SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 19, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — A few short months ago, Utah-born Evan McMullin lived a life of relative anonymity, known inside the beltway as a respected policy wonk and a national security adviser to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and chief policy director of the 2015 House Republican Conference.
Now, the former CIA operative — a graduate of Brigham Young University and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business — is front and center in the American political arena, riding the spear of a highly unlikely independent presidential bid which is suddenly poised to have a profound impact on the 2016 election.
A new poll released Wednesday by Emerson College shows just how formidable McMullin’s candidacy has become. With fewer than three weeks remaining before Election Day, 31 percent of Utah voters say they support McMullin, while 27 percent say they support Donald Trump. Hillary Clinton garners 24 percent of the vote. The poll has a margin of error of 3.9 percent.
Should McMullin prevail Nov. 8, it will be first time since 1964 that Utah has failed to vote for the GOP’s top candidate. Such an outcome could spell disaster for the struggling Trump campaign, robbing the Republican candidate of six electoral votes he’ll desperately need if he’s to claim the presidency.
Wednesday, McMullin sat down with Gephardt Daily for a one-on-one interview. He talked about his surprising candidacy, his vision for America, and the prospect of a presidential run in 2020.
To see the interview in its entirety, click on the video player above.
We all know that Trump is a liar, a con, a bigot, a fascist, a pig, and now a whiner! Trump would rape us, spend our money (as he has spent donor’s contributions from his Foundation), incite violence, and threaten our security and freedoms. Trump focuses on Trump. He’s not a person, he’s a brand.
Clinton can’t be trusted either. She’s determined to continue her broad military operations and grow the budget deficit with programs we can’t possibly pay for, both of which threaten our security.
I read up on Evan McMullen, former House Chief Policy Director, and former CIA. I googled “what does the house chief policy director do?” and got nothing so, I can only assume that it’s some obscure staffer position. He’s fiscally conservative except for proposed increases in the current $604.5 billion military budget, already ranked 1st worldwide. His site states that “President Obama’s reckless leadership, aided and abetted by Congress, has put the military on a path to almost $1 trillion in cuts compared to projected needs.” So, this guy’s recommends a 1.6 Trillion?! He outlines increasing our military operations worldwide, perhaps to justify the big budget. Since The Gulf War in 1990, we’ve continued to destabilize The Middle East. Both Clinton and McMullen lack the common sense to realize that infighting between Tribes there has been going on since the 7th century. That’s right, 900 years! McMullen’s foreign policy reads to me like The United States, the bully. I’m sorry but I can’t vote for someone who has such little respect for life! Oh but he says he’s pro-life?!
I’ll definitely vote for Johnson and Weld because they’re honest and experienced governors. They support my views for strong foreign policy based on defense. They’re fiscally conservative, outlining government reforms for economic growth, efficiency, reduction of the $19 trillion budget deficit, term limits, and our personal liberties!
People in 43 states can vote for McMullin, either on the ballot or as a write-in. McMullin spent 11 years in the CIA, spearheading counter-terrorism operations in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. He helped evacuate the Pentagon during 9/11. He earned his first degree in International Law & Diplomacy while alternating semesters training with the CIA. He volunteered with the UN in Jordan. He studied Arabic in Israel. He recruited and inserted people in to foreign governments to share information with the U.S. He brought “Caesar” the Syrian defector to Congress to share thousands of pictures and data on the genocide Assad was inflicting on the Syrian people several years ago in an attempt to get the U.S. government to be proactive in pressuring Assad before ISIS and Russia were as entangled in Syria as they are now. He earned an MBA and worked for a few years in investment banking with technology companies, etc. He was a senior advisor to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. They then recruited him to be the Chief Policy Director of the U.S. House of Representatives. He learned in the CIA how to read people, how to defuse situations, and how to gain cooperation from people. He worked across the aisle with lawmakers in the House. He supports religious freedom, is pro-life, understands and supports the Constitution. He knows where government needs to be reformed. He will stop executive branch over-reach, and untangle the executive, legislative and judicial branches so Congress can finally function the way it was designed to. He will return some powers to the states, and shrink the size of the federal government. He will attack the national debt. He is a unifier. He can talk circles around most in government on all the issues. He is a rare blend of competence, compassion, and determination. People in 40-45 states will be able to vote for him by November 8th, either on the ballot or as a registered write-in. That’s plenty of electoral votes to win outright. But he only needs to win 1 to 3 states’ electoral votes to block Clinton and Trump from reaching 270, which would send the top 3 EC vote winners to the House of Representatives to decide. He is the only candidate with first-hand experience in national security, and can hit the ground running on his first day as President. Principled, Conservative, Constitutional Originalist. Please see evanmcmullin.com
Love hearing Evan McMullin speak. He doesn’t skirt around issues, comes right out and answers questions. I voted for him two days ago in early voting! I left the polling booth smiling and slept well that night. #StandUpWithEvan #VoteYourConscience