Over 700 ex-military and national security officials back Harris, criticize Trump as 'rash and uninformed'

• A group of 741 former national security officials from both political parties have endorsed Joe Biden for president in an open letter, criticizing Donald Trump for being "impulsive and ill-informed."
• The statement was endorsed by Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Chuck Hagel, and William Cohen, all former Secretaries of State and Defense.
• The former president's foreign affairs record and alleged involvement in the Jan. 6th Capitol riot were criticized in a letter.
• The Harris campaign is attempting to regain the interest of Republicans who may be disillusioned with Trump, as evidenced by Sunday's endorsement.

Over 700 former national security and military officials publicly supported Kamala Harris for president in the 2024 election, endorsing her over Donald Trump in a letter published Sunday by National Security Leaders for America.

The group, comprised of bipartisan senior leaders who have served in the military and other offices and agencies, stated that this election is a choice between responsible leadership and reckless impulsiveness.

"We are trained to make sound judgments. That is why we believe Vice President Harris would excel as Commander-in-Chief, while Mr. Trump has shown he is not capable of the job," they stated.

The statement condemning Trump as "rash and uninformed" was endorsed by 741 individuals, including prominent Democrats such as Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, in addition to Republican Secretaries of Defense Chuck Hagel and William Cohen, who served under Democratic presidents.

The group of signatories includes 15 retired four-star generals, 12 former Cabinet-level officials, eight service secretaries, more than 120 ambassadors and three Trump-era officials, including retired U.S. Army Gen. Peter Chiarelli, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff retired four-star Gen. Paul Selva and retired Major Gen. Eric Thorne Olson.

"The letter stated that Mr. Trump is the first president in American history to actively undermine the peaceful transfer of power, which is the foundation of American democracy. He has shown no regret for attempting to overturn the 2020 election on January 6th, has promised to pardon the convicted perpetrators, and has made it clear that he will not respect the results of the 2024 election if he loses again."

The letter accused Trump of privately and publicly criticizing leaders of American allies, including the United Kingdom, Israel, Australia, Canada, and Germany, and of abandoning allied Kurdish fighters in Syria in 2019.

"President Trump is the only modern-era President who did not start any new wars, according to Steven Cheung, the Communications Director of the Trump campaign, who responded to a critical letter on CNBC. These are the same individuals who led the country into endless foreign conflicts and profited from them while the American people suffered."

On Sunday, the endorsement was given after 111 former Republican national security and foreign policy officials wrote a letter on Wednesday stating that Trump is "unfit to serve again."

Harris' campaign has been targeting conservative and moderate voters who might be hesitant to vote for Trump, beginning with the launch of "Republicans for Harris" in August. Since then, the vice president has received endorsements from several notable Republicans, including Dick Cheney, who was previously Vice President to George W. Bush.

"Mr. Trump's threat to our democratic system is clear, as he has stated it himself in his endorsement letter. He has called for the termination of parts of the Constitution and has stated that he wants to be a dictator. His claim that he would only be a dictator for a day is not reassuring."