Calif. Lawmaker Surprises With Presidential Bid
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SAN DIEGO — Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Republican known in the military’s echelon for his congressional role but hardly a national name, said yesterday that he was taking the initial step in a 2008 presidential bid.
“This is going to be a long road. It’s a challenging road. There’s going to be some rough and tumble, but I think it’s the right thing to do for our country,”Mr. Hunter, who is the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said at a waterfront news conference.
The declaration to form an exploratory committee allows the 13-term California congressman to begin raising money and organize supporters in early Republican primary states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.
Mr. Hunter is a familiar face on Capitol Hill and at the Pentagon as chairman of the powerful panel that oversees military policy. Not so beyond Washington and San Diego, and his White House bid surprised many Republicans.
He had not been on any list of potential 2008 candidates that included more familiar names such as Senator McCain of Arizona, Governor Romney of Massachusetts, and Mayor Giuliani.
Analysts immediately characterized the quest as a long shot.
“You never say never, but Congressman Hunter faces extremely long odds given that practically no one apart from students of Congress knows who he is,” a government professor at Claremont McKenna College, Jack Pitney, said. “He’s a good member of Congress, a very effective chairman of Armed Services. It’s just that he has no following within the party.”
Mr. Hunter, 58, became chairman of the House Armed Services Committee in 2003 — a position he would lose should Democrats take control of the House after the November 7 midterm elections. By making an announcement now, he can begin raising money while still heading the committee.
The Vietnam War veteran, a recipient of a Bronze Star, has made his mark in Congress by advocating for a strong military and border security. He played a leading role in the construction of a 14-mile double fence on the America-Mexico border that is nearing completion in San Diego. He co-authored legislation signed by President Bush last week that would extend the border fence to 700 miles.