To the editor: I was proud to be co-chair of Nikki Haley's California leadership team. I supported her for president because I believed she had the experience and vision to lead the free world. He also believed our country was ready for a new generation of leadership.
Now that we face a general election, I will vote for another leader with a positive view of America's leadership in the world: Vice President Kamala Harris. Let me offer three reasons.
First of all, I cannot support former President Trump because he demonstrated on January 6, 2021 that he will take precedence over our Constitution. We must not elect someone who does not respect the peaceful transfer of power.
Second, international trade underpins our prosperity. Globally, 95% of consumers live outside our borders. Trump has adopted protectionist policies, including blanket tariffs that will cost each American taxpayer about $4,000 a year. He wants to close doors; every other Republican president in my lifetime wanted to open doors in an orderly manner.
Third, Trump appeases dictators, while Harris has united our allies against adversaries. Trump has made excuses for inaction in the face of Russian aggression and has even denounced Ukraine. Like the New Left in the 1960s and 1970s, Trump is quick to denigrate America's friends and embrace its enemies.
I am a lifelong conservative. I am proud to have worked for Ronald Reagan and both Bush administrations, and to have supported Republican presidential candidates, from Phill Gramm to John McCain and Mitt Romney. This November I will vote for Harris. I ask other Haley voters to do the same.
Frank Lavin, San Francisco
The writer was the United States ambassador to Singapore and deputy secretary of commerce during the George W. Bush administration.
