Response to Terrorist Attack in Afghanistan

I am deeply and truly saddened by the attack on the Forward Operating Base Chapman in Afghanistan yesterday. To lose one’s colleagues to this madness is difficult, to lose friends even more so.

Every day, Americans are working to fight extremism and combat terrorism in a part of the world very far and different from where they are from. Our brave young men and women fight tirelessly to protect us and provide safety and security for others, and do not deserve to be targeted by those whose only weapon is fear.

Our goal in Afghanistan, to dismantle al-Qa’ida and to support a government that protects and respects its citizens, is a noble one that deserves our focus, sacrifice, and dedication. My brothers and sisters who gave their lives did so not only our country, but for the future of a country many of us will never visit, and should be remembered as heroes.

As we begin the New Year, we should honor these and the other heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice, by keeping them and their families forever in our prayers, and never losing our resolve to stand against the evil in the world.

-Will

Merry Christmas

I want to take this opportunity to wish y’all a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope that you have a wonderful time with your friends and family during this holiday.

Last year, I was in Kabul with my colleagues and we managed to get all the ingredients to make cinnamon rolls to have on Christmas morning. This year, I think it is going to be tamales.

I also want to thank each and every one of you that have been so supportive and helpful during these last four months. It has been an amazing journey and I am humbled by the sacrifices you are making for our campaign and for our country.

While you are enjoying your own traditions with your loved ones please remember those that are unable to be around their family. I know from personal experience that this is a tough time of the year for folks to be separated from those they love.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a truly Happy New Year,

Will

Afghanistan - Factors Impacting Our Civilian Strategy

 
On Tuesday, President Obama outlined his Afghanistan strategy. We all know that the brave men and women in our military, intelligence and security forces can achieve any goal, once they are provided with the resources necessary to do so, and the President’s decision to provide those resources in the near future is commendable. However, his decision to identify an arbitrary deadline for withdrawal – without consideration for the conditions on the ground – is ill-advised.

The war in Afghanistan is important to all Americans – our success directly impacts our safety and security. But, it is especially important to the citizens in District 23: So many members of our armed forces live in or near the District – almost everyone here has a first or second degree connection to the theatre. So, while all Americans will bear the financial cost of this war, the residents of District 23 view the cost in terms more valuable than dollars. It is for that reason that whatever the plan, our armed forces receive our support.

The President’s plan was comprised of three parts: a military strategy; a civilian strategy; and a partnership with Pakistan. Many others will address the plan at great length over the next few weeks. Having spent a significant amount of time in the region, however, I wanted to share my thoughts on some of Afghanistan’s regional peculiarities, and the very real threat that al-Qa’ida still poses.

In order for American foreign policy to be effective, it must take into account regional peculiarities. The majority of Afghanistan and the border region of Pakistan is dominated by complex tribalism. The Pashtuns are the ethno-linguistic group that dominates this region and is a society consisting of many tribes and clans. Once over tea while I was serving overseas, a Pashtun tribal elder told me a well known South Asian saying about the Pashtuns. He said that the people who live in this region have been Afghans for 8 decades or Pakistanis for 5 decades; they have been Muslims for 13 centuries, but they have been Pashtuns for over 3 millennium. Our civilian strategy in Afghanistan must not only address religious and national differences, but tribal ones as well.

Afghanistan is still lawless. This is why the tribal area of Afghanistan and Pakistan is the seat of power for al-Qa’ida leadership. Even though the Afghan military, security and law-enforcement organizations are producing more capable troops every day, the Afghan government is still ill-prepared to take over all operations. Despite its recent progress, this simple fact remains: Afghanistan has never had any effective national entity that could effectively project power throughout the entire country.

The lack of security in the region limits economic growth, compounding the problem of violence and feeling of hopelessness. If an Afghan is unable to safely drive from a provincial capital to the national capital of Kabul, then any type of real commerce will be unattainable. Greater physical security and widespread adherence to the rule of law will translate into greater opportunity. When more of the Afghan population is able to work to shelter and feed their families – instead of turning to the Taliban for support – violence will decline.

Over the last 8 years, many individuals with good intentions involved in setting policy on Afghanistan have made a number of poor decisions. Our foreign policy has three aspects: military force, diplomacy and humanitarian aid. In Afghanistan, we have conducted 8 years of successful military operations but the same cannot be said for the other two aspects of our foreign policy. There is a disturbing trend within the ranks of our senior lawmakers, policymakers and think tanks – they generally only deal with westernized citizens from Afghanistan. Just like in our own country, many leaders from Afghanistan are out of touch with their population, motivated by the desire to stay in power rather than an interest in helping the larger community. Additionally, over the last decade, an increasing number of bureaucrats in Washington believe they are better positioned to make decisions concerning the battle space than our military and civilian leaders on the ground. And some of our leaders aren’t making it any easier to adopt a winning strategy in Afghanistan. Many of them fail to recognize that al-Qa’ida and the Taliban are not one and the same. The Taliban and al-Qa’ida are two “organizations”, motivated by different goals, and should be approached as such.

