Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday appointed his state Attorney General Ashley Moody to fill the Senate seat that will soon be vacated by fellow Republican Marco Rubio, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the State Department.
Ms. Moody, 49, has worked closely with Mr. DeSantis the past six years to enact his agenda, which included fighting federal overreach under the Biden administration, battling illegal immigration and “wokeness.”
“In every major battle we have had since I have been governor, she has been with us every step of the way. It’s not just talk, it’s results, and these results are very, very important. And she understands the gravity of the moment,” Mr. DeSantis said.
The governor said Ms. Moody will help reform the nation’s illegal immigration problem, which he said is leading to crime and ushering in thousands of foreign workers who take away jobs from Americans.
Mr. DeSantis, unlike Mr. Trump, wants to rein in the H-1B visa program that critics say undercut U.S. workers.
Ms. Moody, the governor said, “has never been a squish on any of these issues.”
Mr. DeSantis is mostly aligned with the president-elect and said Ms. Moody’s appointment reflects Mr. Trump’s historic victory and the need to appoint a senator “that will rise to the occasion and make history. No more business as usual in Washington, D.C.”
The governor said he picked Ms. Moody, who is a lawyer and trained accountant, “from a number of great candidates. … I wanted someone with a demonstrated record of delivery results” on key issues.
At one point, Mr. Trump’s daughter-in-law and former Republican National Committee Co-chair Lara Trump was considered a candidate to fill the seat, but she withdrew her name.
Ms. Moody was elected as attorney general in 2018 and reelected in 2022.
Upon being chosen Thursday, she touted her fights against the Biden administration and promised to support Mr. Trump’s America First agenda.
“The only way to return this country to the people, the people who govern it, is to make sure we have a strong Congress doing its job passing laws and actually approving the regulations that these unelected bureaucrats are trying to cram down on the American people,” Ms. Moody said.
Mr. DeSantis said she’ll likely take office on Monday, when the Senate is expected to confirm Mr. Rubio.
The appointment lasts until 2026, when the seat will be up for election to fill the last two years of Mr. Rubio’s term.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
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