Thread: Duncan Hunter (R) announces bid for President today

My Congressman here in El Cajon, CA, Duncan Hunter has announced today he will run for President. He is the longtime Chairman of the Armed Services Commitee and a staunch supporter of secure the borders and for the building of the forder fence.

Hunter set to announce presidential bid

Some surprised by lawmaker's timing

October 30, 2006

WASHINGTON – With his prized committee chairmanship very much in peril, Rep. Duncan Hunter is poised to announce today that he is considering a long-shot run for the White House.



Duncan Hunter

The first signal of the Alpine Republican's interest in running for president came in an interview broadcast on the Fox News Channel yesterday morning, when he said his announcement at downtown San Diego's waterfront will be “about a national campaign in '08.”

Hunter's ambitions come as a surprise to other Republicans, none of whom had an inkling that he might look to jump into what is likely to be a crowded field for the GOP presidential nomination. But even more shocking is that he would do this a week before the midterm election that may shift control of the House to the Democrats and cost Hunter his chairmanship of the House Armed Services Committee. Hunter is running for re-election Nov. 7.

“To say it's curious timing is quite an understatement. It is bizarre,” said Stuart Rothenberg, the editor of an independent political newsletter in Washington. “It does suggest he figures he's going to have some time on his hands, that he won't have to worry about running hearings and fashioning legislation. He must figure one of his Democratic colleagues will be taking care of that.”

Charlie Cook, another nonpartisan political analyst, was similarly baffled by the timing. “He may not be the only prominent committee chairman looking for something else to do after next week,” he said. “But this is very strange timing.”

Hunter could not be reached for comment after his appearance on Fox.

Under Republican caucus term limits, Hunter would have to give up his chairmanship in 2009. But if Democrats pick up the 15 seats they need to regain the House, Hunter would be relegated to the minority status he chafed under during his first 14 years in Congress.

The decision by the 13-term congressman comes as he is at the peak of his influence in Washington. An analysis released last week by the nonpartisan group Knowlegis ranked Hunter as the ninth-most influential member of the House.

That ranking came after a particularly successful session in which he pushed through the defense authorization bill and played a major role in legislation involving tribunals for accused terrorists and building a fence along the border with Mexico. On bills important locally, Hunter played the major role in blocking civilian use of the Marine runways at Miramar and transferring control of the cross atop Mount Soledad to the federal government.

Despite this legislative clout, Hunter is little known beyond Capitol Hill.

“This is a guy who truly does have zero name recognition in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina. Unless he has a family member living in one of those key early states, nobody there has ever heard of him,” Rothenberg said.

Of course, announcing that he is exploring a presidential candidacy does not mean Hunter thinks he can be elected. He is expected to commit himself only to “exploring” such a run, which would mean fundraising and trips to those states that play a role early in the nominating process.

No member of the House has been elected president since James A. Garfield in 1880. Members who have tried and failed in recent years include Republicans John Kasich of Ohio and Jack Kemp of New York and Democrats Richard Gephardt of Missouri and Dennis Kucinich of Ohio.

Cook speculated that Hunter, a Vietnam veteran, may be most interested in making sure that his brand of Reagan conservatism and pro-military policies – he is a staunch supporter of the war in Iraq – are represented in a GOP field currently more notable for the more moderate views of Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Rudolph Giuliani of New York.

reptile,
He's my rep too. Read this in the paper this morning and I'm still in shock. Well, we know where he stands re illegal immigration, common sense guy for sure. He was largely responsible for the fence we had built on the border between us and TJ about 10 yrs ago. Interesting to say the least.

Despite this legislative clout, Hunter is little known beyond Capitol Hill.

“This is a guy who truly does have zero name recognition in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina. Unless he has a family member living in one of those key early states, nobody there has ever heard of him,” Rothenberg said.

Ohhhhhhhh, say like..........klinton from Arkansas?

?? is he a member of the CFR?

