Presidential races

Kissinger, George Schultz say they won’t endorse in 2016 race

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A pair of prominent officials from past GOP administrations say they are not endorsing a presidential candidate after previously teasing support for Hillary Clinton.

Henry Kissinger, who served as national security adviser and secretary of State under presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, and George Schultz, who was secretary of State for President Ronald Reagan, told NBC News Friday they would not back anyone in the 2016 race.

{mosads}“We are not making any endorsement in the current presidential election,” they said in a joint statement. “We are dedicated to fostering a bipartisan foreign policy, and we will devote ourselves to this effort now and after the election.”

Kissinger and Schultz on Thursday floated the possibility of backing Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee.

“We are going to do it together,” Schultz told Politico of any possible endorsement. “It will have more impact.”

Schultz, who also served as Labor and Treasury secretary, said Clinton had impressed him with her “deep knowledge of Mexico” during an earlier personal encounter.

Schultz jabbed at Trump, suggesting the GOP nominee has isolationist tendencies that could hurt the U.S.

“When the next president takes office, if he or she turns inwards, the chaos will only develop more,” he said. “There is no substitute for the United States.”

Schultz said “God help us” when Politico asked him last month about the possibility of a Trump presidency.

Trump won the GOP’s presidential nomination by besting 17 other candidates in an at-times bruising primary.

Clinton has since courted dissatisfied Republicans who dislike the billionaire’s actions, rhetoric and policies.

Prominent Republicans who are picking Clinton over Trump include Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman, former Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte and retiring Rep. Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.).

Tags Democrats endorsements Hillary Clinton Politics Republicans

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