“Ron DeSantis is exactly the type of guy we need to clean up Washington. He is a conservative reformer who will work to cut spending, reduce the debt and reign in the size and scope of the federal government,” Bondi said in a news release.

DeSantis, an attorney, is running for the 6th Congressional District, which includes St. Johns, Volusia, Putnam, and Flagler Counties.

He is facing Democrat Heather Beaven in November’s general election.

Here’s the full release:

Ron DeSantis, the Iraq war veteran and Navy reservist who is the Republican nominee for Congress in the new 6th Congressional District of Florida, has been endorsed by Attorney General Pam Bondi.

“Ron DeSantis is exactly the type of guy we need to clean up Washington. He is a conservative reformer who will work to cut spending, reduce the debt and reign in the size and scope of the federal government,” said Attorney General Bondi. ”I am confident that his experience as a prosecutor, service in the military and knowledge of the Constitution will make him a leader in the U.S. Congress.”

“I’m honored to have the support of Attorney General Bondi,” said DeSantis. “She has been a champion for constitutionally limited government in Florida and across the nation. Our state is fortunate to have a leader so dedicated to the rule of law.”

A native Floridian, Ron worked his way through Yale University and Harvard Law School and then elected to serve his country as an officer in the United States Navy. Ron deployed to Iraq during the 2007 troop surge as an adviser to a Navy SEAL commander in support of the SEAL counterinsurgency mission, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service.

Ron DeSantis has been endorsed by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, Ambassador John Bolton, U.S. Senator Mike Lee, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Club for Growth PAC, FreedomWorks, Florida CFO Jeff Atwater, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, the Conservative Victory Fund, the Madison Project PAC, Eagle Forum PAC, RedState.com, Combat Veterans for Congress, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for Congress, and the Citizens United Political Victory Fund.

Ron lives in Ponte Vedra Beach in St. Johns County with his wife Casey Black DeSantis, an Emmy award-winning television host.           

“Ron DeSantis is a Constitutional conservative who will help reform Washington and restore our commitment to the free enterprise and limited government principles that have made America exceptional for over two centuries,” Rubio said.

It is DeSantis’ latest in a long line of big name endorsements which have included Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, CFO Jeff Atwater and former UN ambassador John Bolton.

DeSantis is running against Democrat Heather Beaven in the general.

Follow  on Twitter. The PolitiJax blog is there, too

Here is the release:

Ron DeSantis, the Iraq war veteran and Navy reservist who is the Republican nominee for Congress in the new 6th Congressional District of Florida, has been endorsed by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio.

“Ron  DeSantis is a Constitutional conservative who will help reform Washington and restore our commitment to the free enterprise and limited government principles that have made America exceptional for over two centuries,” Sen. Rubio said. “He believes in reducing the burdens of bureaucracy and red tape on individuals  and businesses and in fostering economic growth and job creation. Ron will help us repeal ObamaCare, cut spending and enact pro-growth tax reform. As a Navy officer and Iraq veteran, Ron is committed to rebuilding our military and supporting our troops. I strongly urge voters in Florida’s 6th congressional district to send Ron DeSantis to Congress.”

“Senator Marco Rubio is one of the foremost conservative leaders not only in Florida but throughout our entire country,” DeSantis said. “Watching Charlie Crist speak to the Democratic National Convention underscored how fortunate we are that Marco Rubio had the courage to run against — and soundly defeat — Crist when conventional wisdom and the Republican establishment said it could not be done.  Senator Rubio has put principle before politics and has been one of our most  articulate defenders of limited government, free markets and a strong national defense. We in Florida are extremely fortunate to have Marco Rubio representing us in the U.S. Senate and I am very grateful for his support.”

A native Floridian, Ron worked his way through Yale University and Harvard Law School and then elected to serve his country as an officer in the United States Navy. Ron deployed to Iraq during the 2007 troop surge as an adviser to a Navy SEAL commander in support of the SEAL counterinsurgency mission, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service.

Ron lives in Ponte Vedra Beach in St. Johns County with his wife Casey Black DeSantis, an Emmy award-winning television host.

He is being supported by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who calls himself ”America’s toughest sheriff.”

“I’m proud to endorse Ron DeSantis for Congress because I know he will stand up for the rule of law and get tough on illegal immigration,” said Arpaio, who is the sheriff of Maricopa County.

