WASHINGTON. — If one of the calls from the Democrats at their convention this week was for unity, who better to make that argument than numerous opposition party leaders.
During this week in which the Democrats met to nominate their candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden, the Republicans who asked their party colleagues and, above all, independents and those who have not decided their vote yet, stood out. that they reject the management of the president, Donald Trump, and that they vote for Biden.
The idea of the Democrats is to take advantage of the fissures within the Republican Party and highlight the growing discontent of the conservatives with Trump, giving them space on his stage in prime time.
Presidential candidate Joe Biden on the third day of the Democratic National Convention, August 19, 2020.AP
Both parties have always sought to scratch votes from the opposite side and therefore invite opposition leaders to their conventions. Four years ago, however, it was unthinkable to see so many conservative leaders in leading roles at a Democratic convention.
After Trump's arrival in politics, conservatives can be divided into three groups: those who maintain their loyalty to the president; those who differ with him but remain silent, and those who have so far begun to criticize him in public.
Although he is aware of the rejection that could generate prominence to the Republicans, in particular the youth and the progressive wing of the party, Biden's campaign wants to show that he, from his days in the Senate, has a long history of building coalitions and work with your adversaries.
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Furthermore, the campaign wants to make it clear that, contrary to the attacks by Trump and his allies, Biden is not "radical" nor will he promote any "socialist agenda."
On a conference call with reporters, Biden's campaign co-chairman Cedric Richmond summed it up like this: “There are a lot of people out there - silent Biden supporters, Republicans who want to vote for Biden or will - and it's important that they know that they are not alone".
These were the Republicans who showed up at the convention and took on their own party:
John Kasich, Former Governor of Ohio
Kasich spoke on the first night of the convention. He competed with Trump for the presidential nomination in 2016, and explained this Monday that he is a "lifelong Republican", but decided to participate in the meeting in Wisconsin because "these are not normal times."
Anticipating the conservatives' fears, Kasich said that Biden is "respectful" and, above all, "will not take a radical turn to the left."
Susan Molinari, former congresswoman from New York
Susan Molinari, a former Republican Congresswoman from New York, speaks at the 2020 Democratic National Convention on August 17, 2020. Screenshot / DNCC via Getty Images
Molinari, from a prominent Republican dynasty, represented New York in the Lower House from 1989 to 1999, where she built a meteoric career as a moderate leader.
"I have known Donald Trump for almost my entire political career. He is so disappointing and ultimately very alarming," he warned.
Colin Powell, former Secretary of State
Although he has a long military history, Powell has been a controversial figure for having defended the war in Iraq before the United Nations. Biden voted in favor of that intervention when he was a member of the Senate.
On Tuesday night, however, Powell's task was to highlight Biden's experience and leadership in foreign policy.
Joe Biden's acceptance speech as a Democratic presidential candidate
Aug. 21, 202025: 45“ With Joe Biden in the White House, you will never doubt that he will support our friends and face our adversaries. Never the other way around. He will trust our diplomats and our intelligence community, not the flattery of dictators and despots, "Powell said.
That is precisely one of the criticisms that Democrats throw against Trump, in particular for his relationship with authoritarian leaders Vladimir Putin of Russia and Kim Jong Un of North Korea.
Cindy McCain, wife of the late Senator John McCain
Cindy McCain, widow of former Arizona Sen. John McCain, in a Jan. 13, 2020, file photo.
McCain's role was to show Biden's humanity and empathy by dismissing her unlikely friendship with her husband, Arizona Sen. John McCain.
Biden and John McCain, who passed away in 2018, were friends for more than 30 years, working together in a bipartisan way in Congress.
Cindy McCain, and her daughter, Meghan, have been strong criticisms of Trump, who always showed hostility towards the senator, especially when he, already very ill with cancer, gave the decisive vote against the annulment of the Affordable Health Act, known as Obamacare.
Christine Todd Whitman, Former New Jersey Governor
In this screenshot from the 2020 Democratic National Convention livestream on August 17, 2020, former New Jersey Republican Gov. Christine Todd Whitman is shown. In this screenshot from the DNCC's livestream of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, Former Republican New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman addresses the virtual convention on August 17, 2020. The convention, which was once expected to draw 50,000 people to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is now taking place virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Handout / DNCC via Getty Images) DNCC via Getty Images
Whitman, former director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during the presidency of George W. Bush (2000-2008), comes from a family with a long Republican tradition.
Whitman has attacked Trump's environmental policy and during the 2016 election race, he even compared him to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.
In recent weeks, he has criticized Trump's efforts to suppress voting by mail.
Meg Whitman, Former California Gubernatorial Candidate
Meg Whitman in a Dec. 9, 2019 file photo at the New York Stock Exchange. AP
Whitman, also a CEO of Quibi, and a former Hewlett-Packard executive, is respected in business circles.
"I am a longtime Republican and executive, and let me tell you that Donald Trump has no idea how to run a business, much less an economy," she said in her short message.
Whitman lost his race for governor of California in 2010 and endorsed the presidential candidacy of Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Chuck Hagel, former Secretary of Defense
Former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel (left) and former Vice President Joe Biden in a Feb. 28, 2019 file photo.
Hagel, also a former Nebraska senator, was head of the Pentagon during the Barack Obama administration. The then president wanted to show that his government would accommodate opposition leaders.
"Dangerously Incapable": Other Dissenting Voices
Parallel to the convention, dozens of conservative leaders have criticized Trump's leadership, although they do not necessarily endorse Biden.
Some of them are linked to the Republican Never Trump movement that emerged in 2016, which was unable to stop his presidential candidacy.
Another 73 former national security officials from the governments of George HW Bush, his son, George W. Bush, and Ronald Reagan published a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal on Friday endorsing Biden and listing 10 reasons why they believe that "the president has demonstrated that he is dangerously incapable ( dangerously unfit) to fulfill another mandate".
On video: The letter from Estella, the 11-year-old girl who wrote to Trump about her deported mother
Aug. 20, 202002: 01Also in recent days, the former Chief of Staff of the Department of Homeland Security, Miles Taylor, has generated headlines by revealing alleged statements by Trump that, in his opinion, demonstrate his racism.
According to Taylor, who has recorded messages for the group 'Republican voters against Trump', the president weighed the idea of changing Puerto Rico for Greenland, considering that the island is "dirty" and "has poor people."
Meanwhile, the group of Republicans called the Lincoln Project has released scathing videos that compile what they consider Trump's mistakes, both in domestic affairs and on the international stage.
That group includes attorney George Conway, husband of Trump's top adviser, Kellyanne Conway; Steve Schmidt, a former adviser to McCain's failed 2008 presidential campaign; and Jennifer Horn, former chair of the Republican Party in New Hampshire.