Billionaire Whitman decides to back Clinton
‘Proud Republican’ cites Donald Trump’s ‘demagoguery’ in her announcement.
Meg Whitman, the Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO who ran unsuccessfully for governor of California in 2010, will back Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, joining other prominent Republicans who are troubled by Donald Trump’s candidacy and defecting to the Democratic nominee.
“As a proud Republican, casting my vote for president has usually been a simple matter. This year is different,” Whitman wrote on Facebook. “Donald Trump’s demagoguery has undermined the fabric of our national character.”
Whitman, a major GOP fundraiser whose net worth is around $2 billion, also told the New York Times on Tuesday she plans to raise money for Clinton.
Whitman has already donated more than $100,000 to anti-Trump efforts, but her decision to actively solicit donations for Clinton deals a major blow to Trump’s fundraising, which has deeply lagged behind Clinton’s. Last month, Clinton raised $90 million for her campaign and that of other Democrats, while Trump said he raised a bit more than onethird of her total.
“Trump’s unsteady hand would endanger our prosperity and national security. His authoritarian character could threaten much more,” wrote Whitman, urging fellow Republicans to reject his nomination as well.
Trump has drawn scorn from Democrats and Republicans alike for his criticism of a Muslim family whose son died in combat, and several leading Republican operatives have backed off supporting Trump.
Sally Bradshaw, an influential GOP strategist in Florida who advised former Gov. Jeb Bush during his primary campaign, announced Monday that she would leave the party.
A day later, Maria Comella, a former top advisor to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, also called Trump a demagogue and signaled her support for Clinton.
Trump, she said, “has been a demagogue this whole time, preying on people’s anxieties with loose information and salacious rhetoric, drumming up fear and hatred of the ‘other.’ ”
The move by several Republican women to back Clinton underscores the issues the GOP nominee has had with female voters.
Trump’s comments about women, including remarks that appeared to suggest a Fox News reporter was menstruating when she questioned him at a debate last summer, have been the subject of advertising by Clinton and super PACs supporting her campaign.
In her Facebook post, Whitman addressed more of her concerns, saying, “Trump’s reckless and uninformed positions on critical issues — from immigration to our economy to foreign policy — have made it abundantly clear that he lacks both the policy depth and sound judgment required as president.”
Whitman added that in a “tumultuous world, America needs the kind of stable and aspirational leadership Secretary Clinton can provide.”