Gary Johnson's Worst Surrogate: Bill Weld

2016 Libertarian Party presidential candidates Gary Johnson and William Weld

The next time Gary Johnson thinks of sending out his VP pick, Bill Weld to do press, maybe don’t.

In an interview Friday afternoon with MSNBC’s Chuck Todd, Weld all but endorsed – Hillary Clinton.

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“I’m not sure anybody is more qualified than Hillary Clinton to be president of the United States,” Weld told MSNBC’s Chuck Todd when asked if Gary Johnson is more qualified.

“That’s not the end of the inquiry, though,” Weld continued. “We were two-term governors and I think Gary is very, very solid,” he said, describing the former New Mexico governor as insightful.

He went on to suggest that it was the policy mix of Johnson that made him appealing.

It’s true that Johnson has become a threat to both Clinton and Trump, as disenfranchised voters from both parties have drifted to Johnson as an alternative to the candidates they just can’t bring themselves to vote for.

When asked about the very public gaffes of the Libertarian nominee, Weld chose to look at them more along the lines of “insight” than actual lack of knowledge.

“I think his insight that it pays to have some restraint about military incursions for the purpose of regime change before we spill American blood on foreign soil and put boots on the ground in countries where we don’t just like what the government in that country is doing, I think that’s a valuable insight,” Weld said.

When Todd noted in the interview Friday that it sounded like Weld was scared of a potential Donald Trump presidency, Weld responded, “That’s for darn sure.”

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They’re not willing to step aside and back Clinton, however, so this shouldn’t be taken as an endorsement.

Johnson is currently polling at about 7%, nationally. While not enough to topple Clinton or Trump, it is still potentially vexing, as the Clinton campaign has been paying more attention to, and making moves accordingly, to draw voters back from leaning Libertarian.

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