Steve King, the white supremacist former congressman from Iowa , endorsed longshot candidate Vivek Ramaswamy in the states Republican presidential primary on Tuesday.

Vivek Ramaswamy is going to shock the world at the Iowa caucus because he is the only candidate in this race whos had the courage to oppose the CO2 pipelines here in Iowa, to publicly oppose the climate change cult, to commit to pardon peaceful Jan 6 protestors on day 1, and to end birthright citizenship for kids of illegals in this country, King said in a statement obtained by Politico .

The Ramaswamy campaign also produced a video of King making the endorsement, in which he calls Ramaswamy the candidate who will restore the pillars of American exceptionalism.

King, a Republican, spent 18 years in Congress as a representative for the conservative northwest corner of Iowa, earning a reputation as one of the furthest-right and most racist legislators in Washington. He lost his 2020 primary race to a relatively more moderate Republican, Rep. Randy Feenstra, after a series of remarks he made condoning white supremacy.

Since he left office, King has openly embraced well-known white supremacists, even speaking at the 2022 American Renaissance conference in Tennessee, the annual gathering that has attracted some of Americas most notorious racists and anti-Semites, including Nick Fuentes and Richard Spencer.

On Tuesday, Ramaswamy responded to Kings endorsement on X , formerly Twitter, saying:

Most people are sheep when it comes to making endorsements, but @SteveKingIA doesnt do what hes supposed to. He votes his conscience and thats why I respect him. Steve King was America First before it was cool. The likes of Steve King & Pat Buchanan were the OGs. He doesnt back down from a fight and he certainly doesnt bow to the Establishment. Grateful for his endorsement. Next up #shocktheworld on Jan. 15.