Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who has been a vocal opponent of Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and served on the House Jan. 6 Committee, urged members of his party to “put country first” by voting for Vice President Kamala Harris.
Kinzinger was one of several Republicans warning against a second Trump term on the Democratic National Convention stage this week. He told the crowd he was “proud to be in the trenches with you, as part of this sometimes difficult alliance that we have to defend the truth (and) defend democracy and decency.”
Kinzinger confirmed that after twelve years as a Republican in Congress, he is still one – but recent events have led him to a realization.
“I’ve learned something about the Democratic Party, and I want to let my Republican colleagues in on the secret: Democrats are as patriotic as we are. They love this country as much as we do. And they are as zealous about defending American values at home and abroad as we conservatives ever were,” said Kinzinger, who then lamented that Republicans are “no longer conservative.”
“She has shifted her loyalty from the principles that gave her purpose to a man whose only purpose is herself,” Kinzinger said. “Donald Trump is a weak man pretending to be strong. He is a small man pretending to be big. He is a treacherous man pretending to be righteous. He is an abuser who can’t stop playing the victim.” He added that Trump’s status as leader of the Republican Party for the past nine years has ultimately “suffocated” her “soul.”
“Some have asked me why I take this stance. The answer is very simple, ladies and gentlemen: we must put the country first,” Kinzinger concluded emphatically.
“I know that Kamala Harris shares my loyalty to the role of law, the Constitution and democracy, and that she is committed to defending all three in the service of her country. Whatever political principles we hold pale in comparison to these fundamental principles of decency and loyalty to this nation.”
