GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who announced this week she’s not supporting Donald Trump for president, said Wednesday she might write in former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush or Condoleezza Rice, the former secretary of state and national security adviser under President George W. Bush.
“I probably am going to end up writing in the name of someone, and I never would have guessed that I’d be in that situation, and I think a lot of Americans are also struggling with what to do this year,” Ms. Collins said on CNN’s “New Day.”
“I thought of Jeb Bush, because he’s the person I first endorsed, and I believe he has the temperament, experience and judgment to be president,” she said. “So he’s certainly an option.”
“Condoleezza Rice I’ve always been a fan of, and she certainly would know how to handle the dangerous world that we’re living in in a way that Donald Trump does not,” Ms. Collins said. “So she’s another option.”
“I haven’t decided yet, but those are two names that would be at the top of my list,” she said. “But I never envisioned that I would find myself in this dilemma when the primary season first started. This has been the most unpredictable year ever.”
Ms. Collins said she doesn’t know Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson, but that she’s “troubled” by what she’s read about his drug use. Mr. Johnson is an outspoken advocate for the legalization of marijuana.
She said if Libertarian ticket was reversed and former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld was the presidential nominee, it would be an “easy choice” for her because she’s known Mr. Weld for many years and thinks very highly of him.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, another Republican who is not supporting Mr. Trump, told the Miami Herald Tuesday she thinks she will write in Mr. Bush, the former Florida governor and 2016 GOP presidential candidate.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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