Greater than 740 former nationwide safety officers launched a letter Sunday supporting Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid and decrying former President Donald Trump as harmful to the way forward for America.
Signers of the doc embrace a mixture of Republicans and Democrats, together with 4 former protection secretaries — William Cohen, Chuck Hagel, Leon Panetta, and William Perry — and 7 Senate-confirmed navy service secretaries.
“This election is a alternative between severe management and vengeful impulsiveness,” the letter states. “It’s a alternative between democracy and authoritarianism. Vice President Harris defends America’s democratic beliefs, whereas former President Donald Trump endangers them.”
The general public message comes just some days after Harris’ marketing campaign launched an analogous public message from about 100 former Republican officers calling Trump “unfit to serve” and two weeks after a gaggle of retired generals wrote a public assertion defending Harris from Trump’s assaults concerning her involvement within the U.S. navy withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Each campaigns have traded letters with navy and nationwide safety themes all through the summer season.
Earlier this month, a number of households of servicemembers killed in Afghanistan provided their assist for Trump. In August, a gaggle of fifty veterans serving in Congress launched a press release criticizing Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz for mischaracterizing his navy service.
The most recent letter additionally contains signatures from three former performing service secretaries, former Secretary of Homeland Safety Jeh Johnson, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former Secretary of Homeland Safety Janet Napolitano.
The group criticized Trump’s incitement of supporters forward of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the U.S. Capitol and his previous reward of overseas dictators as causes to oppose his return to the White Home. In addition they praised Harris’ work as vice chairman and her dedication to work with overseas allies to strengthen U.S. navy capabilities.
“That’s how we all know Vice President Harris would make a superb Commander In-Chief, whereas Mr. Trump has confirmed he’s not as much as the job,” the group wrote.
“As leaders, we all know efficient management requires in-depth information, cautious deliberation, understanding of your adversaries, and empathy for these you lead. It requires listening to these with experience and never firing them after they disagree with you.”
The presidential election shall be held on Nov. 5, however early voting has already opened in a number of states.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White Home for Army Occasions. He has lined Washington, D.C. since 2004, specializing in navy personnel and veterans insurance policies. His work has earned quite a few honors, together with a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 Nationwide Headliner Award, the IAVA Management in Journalism award and the VFW Information Media award.
