Former Texas congressman Will Hurd, a former CIA officer and fierce critic of Donald Trump, announced Thursday that he is running for president, hoping to build momentum as a more moderate alternative to the Republican favorite.
Hurd, 45, served three terms in the House through January 2021, becoming the only black Republican in the House during his last two years in office.
In a campaign video, the former congressman said the “soul of our country is under attack,” reminiscent of Democrat Joe Biden’s slogan about the 2020 race as a “battle for the nation’s soul.”
“Our enemies conspire, create chaos and threaten the American Dream. Back home, illegal immigration and fentanyl flow into our country. Inflation, still out of control. Crime and homelessness are growing in our cities,” Hurd says in the video.
Hurd says he wants to redefine the contours of the 2024 race, telling NBC’s “Meet the Press” in May that the prospect of another election pitting the current president against the previous one would be “a payback from hell.” Calling himself a “dark candidate” on Thursday, he said the only way to win is “not to be afraid of Donald Trump” and that “we also have to articulate a different vision.”
HE JOINS A GREAT NUMBER OF POSSIBLE CANDIDATES FOR THE PRESIDENCY
Hurd joins a crowded primary field with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, the Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, activist Vivek Ramaswamy, radio host Larry Elder and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, as well as Trump.
The former congressman has visited Iowa and New Hampshire in recent months. The recent accusation of Trump on federal felony charges for mishandling classified documents could potentially open the way for critics like Hurd to gain ground in the primary.
Hurd said Thursday that he would not forgive Trump if the former president is convicted in the federal documents case, calling out many of the other Republican White House candidates who were quick to say they would be “crazy” to make such a promise. early in the case.
Hurd said the classification of the documents Trump is accused of mishandling meant they included “information that, if it got into the wrong hands, would result in loss of life.”
Hurd opted not to seek re-election to the House in 2020, saying then that he would rather “look for opportunities outside the halls of Congress to solve problems at the technology-national security nexus.”
Hurd represented the most competitive district in his state at the time, which was more than 70% Hispanic and stretched from just outside San Antonio to El Paso and covered more than 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) of the 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) Texas-Mexico Border.
Before serving in Congress, Hurd was an undercover officer working in Pakistan. He speaks Urdu, the national language of that country.
