CHICAGO — Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham is set to speak at the Democratic National Convention this week, one of many Republican voices calling out Donald Trump’s “extremism.”
“I never thought I would be speaking at a Democratic convention. But after seeing firsthand who Donald Trump really is and the threat he poses to our country, I feel strongly about speaking out,” Grisham said in an exclusive statement to NBC News.
Grisham served as press secretary during Trump’s 2016 campaign before becoming chief of staff and press secretary to first lady Melania Trump. Grisham then briefly served as White House press secretary in 2019 and transitioned to communications director before leaving the administration.
Grisham resigned hours after Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. She later spoke to congressional committees investigating the attack and said she had “fully cooperated.”
In an October 2021 interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” Grisham said she had previously tried to resign “a couple of times” but was stopped from doing so by Melania Trump.
“January 6 was of course my breaking point,” she said at the time. “And I was really proud that I was, well, the first in the government to resign.”
She said in her statement to NBC News: “While I don’t agree with Vice President Harris on everything, I am proud to support her because I know she will defend our freedoms and represent our nation with honesty and integrity.”
Other Republicans are expected to share a similar message at the convention, including former Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who is scheduled to speak Thursday.
“As Donald Trump continues to attack moderates and independents, the Harris-Walz campaign has made it clear that there is a place in our coalition for voters who reject Donald Trump’s extremism and want to protect our democracy,” a Harris campaign official said.
When Grisham speaks at the convention, she is expected to urge her party members to “join me” in supporting Harris “to ensure that Donald Trump never returns to the White House,” the official said.
Biden’s reelection team began recruiting Republican leaders to support their cause, and Harris’ campaign has continued that effort.
“We will put patriotic Republicans at the center of our convention programming so they can explain in their own words why they put country first and support Vice President Harris,” Austin Weatherford, the campaign’s national Republican engagement director, said in a statement to NBC News.
The Democratic campaign launched the “Republicans for Harris” program this month to reach more moderate and independent voters who may have supported Trump in the past.
It has specifically highlighted Project 2025, a conservative think tank’s blueprint for a second Trump term. In recent weeks, Trump and his allies have tried to distance themselves from the document.
So far, Harris’ campaign has received multiple endorsements from Republican leaders and will continue to invest in paid media to appeal to potentially critical voters in swing states, building on the seven-figure sum already spent, officials said.
It also plans to continue producing live, on-camera testimony featuring GOP voices that can be used in crowd-driven digital campaigns.
Members of the Harris team are in constant contact with Republicans and right-wing organizations that could join the campaign. Behind the scenes, they are working to secure additional Republican support in the final 80 days of the campaign, according to two Harris campaign officials.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
