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Richard Painter, longtime Republican and former ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush, announced on Twitter Monday that he's running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat in Minnesota.

Driving his decision: President Trump. Painter, a frequent critic of Trump on cable news and social media, said on Twitter that his decision to not only run for office but to run as a Democrat is attributable to Trump and "the broken system that got us where we are today." "Americans are fed up!" he added. 

Former Bush lawyer drops GOP, seeks Senate seat vacated by Al Franken

Longtime Republican Richard Painter is running as a Democrat, driven by his opposition to Trump

Richard Painter, former ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush. Photo: Erika Goldring/Getty Images

Politics

2018 midterm elections

Richard Painter, longtime Republican and former ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="announced on Twitter" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/RWPUSA/status/990982218469265408" data-vars-content-id="1c1127b5-b6c3-42f6-aeb1-cb128517883c" data-vars-headline="Former Bush lawyer drops GOP, seeks Senate seat vacated by Al Franken" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/RWPUSA/status/990982218469265408" target="_blank">announced on Twitter</a> Monday that he&#x27;s running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat in Minnesota.Driving his decision: President Trump. Painter, a frequent critic of Trump on cable news and social media, said <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="on Twitter" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/RWPUSA/status/991021886590148613" data-vars-content-id="1c1127b5-b6c3-42f6-aeb1-cb128517883c" data-vars-headline="Former Bush lawyer drops GOP, seeks Senate seat vacated by Al Franken" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/RWPUSA/status/991021886590148613" target="_blank">on Twitter</a> that his decision to not only run for office but to run as a Democrat is attributable to Trump and &quot;the broken system that got us where we are today.&quot; &quot;Americans are fed up!&quot; he added.

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Former Bush lawyer drops GOP, seeks Senate seat vacated by Al Franken

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