September 27, 2016 | No Comments
Hillary Clinton has gained the support of yet another high-profile Republican political figure: former Virginia Sen. John Warner.
According to a report by the Washington Post, the now-retired five-term senator is opting to back Clinton over his own party’s nominee, Donald Trump, as a signal to voters in the swing state of Virginia of who he believes would be best suited to be commander-in-chief.
Virginia, a key battleground state in the upcoming general election, has seen the race tighten in recent months, while Clinton’s 9-point advantage over Trump last month shrinking to 6 points in a recent Quinnipiac poll, 45 percent to 39 percent. The endorsement — the first time Warner has backed a Democratic candidate for president — may seek to buck that trend.
In a campaign statement issued to the Post in response to announcement, the Clinton campaign touted Warner’s military record in accepting the endorsement.
“For 30 years, Virginians trusted John Warner in the Senate, and for good reason: He has dedicated his life to defending our country, from serving in the Navy in World War II to chairing the Senate Armed Services Committee, where I had the honor of working with him to support our men and women in uniform and their families,” Clinton wrote. “I am proud to have John’s support, and to know that someone with his decades of experience would trust me with the weighty responsibility of being Commander in Chief.”
Warner, 89, was the second-longest serving senator in Virginia history; he was succeeded in 2009 by Mark Warner. He was also Secretary of the Navy during the Nixon administration.