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Dick Cheney says he will vote for Kamala Harris

Liz Cheney says she's voting for Harris
Liz Cheney joins Republicans backing Harris for President 07:55

Former Vice President Dick Cheney plans to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, just like his daughter, former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney. 

"In our nation's 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump," Dick Cheney said in a statement Friday. "He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He can never be trusted with power again. As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris." 

Liz Cheney first revealed her father's plans Friday at the Texas Tribune Festival, after saying two days ago that she is backing the Democratic nominee.

Dick Cheney, a longtime conservative, was vice president under former President George W. Bush and was one of the most influential officials behind the  invasion of Iraq and the CIA's interrogation tactics after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

Liz Cheney was one of only two Republicans to serve on the House Jan. 6 committee investigating the Capitol assault and former President Donald Trump's role in it, and Trump has repeatedly blasted Cheney for it, suggesting she and the others on the committee should be jailed. 

"I don't believe that we have the luxury of writing in candidates' names, particularly in swing states," Liz Cheney said Wednesday at Duke University. "As a conservative, as someone who believes in and cares about the Constitution, I have thought deeply about this. And because of the danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump, but I will be voting for Kamala Harris."

Harris' campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon said in a statement that Harris was "proud to have earned Congresswoman Cheney's vote."

The Cheneys aren't the only Republicans to back Harris. Several Republicans spoke at the Democratic National Convention urging their fellow Republicans to back Harris for the sake of democracy, including former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan.

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