Only two weeks after announcing his retirement, Rep. Mark Green (R-TN), the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, made a surprising reversal at the beckoning of former president Donald Trump.
“While my strong desire was to leave Congress at the end of this year, since my announcement, I have received countless calls from constituents, colleagues, and President Trump urging me to reconsider," he said in a statement to Axios on Thursday.
Earlier that afternoon, Trump made a post on Truth Social fawning over the Republican lawmaker.
“Mark Green has had lots of options because of his political talents, and the great job he has done as a Congressman, but given the fantastic work he’s doing as Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, I hope he runs for Re-Election to the U.S. House of Representatives,” Trump wrote. “If he does, he has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”
Green’s original announcement on Feb. 14 came as a shock to his colleagues, following his success in impeaching Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.