TAKE RON ME
Ron DeSantis looks unrecognizable in Navy uniform photo as Florida governor pictured during Iraq War tour
18:07 ET, Jan 13 2022
Updated: 18:07 ET, Jan 13 2022
RON DeSantis looks unrecognizable in photos from the Florida governor's time in the US Navy during the Iraq war, years before his election to Congress or his 2018 gubernatorial victory.
DeSantis, 43, was assigned to the Navy's Judge Advocate General's Corps (or JAG) in 2004, after completing his undergraduate degree at Yale, and while enrolled at Harvard Law School.
Ron DeSantis pictured during his time in the US NavyCredit: Twitter
The Florida governor left active duty in 2010Credit: Facebook
According to the Tampa Bay Times, DeSantis served as a Navy attorney serving as senior legal advisor to SEAL team captain Dane Thorleifson.
Capt. Thorleifson commanded the Special Operations Task Force-West in Fallujah.
DeSantis oversaw detainees, making sure they were treated humanely, and also monitored missions of Navy SEALs and Army Green Berets in his jurisdiction, making sure they followed the rule of law.
While in Iraq, DeSantis worked to protect the rights of around 100 detainees, and made sure any interrogations followed US military rules as well as the Geneva Conventions.
Thorleifson told the Tampa Bay Times that DeSantis became "one of my very close counsels," and that he had a lot of respect for DeSantis.
"He was super smart, articulate, resourceful and a positive part of the staff. I relied on him heavily," Capt. Thorleifson told the outlet.
DeSantis was honorably discharged from active duty in 2010 and elected to the House of Representatives in 2012.
In August 2018, DeSantis won Florida's gubernatorial election after defeating Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum.
DeSantis speaks after a bill signing in 2021Credit: AP
The conservative politician is one of Donald Trump's biggest supporters.
The Yale and Havard graduate is among the most outspoken members of the Republican Party.
DeSantis' approval rating plummeted in 2021 as Florida's Covid-19 cases skyrocketed.
According to an August Morning Consult poll, among all voters, 48 percent approved of DeSantis' job performance and 48 percent disapproved.
In December 2021, critics claimed that Governor DeSantis had "gone missing" amid the surging Omicron Covid cases in Florida.
However, on December 29th, a spokesperson for DeSantis told Fox News that he was preoccupied accompanying his wife to treatments after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in October.
Communications staffer, Kyle Lamb, responded to critics via Twitter:
"Just FYI, @GovRonDeSantis is not on vacation. Literally no one from our office has said that he is... Not having public events does not = 'vacation'" Lamb wrote.
Casey DeSantis is a former producer and Emmy award-winning television host for the PGA Tour.
She was raised in Ohio and received her Bachelor of Science degree from the College of Charleston in South Carolina.
She married the governor back in 2010 and shares three children with him: Madison, four, Mason, three, and Mamie, who is 18-months-old.
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