Mike Rogers, running for Michigan's open US Senate seat, endorses Trump for president

Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, who is running as a Republican for Michigan's open U.S. Senate seat this year, endorsed former President Donald Trump for reelection on Tuesday.

Rogers, a former FBI agent who left Congress in 2015 after serving eight two-year terms and rose to become chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, is widely seen as a strong GOP candidate to replace U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., who is stepping down after her current term ends early next year.

Some of that strength, however, is based on the perception that Rogers, while remaining a staunch conservative, has been willing to work with Democrats and showed independence by criticizing efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which he has said President Joe Biden won fairly.

But Rogers has also defended Trump in recent months and accused the Biden administration of weaponizing the Justice Department against the former president, who faces charges for keeping certain classified documents after leaving office and for his attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

On Tuesday, Rogers posted a message on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, saying, "Wide-open southern border. Soaring cost of living. Weakness on the global stage. That's Joe Biden's America. That's why I'm endorsing Donald Trump for President."

The post linked to an article on the conservative Daily Caller website written by Rogers in which he says, "President Trump’s leadership and policies worked," blasting the Biden administration for not adequately securing the southern border, inflation and increases in violent crime, although inflation has fallen significantly in recent months and violent crime was down across the U.S. in 2023.

Rogers said, "Biden’s policies are threatening the safety of our families."

Rogers' endorsement comes at a time just ahead of the Iowa caucuses Monday and as Trump is nailing down support from other elected officials. Last week, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., endorsed Trump even though the former president helped bring down Emmer's bid for the speakership last year; the New York Times has reported that Trump keeps close tabs on who has — and who hasn't — endorsed him.

“Mike Rogers is desperately trying to hide his previous criticism as he cozies up to Trump and embraces dangerous election conspiracy theories,” Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes said in reference to the endorsement and comments Rogers made to the Detroit News about election "shenanigans." “Rogers has made clear that he is too extreme for Michigan as he caves to political pressure to help himself get ahead," she said.

Trump is the overwhelming favorite at this point to win the Republican nomination to face Biden in a reelection matchup and the former president's own endorsement is expected to be key in rousing his base to support Republican candidates, like Rogers, nationwide. But several other GOP candidates for Michigan's U.S. Senate seat are expected to bid for Trump's backing, including former Detroit Police Chief James Craig and businessman Sandy Pensler.

One who won't be in the running for that endorsement, however, will be former U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Grand Rapids Township, who voted to impeach Trump for his role in instigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, when mobs of his supporters attacked to try to stop Congress from certifying the election for Biden.

Rogers is widely considered a top prospect for the Senate nomination, though he faces a crowded field that also includes state Board of Education member Nikki Snyder, of Dexter; mid-Michigan businessman Michael Hoover; Wayne County lawyer Alexandria Taylor, who was among those ordered to pay thousands in legal fees for filing what a judge called a frivolous lawsuit challenging ballots cast in Detroit in last year's midterm elections; Oscoda Area School Board Trustee Sharon Savage; St. Joseph physician Sherry O'Donnell, and J.D. Wilson, a Houghton Lake businessman.

Pensler posted on X Tuesday that Rogers had regularly criticized Trump and previously had maintained the former president would not be the Republican nominee this year. Rogers, when exploring a possible run for the presidency himself last year, told the Daily Beast website voters he had talked to were "looking for new leadership."

Craig also posted on X criticizing Rogers, saying, "These career politicians will do anything and say anything to get power."

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, is considered the front-runner for the Democratic nomination. She faces a field that includes actor Hill Harper, of Detroit; former state Rep. Leslie Love, of Detroit; Dearborn businessman Nasser Beydoun, and Ann Arbor lawyer Zack Burns. No Republican has won a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan since Spencer Abraham in 1994, and he was defeated six years later by Stabenow.

Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mike Rogers, running for Senate, endorses Trump for president