Top former Bush aide reverses course, won’t vote for Trump

by Mallory Shelbourne - 11/05/16 1:37 PM ET

Former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer announced Friday that he won’t vote in the presidential race, reversing his decision to support GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.

“I will vote for Republicans up and down the ballot. But when it comes to the presidency, I’m going to leave my ballot blank,” Fleischer, who served as President George W. Bush’s press secretary from 2001 to 2003, wrote in a Washington Post op-ed.

{mosads}Fleishcer noted that he voted against Trump during the Republican primary, but once the billionaire effectively clinched the nomination, Fleischer reluctantly said he would vote for “Trump over Hillary any day.”

There’s a lot about Donald Trump that I don’t like, but I’ll vote for Trump over Hillary any day.

— Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) May 4, 2016

But after a series of events, including Trump attacking the family of a fallen soldier and alleging that the election is rigged, Fleischer said he began to question whether or not he would cast a ballot for the GOP nominee come Nov. 8.

“If this race were about change, Clinton or policy, Trump could win it. But he made it about himself,” Fleischer wrote. “Because he is one of the most unpopular people ever to run for president, that was a big mistake.”

Fleishcer, insisting that he is “Never Clinton,” cited her reversal on multiple policy stances as a reason not to trust the Democratic nominee.

“On Tuesday, if someone puts a gun to my head and tells me to make a choice, I’ll say ‘shoot,'” he said.

Tags Donald Trump