by Kitty Testa
CNN reported last Friday that Bill Weld was “not sure anybody is more qualified than Hillary Clinton” to be president. This alarmed Libertarians, given that he is Gary Johnson’s running mate. Weld has since clarified that although Clinton is the most qualified “on paper,” Johnson “would be the best president.” Nonetheless, the comments remain perturbing for some Johnson supporters.
Well, Governor Weld, since you are still running for vice president in a possible Johnson Administration, perhaps Libertarians can help you understand why Governor Johnson is more qualified than Hillary Clinton to be the President of the United States of America.
1. Johnson has more relevant executive experience than Clinton
Hillary Clinton’s executive experience is limited to running the Department of State, and it’s difficult to argue that she did a good job. Some of the details that emerged from her email scandal beg the question, “Is she really as intelligent as her supporters claim?” As the highest executive in the State Department, she couldn’t recognize classified markings and couldn’t learn to use a computer. The WikiLeaks email dumps paint a picture of a woman who was woefully dependent on staffers and external advisers in her decision making, and also illustrate that her interests centered around her legacy as opposed to the country’s core foreign policy interests. Many have suspected that Obama appointed Clinton as Secretary of State to ameliorate the strained relationship with the Clintons after Obama won the Democratic nomination from her in 2008, not because she was particularly qualified for the position.
Johnson, on the other hand, was governor of New Mexico for two terms, a position that he won after running a successful business. During his tenure as a Republican governor, Johnson was faced with a legislature that was 60% Democrat, and he vetoed 739 bills over eight years in office. Clearly, he valued the taxpayers of New Mexico over the moneyed political interests in his state. He also refused to toe the GOP line on issues such as legalization of drugs and gambling. Johnson has demonstrated executive leadership based on principles, something we have never seen from Clinton.
2. Gary Johnson isn’t an interventionist
Yes, Clinton voted for the Iraq war, but this was only one instance of her desire to intervene in Iraq. She was staunchly in favor of Operation Desert Fox, a 1998 bombing raid against Iraq. As Secretary of State, her interventionist policies destabilized Libya and much of the Middle East. It may not be fair to say she personally created ISIS, but interventionist policies like hers most certainly created the climate in which ISIS rose to power.
Perhaps because of these developments, Pew Research has found that Americans have become skeptical of interventionism.
At a time when our citizens are realizing that the foreign policies of the past have not made us safer, and our national debt has swelled from the costs of relentless war, Johnson’s restrained approach to foreign policy makes him more qualified for the Oval Office.
3. Gary Johnson isn’t a serial liar
From the origination of her name to the reasons for conducting government business on a private email server, Clinton has an alarming aversion to the truth.
It’s easy to find a list of Clinton’s lies online, such as this one.
The candidate appears to suffer from Compulsive Lying Disorder, which is defined by Kathleen Esposito, an addictions counselor, as “someone who lies with ease and finds comfort in it. The person may even continue to lie when presented the truth in cold, hard facts. Getting a compulsive liar to admit he or she lied can be nearly impossible.”
Johnson doesn’t suffer from compulsive lying disorder. Johnson tells the truth. If he makes a mistake, he owns up to it. If he learns something new that may change his mind, he tells the voters.
Allegiance to the truth makes Johnson far more qualified to be president than Clinton.
4. Johnson is not beholden to outside interests
As of August 31, Clinton had raised a whopping $373.3 million for her campaign, and added another $154 million in September. The donations come from Super PACs, foreign leaders, international corporations, labor unions and many others.
In addition to money raised for her campaign, the Clinton Foundation has accepted donations from numerous foreign countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Australia and Norway, numerous foundations, companies and individuals.
It would be naive to believe that Clinton is not swayed by big money, and the film Clinton Cash provides many examples of where Clinton seems to have been, indeed, influenced by donations.
Johnson, on the other hand, is not awash in lavish contributions, and he demonstrated as governor of New Mexico that he rejects boondoggles, pet projects and pork spending that our elected officials have used for years in order to receive more donations.
5. Gary Johnson climbed Mt. Everest
I wouldn’t say that every presidential hopeful must be a mountain climber, but the fact that Johnson is tells us something about him: he has tremendous courage. Climbing the 29,000-foot ascent requires not only incredible physical fitness, but a large cache of bravery. 280 people have died trying to climb Mt. Everest over the past few decades.
Tremendous courage will come in handy when facing the onslaught of Washington lobbyists, two factious houses of congress, the leaders of a bloated and wasteful military, and a combative and ideologically compromised main stream press.
Clinton does not possess tremendous courage. She shirks away from press conferences and becomes angry when challenged. She hides behind gender politics and her husband’s legacy at the same time.
So, Governor Weld, as you get back out on the campaign trail, you might want to use a few of these talking points.