Tom Mullins: Adam Kokesh is an internet celebrity and a war protestor who makes poor choices

Yesterday, I wrote about Adam Kokesh and his anti-military, anti-American actions which would make him a poor representative for New Mexico. He’s running as a Republican in the primary, which is interesting considering his many affiliations with Marxist and liberal organizations, like CODEPINK, A.N.S.W.E.R., and of course, the Iraq Veterans Against the War. He’s a liar and a phony who has been arrested multiple times and encouraged soldiers in Germany to go AWOL. Yet now, he parades himself as some kind of Constitutional crusader.

Fortunately, there is an alternative. Tom Mullins is also running as a Republican to represent New Mexico, and unlike Adam Kokesh, he’s the real deal: a Reagan Republican who certainly has never paraded around in a Marine Corps uniform holding an upside-down American flag, defacing public property, or staging “die-ins” in Washington D.C. the way his opponent has.

I had the chance yesterday to speak with Tom about Adam Kokesh, as well as ask him a few questions about where he stands on the issues.

Cassy Fiano: What are your thoughts on Adam Kokesh’s anti-military activities?

Tom Mullins: I disagree with Adam’s positions regarding our military. I support Guantanamo Bay being open. We are not occupiers. Adam’s activities offend the many veterans, including my father, that I have met. We are not the world’s policeman. We have a volunteer military. Our military men and women deserve support from our elected officials and all members of the American public. I don’t understand how Adam’s actions are “Constitutional”. Adam is nothing more than an Internet Celebrity and a War Protester. I don’t believe New Mexicans agree with his views or his methods to share or voice them.

CF: What would you say the primary difference between yourself and Adam is?

TM: My faith, knowledge, experience, good listening skills, and my good judgment. My faith grounds me and I will stand for innocent life. My knowledge of the energy industry the most important industry in New Mexico is a big difference as well. My life experience growing up as a military brat, traveling around the country, putting myself through college working multiple jobs, building my business from scratch with hard work, perseverance, and luck, being a father of two wonderful girls and raising them, and serving my community. I have been paying my taxes, creating jobs and wealth, which allows our government to function. I don’t think Adam’s even held a job since leaving the Marine Corps.

My good judgment sets me apart. As an engineer, I solve problems. We have problems in Washington that need an Engineer’s skill set. I have the character, the competence, and the compassionate record of making good decisions. I think we are all defined by who we associate ourselves with. I am proud of my actions and my decisions. That includes who I have associated myself with. I don’t know if my opponent’s associates give confidence to the voting public. I ask that New Mexico voters get to know their candidates, their prior words and actions, as well as their associations. I am a grass roots candidate with my grassroots support from right here in New Mexico. I have not been anointed by the political elite. The short answer is that I am qualified to serve as a Congressman, and I don’t think Adam is qualified. He’s a great public speaker, I’ll give you that. So if you’re looking for an unqualified guy who looks pretty and can speak well, then Adam’s your guy.

CF: Do you feel that Adam is an electable candidate?

TM: No.

CF: What made you decide to run for office?

TM: I have never run for nor held public office. I have watched silently as our country is being destroyed. I became more active in the past few years… but became frustrated. When asked what I could do, I decided the most important thing I could do would be to take away the job of the person making these decisions and responsible for holding the executive branch accountable. This is personal. My children’s future and our nation’s future is at stake. I’ve already served as a Tea Party organizer, and now is the time for me to serve our country and New Mexico as its next Congressman.

CF: What would you say the most important issue facing the country today is?

TM: Jobs, economy, and energy. We need private sector jobs and affordable energy to fuel these jobs and our economy. Ben Ray Lujan, Jr. is living in a false utopia, and is out of touch with the citizens of New Mexico. I plan to reduce the size and role of the Federal Government to allow private sector companies to create private sector jobs. That is the solution. Allow for energy development which will allow for private sector manufacturing, which will create meaningful direct jobs and all the associated service industry jobs.

CF: If you were in office, would you have voted for the stimulus package?
TM: No to the stimulus and no to government bailouts.

CF: Would you vote for the health care bill?
TM: No.

CF: Do you approve or disapprove of the abortion funding in the bill?
TM: I disapprove of abortion funding. The government should not pay to murder innocent life. I will stand for innocent life at every opportunity.

CF: What is your position on energy? Would you support offshore drilling and drilling in ANWR?
TM: We need affordable energy. Yes, drill offshore and drill in ANWR (Sec 1002). Being a petroleum engineer and having constructed my own passive solar home. I understand energy. I support Nuclear, Solar, Wind, Natural Gas, Oil, & Coal. Nuclear energy due to its energy density will be our nation’s saving grace in the future. Natural gas is the fuel of now. It should be promoted. Rep. Lujan has voted against New Mexico’s important natural gas industry repeatedly.

CF: Would you support repealing DADT?
TM: I believe that our volunteer military must have standards. The commanders and leaders of our men and women in combat need to make this decision, not Congress. There is no right to the job to serve our nation. It is an honor and a blessing. It is a shame that we politicize this issue.

CF: What is your position on gay marriage?
TM: No to gay marriage. Marriage is sacred and is between one man and one woman. I support the Manhattan Declaration.

CF: And finally, why should voters vote for you instead of Adam?
TM: I am qualified to serve as our next Congressman. I will protect the Constitution, stop the out of control spending and bring common sense to Washington. I have no baggage in my past. I have made good decisions and judgments so far in my life. I believe past performance is a good indicator of future performance. I am a solid qualified candidate who can win this seat for the people of New Mexico. This is not about me. I want to serve them and have been blessed to be at this point in my life where I can serve them. Adam has made poor choices in the past and shown that he has bad judgement. When you put someone who makes poor choices and has bad judgement into office, I think you’ll find that the results will be at best chaotic.

CF: Tom, thanks for taking the time to talk with me.
TM: Thank you!

After speaking with Tom, I feel like the choice is obvious. The Roniacs have come out in full force for Kokesh listing all of his so-called “conservative” credentials, but what about his past? What about his anti-military and anti-American activities? What about his associations with Marxist, liberal, and communist groups? Even if he did somehow change his mind and see the light, so to speak, does that mean that we should just ignore all of that? The problems with Kokesh are problems that any rational American can’t just ignore. Tom Mullins is just as conservative, and frankly, seems much more genuine to me than Adam Kokesh. And unlike Adam, Tom Mullins doesn’t have a history of anti-American and anti-military activities in his background.

Help Tom Mullins defeat Adam Kokesh in the primary. Get the word out, and donate to his campaign. We need real representatives who love this country, not a false prophet claiming to fight for the Constitution.

Cross-posted from Cassy’s blog. Stop by for more original commentary, or follow her on Twitter!

This post was promoted from GreenRoom to HotAir.com.
To see the comments on the original post, look here.

• Regarding Lois Lerner, who does the Bill of Rights protect?
• Lerner signed IRS cover letters to conservative groups demanding intrusive tax-exemption info — after she learned what was going on
• Quotes of the day

Blowback