Thirteen former Trump administration officials have signed an open letter in support of Donald Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly, who warned earlier this week that Trump is a fascist who praised Hitler in private and wants to be a dictator.
“Everyone should heed General Kelly’s warning,” the letter urges. “We have witnessed, up close and personal, how Donald Trump operates and what he is capable of.”
The signatories include former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, former White House communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin, former chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security Miles Taylor, and Olivia Troye, former national security adviser to Mike Pence.
“We applaud General Kelly for highlighting in stark details the danger of a second Trump term. Like General Kelly, we did not take the decision to come forward lightly,” the letter reads.
“We are all lifelong Republicans who served our country. However, there are moments in history where it becomes necessary to put country over party. This is one of those moments.”
The group called Kelly’s open-eyed assessment of Trump “disturbing and shocking” ― but ultimately not at all surprising.
“This is who Donald Trump is,” they wrote.
Kelly also confirmed that Trump had asked him, “Why can’t you be like the German generals?” stating that he envied how they “were totally loyal to [Hitler].”
The letter was first reported by Politico.
Trump hit back at the claims on Truth Social on Wednesday night, calling Kelly, his longest-serving chief of staff, “a total degenerate” and claiming that “he became JELLO with time.”
Numerous Republicans have publicly voiced their support for Harris in light of Kelly’s comments.
The longest-serving member of the Wisconsin state Senate, Republican Sen. Robert Cowles, said on Thursday he’ll vote for Harris because Trump is “a totalitarian and very much a fascist.”
Shawn Reilly, the mayor of the Republican stronghold of Waukesha, Wisconsin, also shared he’s voting for Harris, casting the decision as ultimately a “vote against Trump.”