Former US Vice President and Republican Dick Cheney announced on Friday (September 8) that he will vote to support Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, instead of the Republican candidate, Trump.
With only two months left until the election, some Republicans are turning towards supporting Harris due to dissatisfaction with Trump’s leadership of the party and his behavior. This shift includes senior aides of former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, such as Cheney, a lifelong Republican who served as Vice President under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009.
Cheney released a statement on Friday confirming his support for Harris, stating, “As citizens, we all have a responsibility to put the country above party to defend our Constitution. That’s why I will be voting for Vice President Kamala Harris.”
Cheney’s statement aligns with the position expressed this week by his daughter Liz Cheney, a former Congresswoman from Wyoming, who also supports Harris for victory in November.
Harris’ campaign team welcomed the support from the Cheneys. Her campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, stated, “Vice President is proud to have the support of former Vice President Cheney and deeply respects his courage to put the country above party.” She said Cheney’s support symbolizes “more and more Republicans putting national interests above party interests.”
Trump responded in a social media post, calling the Cheneys “irrelevant RINOs.”
RINO stands for “Republican In Name Only,” meaning “Republicans in name only.”
Harris and Trump are engaged in a fierce competition amid a tight election, and will hold their first debate next week.
According to Reuters, over the years, former Vice President Cheney has faced criticism from human rights organizations for his significant role in the planning of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, which resulted in a large number of civilian casualties and human rights violations. In particular, in the Iraq War, the US went to war based on the claim that Baghdad possessed weapons of mass destruction, which have not been found to this day.