'American Sniper' Widow Taya Kyle Endorses Rick Perry

The widow of "American Sniper" Chris Kyle is supporting Rick Perry.

ByABC News
May 30, 2015, 11:36 AM

— -- Taya Kyle, the widow of famed Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, says she stands strongly behind former Texas Gov. Rick Perry as he considers a run for the White House in 2016.

Kyle, whose late husband's book "American Sniper" inspired the blockbuster 2014 movie of the same name, praised Perry and his wife Anita in an email sent by RickPAC, the political action committee that supports Perry.

"I tend to keep my political opinions to myself -- the only candidate I ever endorsed was in a race for county sheriff -- but this is different," Kyle wrote, saying she'd be at an event on Thursday outside Dallas, where Perry is expected to announce his presidential intentions.

"I'll proudly stand with one of the great leaders this state and country have ever produced: Rick Perry," she said.

Chris Kyle was the most lethal sniper in U.S. history, and his 2012 book about his service in Iraq became a bestseller before he was shot to death in 2013, by a fellow veteran who he was helping adjust to civilian life.

Taya Kyle was expected to join a slew of current and retired members of the military at Perry's announcement next week. Retired Navy SEALs Paul Craig, JJ Jones, Pete Scobell and Marcus Luttrell, who wrote the book "Lone Survivor" that also became a movie, were expected to join several others, including Medal of Honor recipient Mike Thornton, also a retired Navy SEAL, at the event at an airport in Addison, Texas.

With the attendees and the setting, Perry is expected to play up his military service. His five years in the Air Force in the 1970s make him one of only a few potential 2016 presidential contenders who are veterans.

In her email, Kyle said she "got to know" Perry and his wife "outside of the public eye," calling them "a breath of fresh air in a political system full of people playing games and twisting the truth."

"My husband may have been in the military, but no one tells me which leader to follow," Kyle said in the message, explaining her focus on economic track record and character. "That's why I'll be there in person as Rick and Anita Perry discuss their future and his vision for America."