Meg Whitman Backing Clinton Over 'Reckless, Uninformed' Trump

Top Republican donor and fundraiser Meg Whitman endorsed Democrat Hillary Clinton for president on Tuesday, saying she cannot support a candidate who has "exploited anger, grievance, xenophobia and racial division."

Whitman, president and CEO of Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, said in a statement that Republican nominee Donald Trump's "demagoguery has undermined the fabric of our national character."

"Trump's reckless and uninformed positions on critical issues -- from immigration to our economy to foreign policy -- have made it abundantly clear that he lacks both the policy depth and sound judgment required as president," Whitman said.

She said national security would be in danger under a Trump presidency and she encouraged all Republicans to support Clinton in November.

Whitman ran unsuccessfully for California governor in 2010, spending $144 million of her own money in a 13 percentage point loss to Democrat Jerry Brown.

In June, Whitman had compared Trump at a closed-door summit to Mussolini and Hitler and warned Republicans that compromising on some conservative principles to support Trump now might lead to bigger compromises in future years.

Whitman told the New York Times in an interview Tuesday night that she “absolutely” stood by those comments, explaining that dictators often come to office through democratic means.

“Time and again history has shown that when demagogues have gotten power or come close to getting power, it usually does not end well,” Whitman told the Times.

She was national fundraising chair for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in his unsuccessful run for this year's Republican presidential nomination. She severed ties with Christie when he endorsed Trump in February, accusing him of "an astonishing display of political opportunism."