President Donald Trump tweeted out a "full endorsement" of Marsha Blackburn in her Tennessee senatorial bid Thursday, saying he would travel to campaign for her.
Blackburn, a Republican congresswoman, is seeking the GOP nomination for the race to replace Sen. Bob Corker (R., Tenn.). She will likely face former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen (D.) in the fall.
".@MarshaBlackburn is a wonderful woman who has always been there when we have needed her," Trump tweeted. "Great on the Military, Border Security and Crime. Loves and works hard for the people of Tennessee. She has my full endorsement and I will be there to campaign with her!"
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/987038167730552832
Corker and Trump have clashed several times since Trump took office, and he may have rankled Trump and Blackburn by expressing warmth toward Bredesen, who was governor when Corker was first elected in 2006.
"I think he’s got real appeal—I don’t think it, I know it," Corker said on Wednesday. "The question is, in a state like ours that is still a red state, is it enough? I don’t know the answer to that."
He went on to call him a "very good governor."
Corker said he would vote for Blackburn, however.
Blackburn is a strong supporter of Trump, who carried 92 of 95 counties in Tennessee in 2016 en route to a landslide victory there over Hillary Clinton.