A significant number of former aides who worked with Republican lawmakers have publicly endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, expressing concerns that “another four years” under a Trump administration would be detrimental to “real, everyday” Americans.
In a letter obtained by USA Today, over 200 former aides from the administrations of former President George W. Bush, Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), and former Senator John McCain (R-AZ) have come together with former staff members of former President George H.W. Bush to support Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D).
“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 states.
The correspondence from the former aides emerges several years after a significant number of aides to both Bush and McCain publicly supported President Joe Biden during the 2020 presidential election. Notable signatories of the letter include David Bentley, who held the position of legislative staff assistant to McCain; Tomas Bilbao, who was the deputy director of operations at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under former President George W. Bush; and Vicki Blanton, who acted as the director of scheduling for Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign.
“Of course, we have plenty of honest, ideological disagreements with Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz,” the aides add in the letter. “That’s to be expected. The alternative, however, is simply untenable.”
The aides continue in the letter:
“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. 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.”
Among those who have expressed their support for Harris is former Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger. Kinzinger addressed the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
