Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King of Maine says Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton will get his vote in November.
King told CNN Thursday that he doesn’t believe Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump has the temperament to lead the country, particularly if the U.S. finds itself on the brink of nuclear war.
“It’s a question of judgment and temperament and this guy has not demonstrated to me the kind of coolness that you need in that situation,” King says.
King says his trip on the so-called doomsday plane, which provides tactical oversight during an attack, helped crystallize his decision to vote for Clinton.
“I gotta vote for Hillary Clinton. I just can’t in good conscience put somebody in that airplane whose coolness and sort of patience and judgment I have doubts about,” he says.
King voiced his reservations about Trump earlier this year, but Thursday was the first time that he said he would definitely vote for Clinton, who he said demonstrated poise during Benghazi hearings held before Congress earlier this year.
King serves on the Senate’s Armed Services and Intelligence committees and receives briefings that many other members of Congress do not.
The former two-term governor was elected to the Senate in 2012. He caucuses with Democrats.
