Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry endorsed Donald Trump on Thursday, marking a complete change in tone aimed at the billionaire businessman whom he once said would destroy the Republican Party.
“He is not a perfect man. But what I do believe is that he loves this country and he will surround himself with capable, experienced people and he will listen to them,” Perry told CNN.
Perry ended his second bid for the Republican nomination in September of last year, and in that address took repeated jabs at Trump, without mentioning the media mogul’s name, for his disparaging remarks about Hispanics. He also said the eventual nominee must “make the case for the cause of conservatism more than the cause of their own celebrity.”