In a significant development ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential election, former U.S. President George W. Bush has decided not to make any endorsements or publicly disclose how he or his wife, Laura Bush, will vote.
A spokesman for the former president confirmed on Saturday that Bush has “retired from presidential politics many years ago.”
The announcement comes amidst growing divisions within the Republican Party over former President Donald Trump’s candidacy.
On Friday, Bush’s former vice president, Dick Cheney, made headlines when he declared that he would break party ranks to vote for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris instead of supporting Trump.
Cheney’s statement marks a stark departure from the typical party loyalty expected from former leaders, particularly those with such high-level ties to the Republican establishment.
Cheney, who served as vice president under Bush from 2001 to 2009, said on Friday that “in our nation’s 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump.”
His comments reflect an ongoing critique of Trump’s leadership, a sentiment echoed by many of the Republican Party’s moderate figures.
Kamala Harris responded on Saturday, commending Cheney and his daughter, former U.S. Representative Liz Cheney, for their “courageous” decision to put the interests of the country above partisan politics.
The elder Cheney’s endorsement of Harris, along with his daughter’s, represents a rare bipartisan alliance, emphasizing the gravity of the political moment in the U.S.
Meanwhile, former Vice President Mike Pence, who served under Trump from 2017 to 2021, has refrained from endorsing his former running mate, though he has not explicitly thrown his support behind Harris either.
Pence’s careful balancing act reflects the growing fracture within the Republican Party as many key figures grapple with how to approach Trump’s continued influence and controversial campaign.
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