Andy Martin remembers Iran, 1979

Independent Republican Presidential Candidate Andy Martin discusses foreign policy and explains why his experience qualifies him for the Oval Office.

ANDY MARTIN /2012

“He Can Do More for New Hampshire”

New Hampshire’s Favorite Son candidate

for President of the United States

www.AndyMartinforPresident.com

www.AndyMartin.com

www.FirstRespondersOnline.us

E-mail: Andy@AndyMartinforPresident.com

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December 6, 2009

Dear New Hampshire voter:

For those of a certain age the images coming out of Iran last week must have been as jarring for you as they were for me. Iranians storming the United Kingdom Embassy in Tehran. Flags burning. Chants. I went to Iran in 1979 shortly after the American Embassy staff was taken hostage. I went back to Iran in 1980.

During the “debates” sponsored by the liberal mainstream media foreign policy has been an afterthought. When any attention has been focused on the rest of the world my opponents have responded with comic book policies. Newt Gingrich, for example, promises to attack Iran. Such an attack would trigger World War III. Ron Paul wants to abandon our commitments to Israel because, in Paul’s words, “they can defend themselves.” Both Gingrich and Paul are wrong, Seriously wrong. Dangerously wrong.

I have seen the face of war. War is not a joke. I would never be afraid to start a war to defend the United States or our allies. But I would never trigger a war causally or without careful evaluation of all the options. Men and women who wear our uniforms put their lives on the line. But I will never risk their lives without solid grounds to do so.

Recently, when I suggested I was the only presidential candidate who was a foreign policy expert, someone replied to me “What about Huntsman?” Governor Huntsman has lived abroad. He was most recently ambassador to China, on behalf of the Obama administration. So how are Huntsman and I different?

I have not traveled the world as a pampered public official. I went everywhere without any official protection and without the burden of being a government representative. The world is a very different place when you travel anonymously than when you travel as a United States ambassador. Huntsman’s “experiences” are very different from my own. I saw the real world, the raw world, not the diplomatic community of ambassadors and foreign ministers.

During my life I have lived in or spent time in the United Kingdom, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, China (Hong Kong), Viet-Nam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Burma, Thailand and, of course, Iran.

My extensive experience gives me an edge in understanding foreign crises, and in understanding our own domestic political opinion. In 1999 I predicted that then Governor George Bush planned to attack Iraq. I saw the signs that others missed. I was a strong opponent of the Iraq invasion in 2003. I lived in Baghdad for parts of 2003 and predicted almost all of the problems we faced—before Washington even knew they existed. I have written a lot of publicly available material; you can actually go back and compare my columns with events as they unfolded.

On the issue of Israel, I take a pragmatic view. I will not abandon Israel the way Ron Paul proposes. But I also do not believe we should write a blank check to the Israeli government. American foreign policy must always be conducted with American interests first.

We must honor our commitments to our Israeli allies. I am the only presidential candidate who has actually worked with Israelis, in Israel, and has a working knowledge of how their military and security services function. Israelis respect both my loyalty, and my candor.

On the challenge we face with China, I would implement Mitt Romney’s strong policies with Jon Huntsman’s suggested subtlety. I studied Chinese and lived in Hong Kong. So I understand China as well as Huntsman. But I will not allow the Chinese regime to destroy our economy or to intimidate our foreign policy.

I have some very tough ideas about how to restart our economy, and how to stop the endless spiral of debt. We are overextended and need to rein in our foreign commitments.

But we can’t restore American greatness, and preserve and extend American exceptionalism, if we don’t understand the world and are unfamiliar with different cultures, nations and languages.

I don’t envy the challenge you face as a voter. You can vote for me in the presidential primary, and cast a ballot for competence and experience. And shake up the race. Or you can pick from the list of candidates provided by the liberal media. With one notable exception I don’t think the other Republican presidential candidates are bad people. But they are totally inexperienced and ill-equipped to navigate the dangers and challenges the next president will face all around the world.

If you were going on a cruise and learned the captain was sailing for the first time and had never before been on a ship’s bridge, you would be justifiably concerned. Why would you vote for a presidential candidate that is totally unprepared to steer our ship of state? (Hint: We did in 2008 and look what happened.)

It’s not easy casting a vote for me. I’m not a media favorite. But if enough of you do vote for me, we can reshape the 2012 presidential election and focus attention on competence and experience, instead of political platitudes and useless sound bites. A president needs wisdom, judgment and self-restraint to sit in the Oval Office.

Over the past several months the liberal media have promoted one Republican candidate after another as a “leader” or “flavor of the month.” These candidates have disappointed voters, who have shifted back and forth from candidate to candidate. Maybe you should take a chance on me and vote for proven competence and experience. My background has developed over decades, not days, and not over a series of slap dash debates.

Together we can rebuild America, renew our global role while pulling back from overextended commitments, safeguard our friends and allies and discourage our potential enemies from taking hostile action. It is all part of a very complicated process. Anyone who promises easy answers is lying to you.

You can start the Republican Party back on the path to sound judgment on foreign policy by voting for me and by sending my message to the media: we can do better, and we must do better.

In 2008 I was the only Republican that was willing to battle Barack Obama (take a look at my web site for video from 2008). I have a proven record of taking the fight to Obama. No one can match my record of standing up to Obama (Hint: where was Newt Gingrich in 2008? Collecting from Freddie Mac.). I will relentlessly attack Obama for his foreign policy failures that endanger the national security of the United States.

If you love America as much as I love America, and almost all Republicans do love America, let’s work together.

Andy

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© Copyright by Andy Martin 2011 – All Rights Reserved

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