Nearly 300 additional former national security and military officials endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Joseph R. Biden on Tuesday.
The latest backers mark the most recent wave of national security endorsements for the former vice president, and join 489 leaders who announced their endorsement last month.
“The initial release of the letter was a clarion call to so many patriotic Americans who believed they must do their part to elect Joe Biden,” said Michael Smith, executive director of National Security Leaders for Biden, in a statement. “It is no secret that our nation is in turmoil. We believe Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will help truly unite the United States and navigate this nation through this troubled time.”
In the initial letter, titled “An Open Letter to America,” the former officials said that President Trump “cannot rise to meet challenges large or small.”
“Thanks to his disdainful attitude and his failures, our allies no longer trust or respect us, and our enemies no longer fear us,” they wrote, alluding to the president without mentioning him by name.
Mr. Trump last month received the endorsement of 235 military leaders who said the Republican president “has been tested as few other presidents have and is the proven leader to confront these dangers.”
Several of the officers who endorsed the former vice president served under the Trump administration, including Air Force Gen. Paul Selva, who served as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Mr. Trump, Vice Adm. Gardner Howe, who retired last year, and Adm. Paul Zukunft, who served as commandant of the Coast Guard until 2018.
The latest round of endorsements also includes several officials who served under the Trump administration including retired Army Maj. Gen. Craig Whelden, and former State Department official Anita Freidt.
Maj. Gen. Whelden served as the the executive director of Marine Forces Pacific until 2019, while Ms. Friedt participated in arms control negotiations under the Obama and Trump administrations before stepping down in 2019.
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