He said at the time that Trump belittled and harassed elected officials across the country “to get his way” and encouraged his own vice president, Mike Pence, “to take extraordinary and unconstitutional actions” to interfere with the Electoral College count in Congress.

Even so, Grassley was glad to accept Trump’s endorsement at a rally where the former president once again insisted that the 2020 election was rigged, a claim that courts have thrown out repeatedly and that even many Senate Republicans have rejected.

“I think it surprised a lot of people,” said former Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who served with Grassley for 18 years in the Senate. “Chuck has always marched to his drum, he’s always been extraordinarily independent and a very strong figure in the Senate over the years, clearly…

Vin Weber, a Republican strategist, said Grassley’s decision to embrace Trump at the rally in Des Moines shows the former president has firmly re-established himself as the party’s leader, something that appeared to be in serious doubt only a few months ago.

“I’ve known Sen. Grassley since 1974 when he was first elected to the House…. He summarized exactly where Republican politicians were. You may like it, you may not like it but the leader of the party under which he’s running and the rest of the Republican candidates are running is led by Donald Trump. That’s just a reality,” Weber said.