Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter, the House Armed Services Committee chairman who coauthored legislation to build a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border, announced plans on Monday for a longshot presidential bid in 2008. Hunter, who said support for a strong military and the fight against illegal immigration would be two of his top issues, is the first established Republican to say he would form an exploration committee for a 2008 presidential run.
Hunter will join what is expected to be a crowded field of presidential hopefuls in 2008, with about a dozen other Republicans and an equal number of Democrats lining up for runs at their party's nomination. "As I finish my final two years as chairman of the Armed Services Committee and serve you, I am also going to be preparing for a run for president of the United States," Hunter said at a news conference in San Diego. |