A sign at the Vice President Kamala Harris rally at Detroit Metro Airport, Aug. 7, 2024 | Angela Demas
A trio of Michigan Republicans, including former Congressman Dave Trott (R-Commerce Twp.), launched “Michigan Republicans for Harris-Walz” during a Thursday virtual press call.
Joining Trott were Republican strategist Bill Nowling and Jim Murray, former aide to Michigan Republicans, who each expressed deep concerns about the future of democracy in the United States if former President Donald Trump were to win reelection in November.
Former U.S. Rep. Dave Trott | Office photo
“Donald Trump spent four years undermining our democracy and gutting Michigan’s economy. He attacked the press, cozied up the dictators, and blatantly profited from his public office,” said Trott, co-chair of the Republicans for Harris Coalition. “After the 2020 election he did everything he could to overturn the will of the voters, and when that didn’t work he encouraged a mob of his supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.”
Trott noted that Trump’s running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) refused to admit that Trump lost in 2020 during Tuesday’s vice presidential debate.
“The big lie and their attempts to undermine our democracy are still a cornerstone of their campaign, and now Trump is more dangerous than ever,” said Trott.
Nowling, a longtime GOP communications consultant and one-time spokesman for Detroit’s emergency manager, said conservatives with any sense of moderation or centrist leaning have no voice in the current version of the Republican Party.
“The only people that have a voice now are the far right fringe, which believe in a totalitarian form of government,” he said. “So I do think that we’ve seen an erosion across the board of people who believe that democracy is the best form of government, and I think it’s precisely because we’ve had a president who’s done nothing but disparage our democracy and stand in line with other dictators and other strongmen in other countries who don’t think that democracy is the best form of government. And that scares the hell out of me.”
Murray, who was deputy chief of staff to former Michigan Republican House Speaker Rick Johnson and is a former president of AT&T Michigan, said that while he was once proud to be a Republican, he barely recognizes the party now.
“This party used to stand against tyranny in all forms. Now their nominee is a wannabe dictator who caves to autocratic leaders across the globe. This party used to respect the peaceful transfer of power. Now they are trying to reelect the man who tried to overthrow a free and fair election and has spent years attacking democracy and undermining our elections. This is the cult of Donald Trump,” said Murray.
Murray noted that more than 350,000 Michiganders voted against Trump in February’s Republican presidential primary, many of them choosing to support former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (who has since endorsed Trump), and he believes many Republicans will ultimately reject Trump’s authoritarian politics
“There have been very few times that our country has needed a unifying leader more than we do right now, and I truly believe that Kamala Harris is the right person for that job,” said Murray. “She has decades of experience as a former prosecutor, attorney general, United States Senator, and now vice president. Unlike Donald Trump, she respects the rule of law and has real experience in holding criminals accountable.”
Trott and Nowling also offered unqualified support for Harris.
“She is the only candidate in this race who will protect our democracy and uphold her sacred oath of office and implement a common sense agenda that will lower costs and grow the middle class,” said Trott.
Nowling said he became a Republican because he fervently believes in the Constitution and its equal application for all citizens.
“And so when I made the decision to support Vice President Harris, it was an easy decision for me to make because character matters more so than any other time,” he said. “We could go on forever about the differences between Republicans and Democrats and policies, but the one thing that I am absolutely certain of is that I know when Kamala Harris wakes up in the morning, she is thinking about what she can do for all of the country, all the people in the country, not just the people who are her friends or not just the people who stand to benefit financially from the decisions that her administration can make, all of the people.”
“Michigan Republicans for Harris-Walz” joins the national “Republicans for Harris” initiative, which was unveiled in August and includes more than a dozen former GOP members of Congress.
In addition to Trott, the group includes former U.S. Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming; Adam Kinzinger of Illinois; Susan Molinari of New York; Jack Quinn of New York; Denver Riggleman of Virginia; Christopher Shays of Connecticut; Peter Smith of Vermont; Alan Steelman of Texas; and Joe Walsh of Illinois.
Harris has also been endorsed by over 100 Republican national security officials, including former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagle, a Republican who served in the Obama administration, and Miles Taylor, a former chief of staff in the Dept. of Homeland Security during the Trump administration.
Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney is interviewed by Devin Scillian during the Mackinac Policy Conference on June 1, 2023. (Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
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