Donald Trump Jr.’s relationship with his dad has always been a little . . . rocky. In a 2017 memoir, Ivana Trump recalled Trump Sr.’s hesitation to name a child after him: “You can’t do that! What if he’s a loser?” Things didn’t exactly improve over the years: as a 12-year-old, Don Jr. reportedly didn’t speak to his namesake for a year after his parents’ messy divorce. In college, he was allegedly smacked in the face for failing to adhere to his father’s baseball-game dress code (a suit). After graduating from college, he spent a year in Aspen attempting to “distance himself from family complications.” And of course, more recently, there was that little incident wherein his father seemingly implicated him in a major crime on Twitter. Don has never been the apple of daddy’s eye, a title that unquestionably goes to Ivanka Trump. And unlike his brother Eric, who said in March that his father used to send him “little notes” telling him what a great job he was doing at work, the same warmth does not appear to have been extended to Jr. But in a turn of events he’s likely been waiting for his entire life, Donny has recently begun to score some points with his patriarch. In fact, as of Monday, there are now at least two documented instances of his father saying nice things about him!

Of course, there’s a reason behind this dawning approval: whereas the president reportedly used to doubt “whether his son could live up to his expectations,” he’s been pleasantly surprised to see his firstborn perform well on the campaign trail and connect with the base, all in service to the Trump presidency. Per The Washington Post:

Trump was watching Fox News Channel with aides in his private dining room off the Oval Office recently when Donald Trump Jr. flashed across the giant flat screen.

“Don’s gotten really good,” Trump said, according to someone who was present. “My people love him.”

The remark suggested a swell of unexpected pride from Trump about his namesake son, whose relationship with his father has been difficult at times but who has emerged as the president’s political alter ego and an in-demand campaign celebrity ahead of November’s midterm elections.

Ironically, what appears to finally be winning Junior the love and affection of his father is that he’s embraced all of daddy’s most a-hole-ish tendencies:

In many ways, Trump Jr. carries the spirit of his father’s “Make America Great Again” movement. Like the president, he uses social media to fan conspiracy theories, air grievances, and troll adversaries. He busts through boundaries of political correctness and relishes public feuds, especially with those he deems liberal elites.

“Don is a chip off the old block,” said Cliff Sims, a former White House and Trump campaign staffer. “He’s a savage on Twitter and a force of nature on the stump.”

In a statement to the Post, the president actually outright praised his son—though, naturally, the accolades were couched in assertions about how great a job he’s doing as president. “Don has proven to be a very good public speaker and was a very likable presence on the campaign trail,” Trump said. “People like when he represents me in front of groups of people. I always get a favorable response . . . Don likes and enjoys politics, but he likes seeing great results for the American people even better, and that is why he is involved. He truly believes that I am making America great again and loves being a part of it.”

In fact, it would probably be safe to assume that if Jr. weren’t out there stumping for his dad, he’d quickly descend to Tiffany-level territory in the rankings the president presumably maintains of his children. “Somewhere in the White House there’s a ‘yes’ man telling the president how great it is that Don Jr. is going to make 28 stops next week,” said Republican strategist Mike Murphy. “It’s all about pleasing the emperor.”