Nine days into her 2024 candidacy, Vice President Kamala Harris picked a couple of notable Republican endorsements: Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan threw his support behind the Democrat fairly quickly, and John Giles, the mayor of Mesa, Arizona’s third-largest city, endorsed her soon after.
Given the state of the cotemporary GOP, it’s not easy for any Democratic candidate to pick up cross-party backing, so this represented a decent start. But hanging overhead was an obvious question: Would other Republicans soon follow?
The question received a rather emphatic answer over the weekend. NBC News reported:
The Harris campaign on Sunday unveiled more than two dozen endorsements from Republicans, including former governors, members of Congress and Trump administration officials. Many of the endorsements came from politicians who were already openly critical of former President Donald Trump, including former Republican Gov. Bill Weld of Massachusetts; former Rep. Denver Riggleman, R-Va.; and former Trump administration press secretary Stephanie Grisham.
Those names are, of course, just a sampling. According to a press statement from the incumbent vice president’s campaign, Republicans for Harris includes endorsements from former Trump White House officials Stephanie Grisham and Olivia Troye; former Secretaries Chuck Hagel and Ray LaHood; former Governors Jim Edgar, Bill Weld, and Christine Todd Whitman; former U.S. House members Rod Chandler, Tom Coleman, Dave Emery, Wayne Gilchrest, Jim Greenwood, Adam Kinzinger, John LeBoutillier, Susan Molinari, Jack Quinn, Denver Riggleman, Claudine Schneider, Christopher Shays, Peter Smith, Alan Steelman, David Trott, and Joe Walsh; and former GOP State Chair and State Senator Chris Vance, among others.
“As a proud conservative, I never thought I’d be endorsing a Democrat for President,” Kinzinger said in a written statement. “But, I know Vice President Harris will defend our democracy and ensure Donald Trump never returns to the White House. Donald Trump poses a direct threat to fundamental American values. He only cares about himself, and his pursuit of power.
“That’s what we saw on January 6 when he sent a mob to overturn our lawful election, who violently attacked law enforcement and ransacked our nation’s Capitol in the process,” the former member of the Jan. 6 committee added. “There’s too much at stake to sit on the sidelines, which is why I wholeheartedly endorse Kamala Harris for president. Now is the time for us all to unite to save our democracy and defeat Donald Trump one last time.”
What’s more, the “Republicans for Harris” rollout is apparently about more than simply including names on a list. The Associated Press reported that the program will be a “campaign within a campaign,” using well-known Republicans “to activate their networks, with a particular emphasis on primary voters who backed former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. The program will kick off with events this week in Arizona, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Republicans backing Harris will also appear at rallies with the vice president and her soon-to-be-named running mate this coming week, the campaign said.”
The list might also yet grow: NBC News’ report noted that Team Harris is especially interested in targeting former Rep. Liz Cheney and former Sen. Jeff Flake. I kept a close eye on this dynamic four years ago and found quite a few GOP partisans — former Republican National Committee chairs, former Republican cabinet secretaries, former Republican governors, and former Republican members of Congress — who publicly expressed support for the Biden-led Democratic ticket. As Election Day 2024 approaches, Harris is well positioned to benefit from similar cross-party support — which Trump will almost certainly lack. Watch this space. This post updates our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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