Why Bush and Cheney's positions on Trump and the 2024 race matter

Former Representative Liz Cheney, who was House Republican leader just three years ago, shocked the political world last week when she publicly endorsed Kamala Harris' Democratic ticket. It was a timely reminder that for those who value democracy above all else, principles must come before partisanship.

Equally notable was the news from her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, who also endorsed Harris late last week. In recent memory, the idea that this belligerent, lifelong conservative Republican, known for his implacable partisanship and proudly shouting “fuck off” to a Democratic Senate leader, would publicly endorse a Democratic presidential candidate seemed unthinkable, but the Wyoming Republican said in a written statement, “In our country's 248-year history, there has never been a person who poses a greater threat to our Republic than Donald Trump. … As citizens, we all have a duty to put country above partisanship in defense of our Constitution.”

Trump, for his part, referred to the former vice president as a “RINO” in his response, a timely reminder that the label “Republican in name only” no longer has any meaning.

Still, it didn't take long after last week's news for some to wonder if Cheney's former White House partner might follow suit. As NBC News reported, that doesn't appear to be happening.

This came four years after Bush also remained neutral in the 2020 presidential campaign. (After the election, the former president said he had included former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on his 2020 presidential ballot.)

At this point it is worth pausing and appreciating the bigger picture.

Unless there are surprises or dramatic twists, the Republican Party's presidential candidate in 2024 will not be able to count on the support of his party's presidential candidates from 2000, 2004 and 2012.

In addition, Trump cannot count on the support of the Republican vice presidential candidates of 2000, 2004, 2012, 2016 and 2020.

Regardless of what one may think of these former officials and their highly controversial pasts, an important question remains: When was the last time a major party candidate for the White House did not receive the support of so many national candidates from his own party?

The answer is never. In the American tradition, it has literally never happened. While there have been occasional intra-party battles of this kind—Teddy Roosevelt, for example, made little effort to conceal his frustration with William Howard Taft—there is no precedent for the kind of opposition Trump has faced from recent national candidates in his own party.

Bush's office told NBC News on Saturday: “President Bush retired from presidential politics years ago.” That may be so. But Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have also retired, and not only are they enthusiastic supporters of Harris' candidacy, they were also celebrated at their party's recent convention.

At the Republican Party Convention, however, not a single former president spoke out in favor of Trump.

As Jonathan Last of The Bulwark recently observed, “This is a portrait of two institutions: one institution that is in tune with its heritage and evolving in a way that holds its coalition together. The other institution is in a state of convulsion.”