Originally Posted by 2ndamendsis

Despite this legislative clout, Hunter is little known beyond Capitol Hill.

“This is a guy who truly does have zero name recognition in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina. Unless he has a family member living in one of those key early states, nobody there has ever heard of him,” Rothenberg said.

Ohhhhhhhh, say like..........klinton from Arkansas?

?? is he a member of the CFR?

I'm 99% sure he isn't. He voted against CAFTA. Here's some info on him:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Hunter

Since he is so unknown nationally, that is probably why he's throwing his name out there so early.

JEAN,

fyi: personally, I don't use "wikipedia" as they are an open information forum and anyone can write anything. A few fellow researchers were burned not long after they began so it's a no go in my research file. However, they can sometimes lead one to the source and that can be a help occassionally.

Not saying that the above info is incorrect, Jean, just explaining why I never read anything posted from wikipedia.

We need to check the CFR membership when we've time. The fact that he was one of the smart ones who voted NO on CAFTA is a help. Do you know how he voted for NAFTA?

He voted against NAFTA. I have a letter recently rec'd by him which I will copy for you fine people.

Sept 27, 2006
Dear ...

Thank you for contacting me with your concerns regarding the North American Union (NAU) and with your kind words of encouragement. It's good to hear from you.

As you know, the NAU is a proposed international government emcompassing the nations of Canada, the U.S., and Mexico similar to the European Union. The proposal, which was defined in a May 2005 Council on Foreign Relations task force report, is an expansion of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). SPP was launched in March 2005 as a trilateral effort to increase security through greater information sharing among the three countries.

Like you, I believe we must be vigilant to protect our sovereignty and ensure that we are always free to act in our own best interest. For this reason, I have consistently voted against free trade agreements like NAFTA, and have opposed international quasi-governmental bodies like the World Trade Organization. Rest assured that I will closely monitor these initiatives to ensure that America's sovereignty is not disrupted in deference to our international commitments.

Again, thank you for contacting me. Should you have further questions or concerns please do not hesitate to conact me.

Sincerely, Duncan Hunter, Member of Congress

I have always liked Duncan Hunter and he seems to be on our side on most of the issues that are important to us.

Like you, I believe we must be vigilant to protect our sovereignty and ensure that we are always free to act in our own best interest. For this reason, I have consistently voted against free trade agreements like NAFTA, and have opposed international quasi-governmental bodies like the World Trade Organization. Rest assured that I will closely monitor these initiatives to ensure that America's sovereignty is not disrupted in deference to our international commitments.

This statement alone would get my vote.

He'd get my vote too!

Duncan Hunter is awesome. He's one of the few Republicans I would vote for. Anti illegal, Anti globalist, Anti Free Trade, this guy is the real deal. I'm glad he is starting now, that way he can get almost a good 1.5 years to raise cash and get name recognition.

Originally Posted by jean

He voted against NAFTA. I have a letter recently rec'd by him which I will copy for you fine people.

Sept 27, 2006
Dear ...

Thank you for contacting me with your concerns regarding the North American Union (NAU) and with your kind words of encouragement. It's good to hear from you.

As you know, the NAU is a proposed international government emcompassing the nations of Canada, the U.S., and Mexico similar to the European Union. The proposal, which was defined in a May 2005 Council on Foreign Relations task force report, is an expansion of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). SPP was launched in March 2005 as a trilateral effort to increase security through greater information sharing among the three countries.

Like you, I believe we must be vigilant to protect our sovereignty and ensure that we are always free to act in our own best interest. For this reason, I have consistently voted against free trade agreements like NAFTA, and have opposed international quasi-governmental bodies like the World Trade Organization. Rest assured that I will closely monitor these initiatives to ensure that America's sovereignty is not disrupted in deference to our international commitments.

Again, thank you for contacting me. Should you have further questions or concerns please do not hesitate to conact me.

Sincerely, Duncan Hunter, Member of Congress

JEAN
sounds promising! All we need is to double check the CFR membership AND guest speakers.