Sarah Palin endorses Donald Trump for US President
Sarah Palin officially endorsed Trump’s presidential campaign (Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)
Donald Trump has had the highest honour possible in his US Presidential campaign – an endorsement from Sarah Palin.
The former governor of Alaska and staunch opponent of LGBT rights, who was the 2008 vice-presidential candidate, spoke at a campaign rally in Ames, Iowa.
The conservative pundit said: “Are you ready to stump for Trump?”
In a statement officially announcing her endorsement, Palin said she thought Trump was ready to get US troops to “kick Isis’ ass”, saying “we are ready for a change”.
“He is beholden to no one but ‘we, the people’. He is perfectly positioned to let you make America great again,” she went on.
The Republican candidate Trump, said he was “proud” to have been given the endorsement, saying Palin is a “trusted conservative”.
Mentioning Palin’s record of being anti-abortion, Trump said she had a “proven record of being fiscally modest [and] staunchly pro-life.”
Palin was John McCain’s running mate in the 2008 election until they lost to Obama.
A strong opponent of LGBT rights, she spoke in 2014 at the conference of a listed hate group that has compared same-sex marriage to the Holocaust – and got the address of the White House wrong during her speech.
In 2013, Palin admitted to defending a homophobic rant made by anti-gay Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson without actually reading his comments.
She was later attacked by singer Sia for sampling song Titanium without permission in a speech defending Robertson.
However, despite her numerous gaffes, Trump has indicated that he would consider appointing Palin to a high-profile role in his administration.
He told a radio host: “One of the things I most admire about her is that she took so much nonsense, lies and disgusting lies. She handles it so well. She’s tough and smart and just a great woman.
Palin last year claimed she has a “political crush” on an MP for France’s far-right National Front.
