'Country far before party': Hundreds of alumni of major GOP figures endorse Harris

Over 200 Republicans who worked for former GOP presidential candidates and a president turned on their party and endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, according to a report.

The Republicans wrote in an open letter, obtained by USA Today on Monday, that in 2020, alumni of former President George W. Bush, the late Sen. John McCain and then-Gov. Mitt Romney joined forces to "warn fellow Republicans that re-electing President [Donald] Trump would be a disaster for the nation."

"In those declarations we stated the plain truth, each predicting that another four years of a Trump presidency would irreparably damage our beloved democracy," the letter said.

The previous announcement, the alumni said, came months before the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, in which they said Trump cheered on a "mob of sore losers and sycophants" as they tried to overturn the election.

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The group reunited this week, joined by alumni of former President George H.W. Bush, to "reinforce" its 2020 position — and declare "for the first time" that they're voting for Harris and vice presidential nominee Tim Walz in November.

"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 alumni said.

Meanwhile, the alumni said Trump would "irreparably" jeopardize democratic movements abroad, as Trump and his running mate "kowtow to dictators" such as Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The group specifically called on moderate Republicans and conservative independents in battleground states to "take a brave stand once more" and join them in putting "country far before party."

Among those who signed the letter: former McCain chiefs of staff Mark Salter and Chris Koch and Jean Becker, chief of staff for George H.W. Bush.