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Tags: charlie dent | trump | vote

Rep. Charlie Dent: I Need Convincing Before I'll Back Trump

MSNBC's "Morning Joe"

By    |   Tuesday, 02 August 2016 02:39 PM EDT

Pennsylvania GOP Rep. Charlie Dent said Tuesday that he can't back Donald Trump, but he won't vote for Hillary Clinton, either.

"I have been fairly outspoken on this," the swing state lawmaker told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program. "I was a John Kasich supporter and I raised a lot of concerns about many of Donald Trump's incendiary comments on John McCain, David Duke, Muslims, the Indiana judge and now the Khan family situation."

Those controversies, plus Trump's "lack of policy specifics and the contradictory nature of those policies have caused me a great deal of concern," Dent continued, but at the same time, he thinks Clinton disqualified herself for the presidency because of her use of a private email server while secretary of state.

He said he believes he's "like millions of Americans," and he needs to be persuaded before agreeing to support Trump.

Kent said he backed Kasich as the "one candidate that was temperate," Dent continued, and he believes the Ohio governor's stand on conservatism sends a message Americans want to hear.

On Monday, New York Republican Rep. Richard Hanna announced through an op-ed piece that he plans to vote for Clinton, something Dent says his fellow lawmaker had told him he wouldn't do as recently as Sunday night.

"He has been a little bit frustrated, especially as it comes to getting things done," said Dent. "Like me, I think he has been very concerned about the incendiary statements and lack of policy. I was not shocked that Richard did what he did. He is a good friend. He is a good man. He is a rock solid guy."

Sandy Fitzgerald

Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics. 

© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.


Politics
Pennsylvania GOP Rep. Charlie Dent said Tuesday that he can't back Donald Trump, but he won't vote for Hillary Clinton, either.
charlie dent, trump, vote
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2016-39-02
Tuesday, 02 August 2016 02:39 PM
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