Trump ally Mike Collins launch key battleground state bid to flip Democrat-held Senate seat

Republican Rep Mike Collins on Monday broadcasted his candidacy for the U S Senate in Georgia in a crucial race for the GOP as the party aims to expand its Senate majority in next year's midterm elections Collins is aiming to challenge Democrat Sen Jon Ossoff who is running for re-election in the key southeastern battleground state that President Donald Trump narrowly carried in last year's ballot And Republicans view Ossoff as the the greater part vulnerable Senate Democrat incumbent on the ballot in Jon Ossoff does not represent Georgia s values and has attacked our state's best interests at every opportunity He s voted to raise taxes on Georgia families supercharge inflation open our Southern Edge and allow men to play women s sports Collins argued in a comment as he launched his campaign Collins highlighted that this is Georgia s moment This is the people s time to take back control of this Senate seat deliver on President Trump s America First agenda and kick Jon Ossoff to the curb and together that s exactly what we will do next November FIRST ON FOX TRUMP ALLY TO LAUNCH SENATE CAMPAIGN IN KEY BATTLEGROUNDThe announcement by Collins came as no surprise Fox News Digital learned on Friday that the congressman would launch his Senate campaign early this week Collins a businessman who founded a trucking company is in his second term representing Georgia's th Congressional District which includes a large swath of urban suburban and rural areas between Atlanta and Augusta The conservative lawmaker who's the son of the late Republican Rep Mac Collins of Georgia has been moving closer to launching a Senate campaign for weeks TRUMP COMPANY PISSED OFF WITH REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE SENATE NOMINATION RACE Tires kicked Fueling up Collis wrote Monday in a social media post that was accompanied by a video where he showcased his ties to President Donald Trump Congressman Mike Collins he loves this state Trump stated in a clip in the video And Collins' launch video which he posted on social media on Monday morning also includes a clip of the president praising the congressman as well as visuals of Collins and Trump standing together Collins was an early backer of the president supporting him as Trump first ran for the Republican presidential nomination in the cycle In the presidential campaign when Trump won back the White House Collins traveled on behalf of Trump to the crucial early-voting primary and caucus states of Iowa New Hampshire and South Carolina He also appeared at multiple Trump rallies during the cycle and opened three Trump campaign offices in Georgia POPULAR GOP GOVERNOR PASSES ON SENATE BID IN And Collins not facing a arduous re-election in his solidly red House seat campaigned in ten congressional districts across the country to help elect Trump-aligned candidates as the GOP defended its razor-thin majority in the chamber Collins at the beginning of this year reintroduced the Laken Riley Act which mandates that undocumented immigrants charged with burglary or theft be detained It's named after a Georgia nursing aspirant killed by a man who had illegally entered the U S The circumstance grabbed national attention The bill which fleetly passed the Republican-controlled House and Senate became the first law signed into law by Trump as he started his second tour of duty in the White House A Republican source stated that Collins has a great relationship with the president and his political unit And a Georgia-based Republican consultant recounted Fox News that the lane that Mike is going to run in is the America First fighter who's been with President Trump Trump who is the ultimate kingmaker in GOP politics and whose endorsements in Republican primaries are extremely powerful has yet to weigh in on whom he may back in Georgia's burgeoning Senate race National Republicans were hoping to recruit popular two-term GOP Gov Brian Kemp to take on Ossoff But Kemp who is term-limited disclosed earlier this year that he would pass on a Senate run Republican Rep Buddy Carter who for a decade has represented a district in coastal Georgia launched a Senate campaign in the spring Carter is also courting a Trump endorsement in the GOP primary Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King was also running for the Republican nomination but ended his bid on Thursday Former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley who is the son of former longtime University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley is also considering a Senate bid The younger Dooley is close with Kemp who's a longtime friend Sources in Trump's political orbit and Republican sources in Georgia substantiated to Fox News on Friday that there was an agreement between the president s political operation and Kemp s political unit that they would work together to find a candidate that they could all unify behind to take on Ossoff in the Senate race Those sources also ratified that Kemp and Trump met a couple of weeks ago to discuss the Senate race in Georgia But when the governor floated Dooley's name a source close to the president's political club stated they were stated to stand down And when Kemp and his company did move forward with Dooley it upset Trump s advisers who according to sources were already pretty annoyed that Kemp had passed earlier this year on taking on Ossoff in the Senate race We had a deal to work together a top political source in the Trump orbit described Fox News on Friday Kemp went out on his own which has frustrated and pissed off Trump orbit But a source close to the governor informed Fox News that it's factually not true that they were recounted to stand down on Dooley And the source added that Kemp meant what he explained that he wants to work with the president and his organization and remains that way A campaign announcement by Dooley could come as early as this week