He has become well known for an outspoken stance against illegal immigration, and for making prisoners wear pink underware.

DeSantis, an attorney, is running for the 6th Congressional District, which includes St. Johns, Flagler, Volusia and Putnam Counties. He already has national endorsements from Club for Growth and former U.N. ambassador John Bolton

Here is the release:

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Republican Ron DeSantis, the Iraq war veteran and Navy reservist who is running for Congress in the new 6th Congressional District of Florida, has been endorsed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio “America’s Toughest Sheriff.”

“I’m proud to endorse Ron DeSantis for Congress because I know he will stand up for the rule of law and get tough on illegal immigration,” said Sheriff Joe Arpaio. “Ron’s service in Iraq and as a prosecutor gives me confidence in his ability to take on the insiders and be a Conservative leader in Congress. Ron is the conservative we can trust.”

“I am pleased to be endorsed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio,” DeSantis said.  ”Like Sheriff Joe, I believe that illegal immigration is a major problem that undermines the rule of law. We must enforce the laws we have on the books, secure our borders and deny special benefits to illegal immigrants such as in-state tuition rates. This approach is best for American citizens and is fair to those who have taken the time and effort to go through the legal immigration process.”

A native Floridian, Ron worked his way through Yale University and Harvard Law School and then elected to serve his country as an officer in the United States Navy. Ron deployed to Iraq during the 2007 troop surge as an adviser to a Navy SEAL commander in support of the SEAL counterinsurgency mission, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service.

Ron DeSantis has been endorsed by Ambassador John Bolton, U.S. Senator Mike Lee,  Club for Growth PAC, FreedomWorks, Florida CFO Jeff Atwater, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, the Conservative Victory Fund, the Madison Project PAC, Eagle Forum PAC, RedState.com, Combat Veterans for Congress, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for Congress, and the Citizens United Political Victory Fund.

Ron lives in Ponte Vedra Beach in St. Johns County with his wife Casey Black DeSantis, an Emmy award-winning television host.

“President Obama’s policies have failed the citizens of the 6th Congressional District,” DeSantis insisted on Thursday. “This president believes that success is given by the government not earned by an individual, a notion that is completely foreign to the principles on which our nation was founded. This type of thinking is yet another reason why voters need to send Obama back to Chicago in November.”

“As a veteran, Ron DeSantis lives his life by a creed that embodies the founding principles of our nation,” said David Bossie, the president of Citizens United. “As a true conservative, Ron will bring bold leadership to Washington at a time when our beloved country so desperately needs it. Ron will be guided by his core beliefs in Congress, and he will not get weak kneed when it comes time to take the difficult votes it will require to get America’s fiscal house in order. I urge all voters to support Ron DeSantis on August 14th.”

Happy 4th of July! I hope everyone has a wonderful day. I know there are a number of great events that will be taking place.

While you are enjoying yourself, please take a moment to reflect on what July 4th means to our country and its people. By my lights, July 4th is about much more than the day America separated itself from Great Britain. After all, nations throughout history have gained their independence from other nations and colonial powers.

We are different because our Declaration of Independence announced to the world not only our formal independence but also the fundamental principles of a free society:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”

These are enduring truths about human liberty, as relevant today as the day Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration. To my dismay, we have been walking away from many of the principles that have made us great.

The inalienable rights that Jefferson cites come not from government but from God. The reason for creating government in the first place is to protect these rights, not to diminish them. When I see things happening today that contradict this basic insight – such as the HHS mandate requiring religious institutions to provide services that contract their core beliefs – I fear that some in our country don’t subscribe to Jefferson’s basic formulation. For these people, government’s needs are supposed to come before the rights and liberty of the people. This is wrong and it turns what the Founding Fathers did on its head.

Jefferson also makes it clear that we as individuals are not guaranteed happiness but merely the right to pursue it. Abraham Lincoln said that the Constitution guaranteed “an open field and a fair chance for your industry, enterprise and intelligence.” Ultimately, it is up to each and every one of us to make the most out of the talents that we have been given. We are free to succeed but also free to fail. The choice is ours.

