title:  Top Bush Advisor Jumps From Sinking GOP Ship
text: Yet another highly respected conservative is jumping from the sinking GOP ship now that the captain is billionaire blowhard Donald Trump. Sally Bradshaw, a top adviser to Jeb Bush, announced on Monday that she is leaving the Republican Party, and furthermore, if the race is close in Florida she plans to cast her vote for Hillary Clinton.Bradshaw, who was a top advisor to Bush during his 2016 campaign, has now officially changed her registration to unaffiliated rather than Republican. In an email interview, she told CNN s Jamie Gangel that the GOP is at a crossroads and have nominated a total narcissist   a misogynist   a bigot. This is a time when country has to take priority over political parties. Donald Trump cannot be elected president,  Bradshaw said.Bradshaw has a long history with the Bush family, having begun her career in 1988 working for George H.W. Bush s campaign. She has now joined the ranks of  many other prominent Republicans who are staunchly refusing to jump on the Trump Train. Bradshaw said: This election cycle is a test. As much as I don t want another four years of (President Barack) Obama s policies, I can t look my children in the eye and tell them I voted for Donald Trump. I can t tell them to love their neighbor and treat others the way they wanted to be treated, and then vote for Donald Trump. I won t do it. Her departure comes on the heels of Trump s revolting comments about the parents of a Muslim-American soldier who sacrificed his life in Iraq while fighting for the United States military. Bradshaw said his remarks were revolting and made me sick to my stomach.  She continued: Donald Trump belittled a woman who gave birth to a son who died fighting for the United States. If anything, that reinforced my decision to become an independent voter. Every family who loses a loved one in service to our country or who has a family member who serves in the military should be honored, regardless of their political views. Vets and their family have more than earned the right to those views. Someone with the temperament to be president would understand and respect that. Bradshaw said Trump s most recent comment was the proverbial straw that broke the camel s back, however, leaving the GOP is something she had been contemplating for awhile. I ve been considering the switch for months. Ultimately, I could not abide the hateful rhetoric of Donald Trump and his complete lack of principles and conservative philosophy. I didn t make this decision lightly   I have worked hard to make our party a place where all would feel welcome. But Trump has taken the GOP in another direction, and too many Republicans are standing by and looking the other way. She served as Jeb Bush s campaign manager both times he ran for governor of Florida. She said she hasn t made up her mind who she plans to vote for, but it obviously won t be Trump. I haven t made a decision yet between Clinton, Gary Johnson or writing in a candidate. If the race in Florida is close, I will vote for Hillary Clinton. That is a very difficult statement for me to make. I disagree with her on several important issues. I have worked to elect Republicans to national and statewide offices for the last 30 years. I have never voted for a Democrat for president, and I consider myself a conservative, a supporter of limited government, gun rights, free enterprise, equality of opportunity. I am pro-life. There are no other candidates who were serious contenders for the nomination that I would not have supported. Bradley faults Trump s presidential competitors for not coming out strong enough against him earlier in the campaign season. I really fault the candidates who did not speak out against Trump until the end of the primary cycle. Lindsay Graham and Jeb Bush spoke out early and consistently   but most did not, fearful of offending that segment of the party or positioning themselves for future office. Bradshaw insists that it is  the only real choice for reasonable, thoughtful Republicans to make. Our president must represent what is good about America   a belief in opportunity for all   regardless of race and gender and background   to rise up and live the American dream. A president can t tear down Hispanics, or mock someone who is disabled, or use symbols in campaign literature that Jewish voters understandably find offensive. To continue to be the hope of the world, all Americans regardless of party affiliation have to reject him. She added: If and when the party regains its sanity, I ll be ready to return. But until Republicans send a message to party leadership that this cannot stand, nothing will ever change. Truer words were never spoken. The GOP is no longer the party of conservatism. It is the party of Trumpism.Featured image via Joshua Lott/Getty Images