The question on voters’ minds is WHY did more than 100 former Republican national security officials just endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for president?
On Wednesday morning, the Reagan, Bush, McCain & Romney Alumni for Harris coalition published letters from more than 100 former Republican national security leaders. While some of them had previously supported Harris, for others it was the first time for Harris to follow on the heels of more than a dozen Republicans who served under President Reagan endorsing Harris.
Most of the names are recognizable to anyone involved in US politics, like William Webster, Director of the CIA and FBI under Presidents Reagan and George HW Bush, John Negroponte, Director of National Intelligence under George W. Bush and Robert Zoellick, Deputy Secretary of State and US Representative Commerce under George W. Bush and White House Deputy Chief of Staff under George HW Bush.
Also signing on to the letter are former Republican Congressmen focused on national security and foreign affairs like former Congressman Bill Paxon of New York.
What’s going on here? Certainly not domestic policy alignment. It is significant that the endorsement comes from a man focused on national security and foreign policy, days before the United Nations is due to meet in New York, with world leaders nervous about Trump’s chances. back.
He wrote that he expected to disagree on foreign and domestic policies, but he endorsed Harris because he believed that the President should be a leader who would stand up for American security and values, “We believe that the President of the United States should be a principled, serious leader, and steadfastness that can advance and defend American security and values, strengthen our alliances, and protect our democracy.
In the other corner is former president Donald Trump, who has caused WWIII, civil war, and Putin using nuclear weapons if Trump loses the 2024 election.
He is “resolutely against the election of Donald Trump,” it wrote. Noting the chaos that defined his presidency and undermined our allies, “As President, he promoted daily chaos in government, praised our enemies and undermined our allies, politicized the military and disparaged our veterans, put his personal interests above the interests of America, and betrayed our values. -values, democracy, and the founding documents of this country.
Unlike the majority of today’s Republicans, he did not whitewash January 6, “In our opinion, by pushing for violent attacks on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and defending those who did it, he has violated his oath of office and brought danger to our country. As a former Deputy President Pence said ‘anyone who holds themselves within the Constitution should not be President of the United States.’ “
Trump has repeatedly aligned himself with leaders who oppose the freedoms the US represents, including claims that he and Kim Jong Un are in love, consistent praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin, and his admiration for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
He mentioned Trump’s affinity for dictators and the ease with which dictators manipulate Trump to warn that Trump is inappropriate, “Donald Trump’s vulnerability to flattery and manipulation by Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, his unusual affinity for other authoritarian leaders, his contempt for the norms of decent behavior, ethical and legal, and chaotic national security decision-making are dangerous qualities – as my Republican colleagues and respected military officers serving in senior national security positions in the administration have often testified.
While many voters are new to Harris, the letter writer said, “Vice President Harris has demonstrated a commitment to upholding the ideals that define our nation – freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. His experience as California Attorney General and leadership on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and as Vice President has helped prepare him for the Presidency.
Speaking of false claims, Russians were behind the false claim that Harris was involved in a hit-and-run in San Francisco in 2011, according to new research by Microsoft. And this discovery reveals the truth about Putin’s claim to support Harris, although Trump continues to give the platform Putin’s greatest wishes (weakening NATO, not supporting Ukraine). Russia has pivoted from attacking President Biden to make up a fake story about Kamala Harris out of fear of Biden and Harris.
So far, Republicans in their letters have stated their specific reasons for setting aside party differences to support Harris:
We are ready to support him as President because he has:
Consistently uphold the rule of law, democracy, and our constitutional principles;
Pledge to “ensure that America always has the strongest and deadliest fighting force in the world” and to respect and honor those in uniform;
The commitment to sign a bipartisan Border Security package, drafted under the leadership of Republican Senator James Lankford and other Republicans, which would hire 1,500 new Customs and Border Protection personnel and provide more resources to law enforcement, but was opposed by Donald Trump to not give President Biden . any political advantage;
Support a strong NATO to confront Russia and protect European and American security and continue to support Ukraine;
Expressed his intention to ensure that the United States would face economic and military competition with China;
Declared his intention to “always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself” and “to take any action necessary to defend our forces and interests against Iran and Iranian-backed terrorists”;
It has been shown that he can make national security decisions in an orderly manner, without the drama and Cabinet turnover of the Trump Administration; and
Commit to electing Republicans to his Cabinet in order to encourage a diversity of views and restore a measure of bipartisanship and comity to our domestic politics.
There are also about 230 former Republican staffers from Republican administrations and campaigns who have endorsed Harris, as well as former Vice President Dick Cheney and his daughter, former Congresswoman Liz Cheney. John McCain’s son supports Harris.
He concluded with a rather alarming but accurate warning and thus all the more alarming warnings, “Donald Trump cannot be trusted ‘to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic . . . and to have true and faithful faith in the same.’ We believe that Kamala Harris can, and we urge other Americans to join us in supporting him.
It is not only Republicans who put aside ideological differences to prioritize American freedom and democracy; Democrats have welcomed Republicans into their big tent and compromised on their wish list. As noted in the letter, Harris has promised to appoint Republicans to his Cabinet and signed a bipartisan Border Security package that gave conservatives easily 80% of what they asked for, but was seized by Donald Trump for his personal interests.
WHY?
A coalition of adults prioritizes an agenda moving forward for the United States with strong leadership that supports our allies, supports global democracy and protects this country from all adversaries, foreign and domestic. And that’s why Republicans are coming out of the woodwork to support the Vice President. He also refused to return.
Read the full letter here.
Sarah has been trusted to cover President Barack Obama, then VP Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and exclusively interviewed Speaker Nancy Pelosi several times and exclusively covered the first home appearance after the first impeachment of President Donald Trump.
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