Ex-Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore joins Republican nomination
July 30, 2015The 65-year-old filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday to stand alongside a number of considerably higher profiles, including former Florida governor Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Senator Marco Rubio and real estate tycoon Donald Trump.
Having previously headed the Gilmore Commission - which advised both President Bill Clinton and George W. Bush on ways to improve homeland security strategy, particularly against domestic terrorism involving weapons of mass destruction - Gilmore is hoping that his national security credentials will work in his favor.
He was also governor of Virginia on September 11, 2001, when hijackers crashed a plane into the Pentagon, which sits in the eastern US state, across from Washington.
"I don't think we're addressing the threat to the country," Gilmore told the Richmond Times-Dispatch earlier in July.
"I bring to the table experience others don't have," he added.
Gilmore's first opportunity to take to the Republican stage will be on August 6 during the party's primary debate.
Broadcaster Fox News has ruled, however, that only the top 10 candidates in nationwide polls will participate in the debate. Little-known outside Virginia, it is unlikely that Gilmore will make the final cut.
ksb/jil (AFP, Reuters)