“And”, Johnson asked, “what is Aleppo?”.
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“If it is kissing my chances goodbye, so be it”, Johnson told Fox News’ Neil Cavuto of the incident.
“No one is taking this more seriously than me, I feel frightful”, he said. That is a definite giggle right there.
As part of a media blitz in NY to try to raise his polling numbers enough to qualify for the upcoming presidential debates, Johnson fielded a range of questions Thursday with the aim of demonstrating he can take on Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
Johnson released a statement shortly after, saying he “blanked” and that the mistake served to set “aside any doubt that I’m human”, while also protesting that he was was otherwise well-versed in the challenge the five-year war presented.
In a subsequent interview with the Globe, Weld said he expected the endorsement of a “household name” from the world of politics by next Monday or Tuesday.
Mr. Johnson, a former Republican governor of New Mexico, has been trying to turn the two major candidates’ low approval ratings to his advantage in the race to win the November 8 election.
This is a relatively large increase from his position in 2012, when Johnson first ran for president and captured about 1% of the popular vote, but it is a far cry from anything approaching viability.
Asked about being a possible Ralph Nader-like spoiler, Johnson said, “Well, I genuinely believe that I have the opportunity to win at this point”.
Now that we finally do know what Aleppo is (thanks Gary), wouldn’t it be nice if it was just a quiet town in Syria again and not the epicenter of the refugee crisis riddled with killings and bombings?
Chris Karpowitz, a political science professor at Brigham Young University, said it’s unclear how much of an effect Romney’s message and Johnson’s misstep will have in Utah, where the overwhelmingly conservative state has given a relatively lukewarm response for Trump. He’s vying for a spot to participate in the presidential debates, but struggling to meet the threshold of 15% of support in polls needed for participation. He pitched Weld as more than a running mate, but essentially an equal and said they planned to form a “co-presidency” should he win the White House.
While the Libertarian Party has long rejected USA military intervention overseas, the candidate’s failure to recognize one of the most troubled spots in the Middle East drew ridicule and prompted speculation that his campaign was essentially over.
Some leading Republicans who oppose Trump have said openly that they are giving the Libertarian ticket a serious look. “Fair enough”, replied Johnson.
On Wednesday, Romney tweeted: “I hope voters get to see former GOP Governors Gary Johnson and Bill Weld on the debate stages this fall”.
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By his Thursday afternoon appearance on Fox News, Johnson took another swing at proving he was well versed in the complexities of the war – and whiffed.
