as you can read here
They have served in Republican administrations from Reagan through Trump.
They have issued a joint statement that gives their very strong reasons for their actions.
They begin with this stark statement:
We are profoundly concerned about our nation's security and standing in the world under the leadership of Donald Trump. The President has demonstrated that he is dangerously unfit to serve another term.
Consider just these reasons among all those they list:
We are former national security officials who served during the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and/or Donald Trump, or as Republican Members of Congress. We are profoundly concerned about the course of our nation under the leadership of Donald Trump. Through his actions and his rhetoric, Trump has demonstrated that he lacks the character and competence to lead this nation and has engaged in corrupt behavior that renders him unfit to serve as President.
For the following reasons, we have concluded that Donald Trump has failed our country and that Vice President Joe Biden should be elected the next President of the United States.
- Donald Trump has gravely damaged America’s role as a world leader. Trump has disgraced America’s global reputation and undermined our nation’s moral and diplomatic influence. He has called NATO “obsolete,” branded Europe a “foe,” mocked the leaders of America’s closest friends, and threatened to terminate longstanding US alliances. Other global leaders, friends and foes alike, view him as unreliable, unstable, and unworthy of respect.
- Donald Trump has shown that he is unfit to lead during a national crisis. Instead of rallying the American people and the world to confront the coronavirus, Trump has spent the past half year spreading misinformation, undermining public health experts, attacking state and local officials, and wallowing in self-pity. He has demonstrated far greater concern about the fate of his reelection than the health of the American people.
- Donald Trump has solicited foreign influence and undermined confidence in our presidential elections. Trump publicly asked Russian president Vladimir Putin to assist his 2016 campaign, called on Chinese president Xi Jinping to “start an investigation” into his current political opponent, and pressured the president of Ukraine to act against his opponent. Citing exaggerated claims of voter fraud, he has challenged the integrity of this year’s election, even suggesting that it be postponed.
Here are the title of the other reasons they present:
- Donald Trump has aligned himself with dictators and failed to stand up for American values.
- Donald Trump has disparaged our armed forces, intelligence agencies, and diplomats. ”
- Donald Trump has undermined the rule of law.
- Donald Trump has dishonored the office of the presidency.
- Donald Trump has divided our nation and preached a dark and pessimistic view of America.
- Donald Trump has attacked and vilified immigrants to our country.
- Donald Trump has imperiled America’s security by mismanaging his national security team.
For each of these they provide explanations similar to the explanations they give for the first 3.
They then conclude their statement with the following text:
While we – like all Americans – had hoped that Donald Trump would govern wisely, he has disappointed millions of voters who put their faith in him and has demonstrated that he is dangerously unfit to serve another term.
In contrast, we believe Joe Biden has the character, experience, and temperament to lead this nation. We believe he will restore the dignity of the presidency, bring Americans together, reassert America’s role as a global leader, and inspire our nation to live up to its ideals.
While some of us hold policy positions that differ from those of Joe Biden and his party, the time to debate those policy differences will come later. For now, it is imperative that we stop Trump’s assault on our nation’s values and institutions and reinstate the moral foundations of our democracy.
To that end, we are firmly convinced that it is in the best interest of our nation that Vice President Joe Biden be elected as the next President of the United States, and we will vote for him.
That, folks, is a very strong endorsement
What follows in their statement is the list of the signatories to the statement, with the positions they held.
I won’t list them all.
Some were ambassadors. Several were Congressmen (Jim Kolbe, Chris Shays), one was a notable US Senator — John Warner from Virginia. Many had senior positions, for example Gen. Michael Hayden, who headed both the National Security Agency and the CIA. Some names may be new to you. IF you are like me, you may recognize quite a few.
I am wondering if we might see something about this at tonight’s convention finale?
In any case, I consider this very positive news.
What do you think?
UPDATE 4:26- the number of officials is now over 70, including William Webster, who headed both CIA and FBI. The group will be running a full page ad in Friday’s Wall Street Journal:
