Trump’s Former Navy Secretary To Endorse Bloomberg

NBC News reports:

Richard Spencer, the Navy secretary fired from the Trump administration after he opposed the president’s intervention in the discipline of a SEAL accused of murder, will endorse Democrat Mike Bloomberg during an appearance with the candidate in Norfolk, Virginia, on Friday, according to the Bloomberg campaign.

Spencer, who also briefly served as President Donald Trump’s acting defense secretary during summer 2019, becomes the first Trump political appointee to back one of the president’s potential November opponents.

In a statement released Friday morning by the campaign, Spencer said, “I am proud to endorse Mike Bloomberg for president of the United States. He will preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and uphold the Uniform Code of Military Justice.”

The New York Times reports:

Richard V. Spencer, who was ousted as Navy secretary in November after he publicly disagreed with Mr. Trump’s intervention in an extraordinary war crimes case involving a member of the Navy SEALs, is a lifelong Republican.

In a telephone interview, he said he had never before voted for a Democrat, but was ready to do so now. His support could help the argument by Mr. Bloomberg that, as a successful businessman himself, he is uniquely qualified to take on Mr. Trump and become the next commander in chief.

“We need a leader who can bring the country together,” Mr. Spencer said, rather than the “cleaving” that he said had occurred under the stewardship of his former boss.