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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Adam Kinzinger: Donald Trump suffers second high-profile Republican defection in two days | Adam Kinzinger: Donald Trump suffers second high-profile Republican defection in two days |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Donald Trump suffered another blow to his chances of uniting Republicans behind him, after a Congressman and military veteran said he was unable to support the tycoon’s bid for the presidency. | Donald Trump suffered another blow to his chances of uniting Republicans behind him, after a Congressman and military veteran said he was unable to support the tycoon’s bid for the presidency. |
| Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who served in Iraq, said he would not support Hillary Clinton or tell voters how they should vote. But he said he could not support a nominee who “throws all these Republican principles on their head”. | Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who served in Iraq, said he would not support Hillary Clinton or tell voters how they should vote. But he said he could not support a nominee who “throws all these Republican principles on their head”. |
| “I’m an American before I’m a Republican,” Mr Kinzinger told CNN. “I won’t be silent. He can tweet all he wants. I have to do this for my country and for my party. | “I’m an American before I’m a Republican,” Mr Kinzinger told CNN. “I won’t be silent. He can tweet all he wants. I have to do this for my country and for my party. |
| Mr Kinzinger, who was elected to Congress in 2010, has openly hesitated to embrace Mr Trump as his party’s standard-bearer. He said he went to the convention in Cleveland hoping to “at least mildly endorse" the Republican front-runner. | |
| But in the aftermath of Mr Trump’s comments about Russian President Vladimir Putin and the parents of slain Muslim American soldier Humayun Khan, the third-term Illinois congressman said that he did not “see how I get there anymore”. | But in the aftermath of Mr Trump’s comments about Russian President Vladimir Putin and the parents of slain Muslim American soldier Humayun Khan, the third-term Illinois congressman said that he did not “see how I get there anymore”. |
| “I’m a Republican because I believe that Republicanism is the best way to defend the United States of America,” Mr Kinzinger said on Wednesday evening. | “I’m a Republican because I believe that Republicanism is the best way to defend the United States of America,” Mr Kinzinger said on Wednesday evening. |
| The congressman also said the possibility that Mr Trump could be a drag on races further down the ticket was a factor and that he wanted to focus on defending the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. | The congressman also said the possibility that Mr Trump could be a drag on races further down the ticket was a factor and that he wanted to focus on defending the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. |
| The high-profile defection is the second of its kind against Mr Trump in two days. Richard Hanna, a Republican congressman from New York who is retiring after this term, announced on Tuesday he would vote for Ms Clinton in November. | The high-profile defection is the second of its kind against Mr Trump in two days. Richard Hanna, a Republican congressman from New York who is retiring after this term, announced on Tuesday he would vote for Ms Clinton in November. |
| Mr Kinzinger’s home state senator Mark Kirk, who is facing one of the toughest re-election battles this cycle, rescinded his endorsement of Trump in June when the real estate mogul questioned the partiality of an American judge over his Hispanic heritage in a lawsuit against his Trump University. | Mr Kinzinger’s home state senator Mark Kirk, who is facing one of the toughest re-election battles this cycle, rescinded his endorsement of Trump in June when the real estate mogul questioned the partiality of an American judge over his Hispanic heritage in a lawsuit against his Trump University. |
| A senior Republican fundraiser, Meg Whitman, also announced this week she would vote for Ms Clinton rather than a man she described as a "demagogue". |