The troubled presidency of Barack Obama is going to make it tough for freshman Republican senators to win the White House, former Rep. Allen West of Florida tells
Newsmax TV.
"Rand Paul, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz are going to have a high hurdle that they have to get over," West, CEO of the National Center for Public Analysis, said Tuesday on "The Steve Malzberg Show."
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"When you have an example [of a freshman senator] sitting in the White House right now, they're going to have to definitely prove that they can do a far more superior job, which I believe they could."
And Paul, the Kentucky senator who announced his candidacy for the 2016 Republican nomination Tuesday, also needs to sharpen his credentials on foreign policy and national security, according to West.
"Hopefully, the Paul supporters will be able to understand that he can't just go in with blinders on," West said.
"He has to be able to adjust to the global security environment that is out there and he has to be able to make sure that his No. 1 title as president would be commander-in-chief.
"It is not about … lowering drug sentences and things of that nature. You're No. 1 responsibility is to protect the American people and our interest worldwide. He has to have that as job No. 1."