For some, such as Barack Obama, this is not compelling. In my judgment, Obama believes that government’s role is the equalize outcomes and to guarantee “happiness” through government dependency programs. By making people slightly more comfortable in middling circumstances, Obama thinks he is creating a utopian society in which central planners (such as himself) take care of the rest of us. The problem is that the policies advocated by people like Obama tend to trap people in a culture of dependency and make it less likely that they will do great things. This a demoralizing vision for a nation conceived in liberty.

The principles that have made us exceptional are being challenged like never before in my lifetime. Most of the Founding Fathers had comfortable existences in the colonies yet they risked everything – their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor – to take a stand for human liberty and to establish what they considered to be a new order for the ages. We are the heirs to this legacy. We must vindicate their sacrifice.

I look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail.

God bless America.

Ready To Serve,

Ron DeSantis

“Politicians play by their own set of rules, we pay the tab,” he says, standing in what appears to be a living room. “They spend us into oblivion, yet they give themselves generous pay and benefits. Worst of all, they disregard their oath to the Constitution. This has to stop,” he says, as light patriotic music begins to play.

“I’ve taken an oath to the Constitution,” DeSantis, a retired Navy JAG officer, says over photos of him in a military uniform. “I’ve served in Iraq, prosecuted criminals and am still in the Navy Reserve.”

“I take my oath seriously. It’s time Congress did too,” he says as the ad concludes.

DeSantis is running in a crowded GOP field that includes Jacksonville City Councilman Richard Clark, former Ruth’s Chris CEO Craig Miller, state Rep. Fred Costello and others in the Aug. 14  primary.

The ad is supported by a small buy, according to a Democratic source familiar with it. The spot, which appeared to begin airing earlier this week, is backed by about $7,500 over two weeks on cable in the Jacksonville and Orlando media markets, according to the source. A DeSantis spokesman had no comment on the size of the buy.

“Ron DeSantis is a principled conservative and America desperately needs him in Washington,” said club President Chris Chocola. DeSantis has attracted some national conservative buzz. He’s even caught the eye of Donald Trump who tweeted that the Republican was “very impressive.”

DeSantis is part of a GOP field of seven candidates which also includes Craig Miller, the former CEO of Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse who was a Senate candidate before switching to the 6th District race. Miller has an ability and willingness to self-fund.

The club’s endorsement will impress anti-tax conservatives, but as we’ve written, the most important things the group’s endorsement does is steer donors toward congressional candidates and trigger independent expenditures on their behalf. With the well-stocked Miller in the mix, the club’s endorsement of DeSantis in the Republican-leaning district on the state’s northeast coast should make a difference.

“I have seen a lot of candidates and Ron DeSantis is one of the most impressive I have encountered,” Lee said in a statement released on Monday. “He has an impeccable resume and sterling military service record and he backs it up with strong conservative principles and a proven dedication to the Constitution.  Ron is the type of leader that conservatives can count on and he will make an immediate impact in the House of Representatives.  Ron is clearly committed to the type of bold reforms that are necessary to re-limit government and to save our country from fiscal ruin.  I urge Republicans in the 6th congressional district to support him enthusiastically.”

“The support of Senator Mike Lee is very exciting,” DeSantis said. “All members of Congress take an oath to support and defend the Constitution, yet too few understand what such an oath entails.  Senator Mike Lee doesn’t have that problem.  He is a proven expert of the Constitution and is a champion for limited government and the rule of law.  He is the epitome of a constitutional conservative and will be a leader in the conservative movement for years to come.”

“Ron DeSantis is a Reagan conservative who will stand for limited government principles and traditional values,” Schlafly said in a statement on Monday. “We must send authentic conservatives like Ron to Congress, not ‘go along to get along’ politicians who place expediency over principle. We cannot afford to elect anymore RINOs. Ron DeSantis represents a new generation of conservative leadership – he is pro-life, strong on marriage issues and is committed to bold reforms. He will be a leader in Congress and will be an articulate defender of the Constitution.”

“I am honored by the support of Phyllis Schlafly and the Eagle Forum,” DeSantis said. “Phyllis is one of the pillars of the conservative movement and her Eagle Forum PAC has set the standard for volunteer participation in the electoral process. I am committed to reversing the Obama agenda and reasserting American sovereignty, limited government principles and religious freedom. I will be guided by the core values that have made America great.”