed it because "I think Florida is unique and we should not have drilling offshore."

DeSantis did oppose fracking and offshore drilling in Florida while running for his first term as governor in 2018. The same year he was elected, Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment to ban offshore drilling in Florida.

After he was elected, DeSantis signed an executive order that, among other water quality reforms, directed the state’s Department of Environmental Protection to “take necessary actions to adamantly oppose” offshore drilling and fracking in the state.

DeSantis has advocated to expand oil and gas drilling as president and cut environmental regulations nationally, but he has also said he opposes drilling for oil in the Florida Everglades and he will honor Florida’s constitutional ban on offshore drilling and fracking.

“DeSantis should face the facts that his donors and supporters already know to be true: he can't handle the heat, and it's time he walks his heels back to Florida. Americans need a leader with a track record of standing strong for what they believe, DeSantis has proven he doesn't have what it takes,” SFA Fund spokesperson Brittany Yanick said in a statement.

DeSantis opening office in Des Moines

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' campaign is opening an office in Des Moines this weekend as a number of campaign staff have moved operations to Iowa ahead of the January caucuses.

DeSantis and his wife, Casey, will be in Des Moines on Saturday during a campaign swing for the office opening, the campaign announced.

According to Politico, three of DeSantis' top campaign officials will relocate to the Hawkeye State through the caucuses, along with about a third of the campaign staff.