From Mike Pence to John Bolton, former Trump admin officials who refused to endorse ex-POTUS

Former Donald Trump officials who aren't supporting ex-POTUS in 2024 presidential race

Former president Donald Trump secured the Republican nomination for a rematch with President Joe Biden in the November presidential election. He tasted a series of GOP primaries and caucus victories against his opponents, clinching the party nomination for a third time. However, some prominent figures, who served in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2021, refused to endorse the ex-president's second White House bid. Here is a complete list of former Trump officials and aides who served in his first term in office but have refused to support his 2024 presidential race.

1. Mike Pence

Mike Pence, who was Donald Trump's vice president during his term from 2017 to 2021, announced earlier this month that he could not "in good conscience" endorse the former president for the 2024 race. Speaking to Fox News on March 15, Pence said, "It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year. During my presidential campaign, I made it clear that there were profound differences between me and President Trump on a range of issues." Their relationship deteriorated after Trump falsely claimed in 2021 that Pence had the power to overturn 2020 election results and the Capitol attackers on January 6, 2021, chanted "hang Mike Pence" after he certified Joe Biden's election victory.

2. Mark Esper

Mark Esper served in Donald Trump's administration as secretary of defense from July 2019 to November 2020. In July 2023, he told CNN that the ex-president is not "fit for office because he puts himself first, and I think anybody running for office should put the country first." Further expressing his dissent toward Trump's 2024 presidential bid, Esper labeled the former president a "threat to democracy in an interview with CNN in January.

3. James Mattis

James Mattis was Secretary of Defense during Donald Trump's presidency between January 2017 and January 2019. The retired four-star general, known by the nickname "Mad Dog", said in a statement to Politico following the January 6 Capitol attack that Trump "will deservedly be left a man without a country." Mattis further slammed the then-president and said, "His use of the Presidency to destroy trust in our election and to poison our respect for fellow citizens has been enabled by pseudo-political leaders whose names will live in infamy as profiles in cowardice." He has not endorsed Trump's third consecutive run for the White House.

4. John Kelly

John Kelly was the White House chief of staff from July 2017 to January 2019 during Donald Trump's term in the White House. Voicing his opposition to the presidential hopeful, he told CNN in October 2023 that Trump had "no idea what America stands for and has no idea what America is all about." He described Trump as "a person who admires autocrats and murderous dictators. A person that has nothing but contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law." When inquired about the possibility of a second Trump presidency, Kelly sighed, "God help us."

5. Mark Milley

Mark Miley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff in the Trump administration from October 2019 to September 2023, described the ex-president as a "wannabe dictator" during his retirement speech. "We don't take an oath to an individual. We take an oath to the Constitution, and we take an oath to the idea that is America—and we're willing to die to protect it," he added.

6. John Bolton

Foreign policy expert John Bolton was the national security adviser (NSA) under Donald Trump's presidency from April 2018 to September 2019. During an interview with MSNBC's Jen Psaki in February, he said there would be "celebrations in the Kremlin" if the GOP presumptive nominee wins in November. "Putin thinks that he is an easy mark," he added. In addition, Bolton recently warned about Trump's possible second presidency, writing on X, "Donald Trump wants Americans to treat him like North Koreans treat Kim Jong Un. Get ready..."

7. Cassidy Hutchinson

Cassidy Hutchinson, a former White House aide who was assistant to ex-chief of staff Mark Meadows, believes that Donald Trump's second term as president could threaten the democracy of America. In an interview with ABC News in December, she argued, "If Donald Trump is elected president again in 2024, I do fear that it will be the last election where we're voting for democracy because, if he is elected again, I don't think we'll be voting under the same Constitution."

8. Stephanie Grisham

Stephanie Grisham was then First Lady Melania Trump's chief of staff from April 2020 to January 2021. In a conversation with CNN's Jake Tapper in October 2021, she revealed that she did not vote for Trump in the 2020 presidential election. However, Grisham did not disclose which candidate she cast her vote for.

9. Sarah Matthews

Sarah Matthews was deputy press secretary in Donald Trump's White House from June 2020 until January 2021. However, she turned into a hardcore critic of the former president. In a recent interview with MSNBC's Jen Psaki, she said that Trump used to make "unhinged comments." Furthermore, she also accused the ex-president of the January 6 Capitol attack, saying he "helped incite a deadly insurrection on our nation's Capitol."

10. Anthony Scaramucci

Anthony Scaramucci, who served for only ten days in Donald Trump's administration as White House director of communications from July 21 to July 31, 2017, declared that he would vote for President Joe Biden "100 percent" in November. Speaking to CNN in January, he said, "This really is going to be a battle for the democracy, this one. He's going to expand executive power. He's going to make things rougher for people. He has already said he's going after his adversaries using the Department of Justice." Scaramucci added, "When someone's telling you they're going to flex and be a dictator on day one and go after their adversaries, this is against the 200-plus-year experiment of America."

11. Alyssa Farah Griffin

Alyssa Farah Griffin was the White House director of strategic communications and assistant to the president from April to December 2020. The now-co-host of ABC's 'The View' said in one of the episodes that she "teared up" when former VP Pence denied endorsing Trump for 2024. "The reason that I cannot in good conscience endorse Donald Trump this year also has to do with the fact that he is walking away," Griffin told a co-host. She continued, "Not just from keeping faith with the constitution on that day, but also, Margaret, with a commitment to fiscal responsibility, a commitment to the sanctity of life, a commitment to American leadership in the world."