Speak up now, Republicans, or you’ll regret it.

I HAVE A QUESTION FOR FORMER Trump Administration officials, elected Republicans (and former elected officials), business leaders, and conservative writers and pundits who recognize Donald Trump as the threat he poses. Indeed, this is a question for anyone on the right who knows what Trump’s re-election could mean for the country, for liberal democracy and for the world, and who, in the face of this threat, has decided to maintain either a position of silence or “both sides are bad” neutrality.

My question is this:

How will you feel if Trump wins by a very narrow margin on Tuesday?

I suspect you’ll spend the next four years holding your breath.

Because if Donald Trump does even a tenth of what he promised – withdraws the United States from NATO, abandons Ukraine and sides with Vladimir Putin, puts RFK Jr. and Elon Musk in charge of serious parts of the American government – it will round up to 15 million. illegal immigrants into camps and deporting them, seeking political retribution against those who opposed his candidacy – I suspect you will regret your silence, although you could change the situation.

I see you raising your hands to show us how pure they are. Saying, “But I said Donald Trump was a threat! I said I wouldn’t vote for him! What more do you want from me?

And I understand that. I do. The problem is that this moment demands more from all of us.

It requires clarity. And it requires your leadership.

Throughout your career, you’ve asked people to trust you. Either by voting for you, or taking your advice, or relying on your judgment and analysis.

So why are you suddenly too far gone to tell everyone what you really believe?

I understand that this moment is difficult. Trump can win. Even if he doesn’t win, quitting the game could alienate you from career connections, business opportunities, or even friends and family.

But being a leader means standing up and telling the truth, even when it is difficult, expensive or scary. Especially when it’s difficult, expensive or scary.

It’s not too late. Every day more people speak out– people with reputation and doubts, but whose conscience does not allow them to sit out.

You shouldn’t sit idly by either. After a career as a leader, you shouldn’t decide that this time you’d rather be just a spectator.

You may think that your vote won’t matter to voters. In the end, there seems to be so little that can move the needle. Well, I’m here to tell you that it matters. This All matters. Every little thing. You don’t know who’s listening when it’s time to vote. You don’t know who you can convince at the eleventh hour. And you don’t know what the margin will be. If this election is decided by 9,000 votes in Pennsylvania – which is a very real possibility that could happen – then every entrance could be a turning point.

I don’t see a future. I don’t know if your support will make a difference. Just as I don’t know what price you would pay to speak more clearly.

What I do know is this: If you give up your leadership responsibilities at this point and what you fear happens, you will regret backing down when the country needed you to stand up. You will regret this for the rest of your days.

MAYBE YOU ARE A RETIRED FOUR STAR GENERAL, or a Cabinet Secretary, or someone who took a job as a political appointee in the Trump Administration and saw things that shocked your conscience. And perhaps you told reporters what you saw; or it is written about it in the book. This is not enough because books have a relatively small reach and your words are conveyed through paper. You need to look voters in the eye and warn them directly about what a second Trump term could mean. Especially now that you won’t be inside to try and protect the country from him.

Perhaps you are a former Republican president or presidential candidate. Perhaps you were once the leader of a party that was destroyed by Donald Trump. I’m sorry, but the unfortunate fact is that you cannot retain your influence for any future Republican Party. This is for real last moment when you have a chance to influence him. Your party, like your country, needs you. Right now.

You may have headed respected conservative publications. You acted as an ideological leader. Someone who shapes our political culture. But today you want to keep your hands clean by writing “Edmund Burke” or some other meaningless protest candidate on your ballot – as a sign that You kept you pure. I understand this impulse. But this is wrong. You know that if you were the only deciding vote, you would vote for Harris. So just say it. This is not an academic exercise and it is not about you.

Maybe you are a billionaire to whom this country has given everything. Your wealth insulates you from the consequences of Trump’s worst-case scenario. And yet you see Trump’s transactional nature, his willingness to bestow favor if you are obedient, and instead of confronting Trump, you cringe. This may seem like wisdom, but in reality it is not security. There will be more requirements. The only way to truly protect your business is through the rule of law and the stability of democracy.

YOUR FELLOW PEOPLE have been waiting MONTHS for you to tell them the full, unvarnished truth about the danger you believe Donald Trump poses. Saying to everyday Americans the same things you say in green rooms, at dinners, and in off-the-record conversations. You’re not there yet, but you still can. Before you make your final decision, think about Liz Cheney. warning that someday Donald Trump will be gone, but the choices we make today will remain with us forever.

Choose honor. This is a choice you make again and again in your professional life. It would be a sin to reject his choice because of a charlatan like Donald Trump.

I want to tell you about some Republicans who are already putting themselves on the line for democracy. They have no safety information, no staff, no budget. These are ordinary people who used to vote for Trump, but now refuse to support him. They joined Republican voters are against Trump to get the message out to their friends and neighbors. Some of them lost their jobs. Some of them lost their families. They all lost friends. None of them regret it.

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They put their faces on billboards all over the country. They appeared in millions of dollars worth of paid advertising broadcast in their own communities. They took part in text campaigns, colloquial in the media, knocking on doors and traveling to swing states in hopes of making a difference.

If Kyle from Alabamaor Jackie from Michiganor Robert from Pennsylvaniaor Jim from Wyoming can speak out, so can generals, politicians and opinion leaders.

THE REASON I BELIEVE THAT every little bit matters is because conservative voters tell me that all the time.

In swing vote focus groupsOne thing I hear over and over again is that voters are open to hearing from leaders who served under Trump and who were in the same room with him. The messenger is as important as the message, and these people are willing to believe the words of a lifelong Republican or flag officer much more readily than they will believe a Democrat telling them the same thing.

So, if you are one of the small number of people who can make a difference at this moment, the question is: what are you going to do?

Courage is contagious. And I have one last piece of advice: No one ever regrets doing the right thing.

You won’t regret it either. So stand up. Do the right thing. This is our last chance.

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