Republican is a term that has become meaningless. On Aug 9, 2016 10:57 PM, "plainolamerican" <[email protected]> wrote:
> http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/0 > 8/09/donald-trump-susan-collins-republicans/88443642/ > > ...Hillary Clinton's campaign is pushing the idea of "Republicans for > Clinton" and highlighting announcements by anti-Trump GOP members. > > "A growing number of Republicans are deciding that this election can’t be > about party — it’s about doing what’s right for the country and electing > someone who actually has the qualifications, fitness and temperament to > serve as President and Commander-in-Chief,” Clinton spokesman Jesse > Ferguson told USA TODAY. > > On Tuesday, GOP donor Harry Sloan officially endorsed Clinton. Sloan, a > former CEO of MGM, worked for previous Republican presidential nominees > John McCain and Mitt Romney, and fundraised for Ohio Gov. John Kasich > during this year's Republican primaries. > > In an interview with USA TODAY, Sloan said Clinton's focus on energy and > immigration aligned with his priorities and he was impressed with her on a > variety of other topics. He also said that her focus on infrastructure and > education spending could help her with business Republicans. > > “I want to reach out to Republican leaders who held positions like I did > on the 2016 campaigns, like I did with Kasich ... and bring them over," he > said. > > Clinton visited a South Florida health center with a Republican on > Tuesday, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez. While Gimenez — who backed > Jeb Bush and then Marco Rubio in the primaries — has not endorsed Clinton, > her press operation fired off a story from the Miami Herald announcing that > the two would appear together. > > And Cindy Guerra, a former Republican chair of Broward County in Florida, > also backed Clinton Tuesday, telling the Miami Herald that “it’s a matter > of country over party — as cheesy and goofy as that sounds.” > > Later Tuesday a group of former Republican officials announced they'd be > backing Clinton too. The group, R4C16 (Republicans for Clinton '16), > included more than a dozen people. > > James K. Glassman, who was under secretary of State for Public Diplomacy > and Public Affairs in the George W. Bush Administration, said in a > statement that a vote for Clinton was a vote for Republicans down ballot. > > “In voting for Secretary Clinton in this election, we will also be voting > for Republicans in Senate and House races. Retaining the Congress is > critical for those of us who, unlike the man the GOP nominated, continue to > believe in the principles of the party of Lincoln and Reagan – liberty and > respect for the individual," he said. > > Many of the "Never Trumps" are older Republicans who have seen the party > turn more conservative in recent decades. That group ranges from Brent > Scowcroft, a national security adviser to presidents Gerald Ford and George > H.W. Bush, to William Ruckelshaus, who headed the Environmental Protection > Agency for presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. > > Other Trump opponents backed other candidates in the bruising Republican > primaries. Rivals Ted Cruz and Kasich have pointedly refused to endorse the > GOP nominee. > > One GOP lawmaker, Rep. Scott Rigell of Virginia, has endorsed the > Libertarian candidate, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson. > > Meanwhile, a new independent candidate, Evan McMullin — a former CIA > operative and chief policy director for House Republicans — said in an open > letter that while Clinton "is a corrupt career politician who has > recklessly handled classified information," Trump is really no better. > > "Given his obvious personal instability, putting him in command of our > military and nuclear arsenal would be deeply irresponsible," McMullin said. > > In her op-ed, Collins echoed other Republican critics in citing Trump's > behavior, including his mocking of a reporter with a physical disability, > his attacks on a federal judge's "Mexican heritage" and his dismissal of a > Muslim couple who lost a son in Iraq. > > Collins' announcement came shortly after 50 national security officials > signed a letter citing Trump's questioning of military alliances, as well > as his "erratic" behavior. > > "He would be the most reckless president in American history," the letter > said. > > Asked about that letter on Fox Business Network, Trump said some of his > critics "would have loved" to have been part of his campaign, but he didn't > want them. > > Previous elections have also seen party defections. > > During the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan attracted the support of many > Democrats, especially in the South, who were en route to becoming > Republicans as part of a larger political realignment across the country. > Once solidly Democratic, the South is now Republican territory. > > Barry Goldwater, who brought a stronger conservative ideology to the > Republican Party when he won its presidential nomination in 1964, also > faced many critics inside the party. But political analyst Stuart > Rothenberg pointed out that many of those critics in 1964 wound up > endorsing — or at least not actively opposing — Goldwater, and that has not > been the case this year with Trump. > > "This is off the charts," he said. > > The Republican opposition comes at a time when Trump is trying to build a > coalition and address problems with large groups of voters, such as women > and Hispanics. > > GOP pollster Whit Ayres said recent GOP presidential election winners > received at least 91% of the Republican vote —Trump is now in the upper 70s. > > "He's about 10 to 15 points from where he needs to be among Republicans," > said Ayres, who worked for Rubio during the primaries. > > Jennifer Duffy, a senior editor with The Cook Political Report, said > Republican opposition "doesn't help" Trump, but it's hard to assess the > impact right now because polls are volatile in the wake of the recent party > conventions. > > "We don't know yet," she said. > > Trump and his aides said his emphasis on trade and lost manufacturing jobs > is helping him make inroads with blue-collar voters in states like > Pennsylvania and Ohio. They also said many voters across the country resent > the carping from the Republican "elite." > > In his Fox interview, Trump said he doesn't plan to change the approach > that got him this far. > > "I certainly don't think it's appropriate to start changing all of the > sudden when you've been winning," Trump said. "I mean, I've beat many > people and now we're down to one. And we'll see how it all works out. But I > think it's going to work out well." > > -- > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more. > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "PoliticalForum" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "PoliticalForum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
