Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday seized on comments by former White House chief of staff John F. Kelly that Donald Trump meets the definition of a fascist, urging voters to heed warnings from people who have worked with Trump that his beliefs are “incredibly dangerous.”

“Donald Trump is increasingly unhinged and unstable, and in a second term, people like John Kelly would not be there to be the guardrails against his propensities and his actions,” Harris said in brief remarks outside the vice-presidential residence at the Naval Observatory. “Those who once tried to stop him from pursuing his worst impulses would no longer be there, and no longer be there to rein him in.”

Kelly, the former president’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, said in an interview published Tuesday that his former boss would govern like a dictator if elected again and does not understand the Constitution or the rule of law. The comments, made to the New York Times, gave Harris new ammunition, less than two weeks before Election Day, for her long-standing argument that Trump cannot be trusted with the powers of the presidency.

In the interview, Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general, confirmed previous reports that Trump had spoken admiringly of Adolf Hitler and had voiced disdain for American military personnel who were disabled or lost their lives. He also suggested that Trump wanted to rule like a dictator and use the military against domestic adversaries.

“The bottom line is this: We know what Donald Trump wants. He wants unchecked power,” Harris said. “The question in 13 days will be, what do the American people want?”

Harris also responded to Kelly’s account that Trump more than once said that Hitler “did some good things.”

“It is deeply troubling and incredibly dangerous that Donald Trump would invoke Adolf Hitler,” Harris said. “The man who is responsible for the deaths of 6 million Jews and hundreds of thousands of Americans. All of this is further evidence for the American people of who Donald Trump really is.”

The assessment by Kelly, a retired four-star general, comes after retired Gen. Mark A. Milley — named by Trump to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff — warned in Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward’s new book, “War,” that the former president is “fascist to the core” and “the most dangerous person to this country.”

Kelly told the Times in the article published Tuesday that he felt compelled to denounce Trump publicly in the weeks leading up to the 2024 election because of comments Trump has repeatedly made about harnessing the power of the executive branch, including the military if necessary, to eliminate the “enemy from within.”

“And I think this issue of using the military on — to go after — American citizens is one of those things I think is a very, very bad thing — even to say it for political purposes to get elected — I think it’s a very, very bad thing, let alone actually doing it,” Kelly said.

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement Wednesday that “John Kelly has totally beclowned himself with these debunked stories he has fabricated because he failed to serve his President well while working as Chief of Staff and currently suffers from a debilitating case of Trump Derangement Syndrome.” Cheung added that Trump “has always honored the service and sacrifice of all of our military men and women, whereas Kamala Harris has completely disrespected the families of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, including the Abbey Gate 13.”

The notion that Trump is an authoritarian who would use government power against his opponents has become central to Harris’s argument in the campaign’s final stretch. While top figures in both parties have hammered on this theme for months, Kelly’s decision to speak publicly now adds a dramatic new resonance to the message.

Kelly is a decorated Marine who served two long tours in Iraq. In 2010 he lost his son, Lt. Robert Kelly, who was killed by a land mine while serving in Afghanistan.

Trump named the recently retired Kelly as homeland security secretary in 2017, one of several prominent military officials he appointed to top posts in his administration upon taking office. Trump then chose Kelly as his White House chief of staff, a position Kelly held for about a year and a half.

This is not the first time Kelly has made clear his dim view of the former president. In an October 2023 interview with CNN, Kelly confirmed previous reporting that Trump told him service members who had been seriously wounded or tortured as prisoners of war were “suckers” and those who died in combat were “losers.”

And in November, about two months before the start of the Republican presidential primaries, Kelly said in an interview with The Washington Post that he was bewildered by Trump’s enduring popularity in the Republican Party.

“What’s going on in the country that a single person thinks this guy would still be a good president when he’s said the things he’s said and done the things he’s done?” Kelly said. “It’s beyond my comprehension he has the support he has.”

Kelly is one of the most prominent figures among scores of former Trump administration officials who oppose his comeback bid. The group includes Trump’s vice president, Mike Pence, who broke with Trump over his push to overturn his 2020 reelection loss, as well as over more traditional conservative issues.

The warnings by former Trump advisers are now factoring heavily into Harris’s closing message, which paints Trump as unstable and power-hungry. Harris spent Monday campaigning across battleground states with former GOP congresswoman Liz Cheney, who emerged as a vocal Trump critic after his actions around the 2020 election.

The criticism of Trump by people who served under him has been especially pronounced among those with military backgrounds, a notable dynamic given the nonpolitical tradition and culture of the American military.

“Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try,” Trump’s former defense secretary, Jim Mattis, said in a 2020 statement.

Harris’s campaign sought to further emphasize Kelly’s latest comments during a media call Wednesday with Steve Anderson, a retired Army brigadier general supporting Harris, and Kevin Carroll, a senior counselor to Kelly when he was Trump’s homeland security secretary.

Anderson said he was grateful that Kelly was speaking up but wished he had done so earlier. He also suggested that Kelly should go further and endorse Harris.

Carroll said Kelly, as a former military leader, remains “loath” to make any partisan endorsements.

Still, Carroll added, “The man would rather chew on broken glass than vote for Donald Trump.”