Republican Carly Fiorina spoke about national security issues at a forum in Manchester on Thursday. (Dan Tuohy/Union Leader)
Fiorina looks around globe, sees trouble
MANCHESTER — Likely Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina was the first speaker Friday at a new forum designed to identify where the 2016 hopefuls stand on national security.
Fiorina, citing her time as former chief executive officer at Hewlett-Packard, began her remarks by saying she has met more global leaders than anyone considering a run for the White House, with the possible exception of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Fiorina said she’d sat across from Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom she knows as a man driven not by ideology but “by a lust for power.”
She recalled sitting down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and understanding that the No. 1 threat to Israel is Iran.
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America must exact greater pressure on Iran to thwart its nuclear arms ambitions, Fiorina said at the Americans for Peace, Prosperity and Security forum held at the University of New Hampshire at Manchester. She panned the announced “framework” of a negotiated deal with Iran as misguided grandstanding.
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Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of Americans for Peace, Prosperity and Security, said the goal of the forums is to raise the debate above campaign talking points.
Fiorina introduced herself as an executive who had advised U.S. defense and security agencies, including the CIA and NSA.
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She said America must take a hardline against threats. She said China is increasingly aggressive and steals intellectual property abroad, violating most trade agreements it enters into.
Fiorina said the Islamic State terrorists are evil and must be defeated.
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She advocates for zero-based budgeting and government reform, as well as keeping the world’s strongest military. At the security forum she received applause when she called for rebuilding U.S. missile defense.
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On renewal of the Patriot Act, Fiorina was critical of the “roving wiretap” provisions that are some of the more controversial parts of the act. It needs a complete review, she said in an interview after the forum.
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“We can’t just nitpick,” she said. “We’ve got to look at the whole thing now, but I think that’s a problematic area for sure.”
Fiorina closed her remarks at the forum by saying America must be prepared to confront security threats at home and abroad.
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“The truth is we cannot run away from the world, because it is a more troubled and a dangerous place when we are not leading,” she said.dtuohy@unionleader.com
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