More than 200 former Republican staffers endorse Kamala Harris

More than 200 Republicans who worked for President George W. Bush, Sen. Mitt Romney, or the late Sen. John McCain have endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, warning that a second Donald Trump presidency could weaken U.S. institutions.

They issued an open letter the week after the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, which featured several prominent Republican speakers.

The letter calls on moderate Republicans and conservative independents in key swing states to vote for Harris in November. A similar group of about 150 anti-Trump former staffers of Bush, McCain, and Romney pledged support for President Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

“We reunite today, joined by new George H.W. Bush alumni, to reinforce our 2020 statements and, for the first time, jointly declare that we’re voting for Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz this November,” the letter says. “Of course, we have plenty of honest, ideological disagreements with Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz. That’s to be expected. The alternative, however, is simply untenable.”

Among the standouts who have endorsed Harris is General Larry Ellis, a retired four-star general who served as the commander of the U.S. Army Forces Command under President George W. Bush’s administration.

Ellis wrote, “Donald Trump has demonstrated that he is wholly and dangerously unfit for Commander-in-Chief. He praises and emboldens our enemies that seek to weaken our country. He has denigrated our brave men and women in uniform.”

This is the first time Ellis has endorsed a presidential candidate, writing that “this is not a decision I take lightly, but one I believe necessary.”

Among 200+ Republicans who signed the letter in support of Harris and Walz, were former McCain chiefs of staff Mark Salter and Chris Koch; Joe Donoghue, former legislative director for McCain; Jennifer Lux, press secretary for McCain’s 2008 campaign, and Jean Becker, longtime chief of staff for George H.W. Bush.

Also backing Harris are David Nierenberg, Romney’s 2012 campaign finance chair; David Garman, under-secretary of Energy for George W. Bush; and Olivia Troye, a former advisor to both George W. Bush and Vice President Mike Pence.

Reed Galen, McCain’s deputy campaign manager and co-founder of the Lincoln Project; Jim Swift, a former Republican operative who is now senior editor of The Bulwark, an anti-Trump news and opinion site; and former McCain campaign strategist Mike Murphy.

Citing 2020 exit polling and other voter data, the group claims it was “moderate Republicans and conservative independents in key swing states” who were pivotal in Biden’s victory that ultimately delivered the presidency Biden − Americans who “put country far before party,” they write in the letter.

The group called on more moderate Republicans and independents to “take a brave stand once more” and support Harris over Trump in the fall.

“At home, another four years of Donald Trump’s chaotic leadership, this time focused on advancing the dangerous goals of Project 2025, will hurt real, everyday people and weaken our sacred institutions,” the letter says, referring to the Heritage Foundation’s policy blueprint that would guide a second Trump administration.

“Abroad, democratic movements will be irreparably jeopardized as Trump and his acolyte JD Vance kowtow to dictators like Vladimir Putin while turning their backs on our allies. We can’t let that happen,” the letter says.

Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee who voted to impeach Trump as a senator, said he won’t support the GOP candidate in the 2024 election, but he hasn’t endorsed Harris either.

Bush did not attend last month’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee but he has not criticized Trump publicly.

As a candidate in 2015, Trump said McCain was “not a war hero.” Four years ago, McCain’s widow, Cindy McCain, endorsed Biden over Trump.

Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, is scheduled to appear in Michigan, a day after Trump visited the battleground state. Harris plans to deliver a “video message” to an African Methodist Episcopal Church gathering in Columbus, Ohio.