As Sen. Rand Paul prepares to announce he's jumping into the 2016 race for president, former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore told
Newsmax TV he's still seriously mulling his own run for the White House.
Stealing a puff of wind from the sails of the Kentucky Republican, who'll make it official on Tuesday, Gilmore told "The Steve Malzberg Show" on Monday:
"We're talking to people in New Hampshire right now and visiting New Hampshire frequently. I've already been there three times in the last month.
"I'm going twice more in the next month, and we'll see how that goes. If I'm well received in New Hampshire, then maybe it's something that will be possible."
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Gilmore, president of the Free Congress Foundation, said part of his decision will be based on whether he thinks he can outshine other GOP hopefuls.
"The question is, am I an appropriate alternative to the various other candidates that are out there right now?" he said.
"Based on my experience and credentials — governor of Virginia and foreign policy experience — the question is, can my voice play a useful role in this nomination process?"
Gilmore has previously said other Republicans interested in throwing their hats into the ring lack foreign policy experience.
He chaired the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction for five years.
"I actually ran one of the major states of this country," Gilmore said on "The Cats Roundtable" on AM-970 radio in New York. "Secondly … none of the other potential candidates knows anything about foreign policy, whereas I do."
The only Republican who has officially announced a 2016 run is Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.
Other potential candidates include former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, retired pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, former New York Gov. George Pataki and former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina.
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