Against all odds, Republican Party presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is glad he got endorsed by former Rep. Steve King (R-IA).

While speaking to a reporter, he said he is proud to have the controversial former congressman’s endorsement.

In his words, “I’m proud to have Steve King’s endorsement, and I think that he has been wrongfully villainized by a media that has not once quoted the alleged racist remark or whatever it is that he made, and I just reject a lot of this mainstream media narrative thing.”

According to the anti-woke businessman, he and King connect over a crucial issue “that no other Republican candidate is speaking to.” He revealed that the issue is about “the CO2 pipeline using eminent domain to seize the land of innocent farmers who don’t want that built in their backyards.”

“Somebody who actually, before it was cool, was calling for building the wall. Now something we accept needs to be normalized policy in this country,” he added.

Going further to express how he feels about the endorsement, he said, “And so yes, I’m proud to have his endorsement, and I’ve met so many Iowans on the ground who are very different from the media who understand somebody actually stood to represent their interests saying the things that other people weren’t willing to say on issues ranging from the carbon capture pipeline to actually securing our borders, to actually reviving our national identity and even making English the national language of the United States, which I agree with. And so I’m proud to have his endorsement. I’m not a political analyst, that’s your job. Maybe you should try doing it.”

King himself shared the clip of Ramaswamy’s speech on X, with the caption, “Vivek Ramaswamy speaking Truth to Fiction!”

Earlier on Tuesday, King publicly backed Ramaswamy’s bid for president, calling him the “strongest voice we have that will defend our Constitution and restore the pillars of American exceptionalism.”

“Vivek is gonna stand up and is standing up for the rights of We The People. He will build the wall on the border for real, and I’m asking you to come with me on January 15. Caucus for Vivek Ramaswamy, the strongest voice we have to defend our Constitution and to reestablish America’s destiny,” he stated.

In a post on X, the former Rep. expressed the same sentiments in another set of words.

King was the center of controversy among House Republicans in 2019 when he made incendiary remarks about race, immigration and the border wall during Trump’s administration.

“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?” he had said during an interview with the Times.