It takes more than a couple of hundred words to fully explain the major problems of U.S. foreign policy in Afghanistan and solutions to these problems will have to be incredibly nuanced. However to pursue a proper civilian strategy, the U.S. should focus accordingly: engage politically and diplomatically not just on a national level but on a provincial level as well; directly control how humanitarian aid is spent in Afghanistan; continue to entice the Pakistani government to do more against the Taliban; and, take every opportunity to dismantle the Taliban as it currently exists.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 
Thanksgiving is an opportunity for all of us to take a moment and appreciate our God, country, family and friends.

Living in some pretty scary and impoverished places over the past several years has, for me, underscored the fact that as Americans we have so much for which to be thankful. We live in the greatest country in the world, defended by brave young men and women, who aren’t able to be with their families this holiday season. Please remember them, because they are finishing a 12 to 16 hour shift in a pretty remote and dangerous place.

I have much to be thankful for. This marks the first time since 1998 that I am able to spend Thanksgiving at home in San Antonio, and I couldn’t be more excited about spending time with my family and friends. I hope you get to do the same. I am healthy, I get to eat breakfast tacos every morning and I have a wonderful family and amazing friends that are making sacrifices to ensure we are successful on this adventure.

If you’re traveling, please be safe. And if you’re able to spend this time with those you love, be thankful for that.

Thank ya’ll from the bottom of my heart and have a happy Thanksgiving.

-W

About Me

 
I proudly served my country for the past nine years as an Operations Officer at the Central Intelligence Agency. I have worked to combat terrorism and defend U.S. interests, primarily in South Asia, but my travels have taken me all over the world.

I am a native of San Antonio, and was born and raised there by my parents Robert and Mary Alice Hurd. I graduated from John Marshall High School.

I attended Texas A&M University in College Station, where I graduated with a Computer Science degree and was very involved as a student leader. I was the President of the Memorial Student Center student union, and managed the operations of a 5.6 million dollar organization and over 2,000 student volunteers. Following that, I was elected as Texas A&M University’s Student Body President, and served as the representative of the University’s 45,000 students.

After graduation, I moved to Washington, DC to begin my nearly decade-long career with the Central Intelligence Agency. I have recently returned from overseas and am now a Republican candidate for U.S. Congress in the 23rd Congressional District of Texas.

No matter where my travels have taken me, Texas has always been my home and I could not be happier to be back.

A Few Thoughts on Government

 
In October 2000 I took an oath to protect America from its enemies. Over the last nine years I have had the honor to serve alongside courageous and committed patriots in our military, Foreign Service and intelligence organizations. During my time overseas, I realized that if we are not at our strongest at home then we will be unable to be strong abroad. In my time away, I have acquired a deep appreciation for what a wonderful place America is, but also learned the great importance of the idea of America.

The true strength of our nation is the individual and each person’s dignity and freedom must be protected. Our government has a limited role that requires it to get out of the way of the engine of our growth - individuals in our free market economy. Protecting free enterprise and encouraging individual initiative have brought opportunity, economic growth and prosperity to our nation. Our society is not only comprised of interlocking associations of local, state and national entities, but also social, business, civic, professional and religious organizations. All of these support our free market economy and are necessary in order for America to stay great. Our national government is but a cog, albeit an important one, in this complicated machine.

I believe that a good government should be organized to provide the most critical functions that individuals or private organizations cannot. Government must guarantee security and public order and enforce the rules and regulations necessary to a free marketplace. A Government should eliminate unnecessary spending in order to keep taxes low, and a government should be responsive to and representative of the people. A government of the people, by the people, for the people should ensure that its people be heard.

We are a pluralistic country, and we will prosper if we focus on the values we have in common rather than argue over our differences. So I’ve returned home and plan to travel throughout the 23rd Congressional District to meet with fellow Americans who want to make a difference. I want to learn about the issues that people face and to understand the solutions that they think are needed.

I hope the residents of the 23rd determine that I should be the Republican candidate that should represent them because they believe that I have the experience, insight and willingness to ensure our message is heard in Washington. The 23rd is a unique and important district. We are home to the military, artists, and ranchers. We are church-going, business-oriented, and independent. I firmly believe that a strong District 23 leads to a strong Texas, a strong Texas makes America strong and a strong America means a better world.

Why Run for Congress?

 
The short answer is that I want to continue to serve my country, and would like nothing more than to represent the interests of the citizens of Texas.

Many folks asked me a similar question when I decided to join the CIA upon graduating from Texas A&M University. People didn’t understand why I wasn’t joining the other computer science graduates who were securing near six figure starting salaries. The offers were there, the money was on the table – I was graduating with a computer science degree at the height of the dot.com craze.

My answer? I thought that there couldn’t be a better way to serve my country than by joining the ranks of a small fraternity who toil in exotic and dangerous locations trying to solve difficult problems that face our nation. The last decade with the CIA has been incredibly exciting, and I’ve gained an insight into how our government functions and the impact that our congressmen have on our society through determining how our tax dollars are spent to establishing the particulars of our foreign policy.

Congress has a dramatic impact on our day-to-day lives, and it’s important that its members respect this and are worthy of such trust. While traveling throughout Texas and the United States, I’ve often told a story that truly shocked me. Over the last decade, I participated in a significant number of congressional briefings - and I was severely disappointed by our representatives’ lack of interest in, and understanding of, the issues related to the particular committees on which they sat. On several occasions, senior committee members of the Congressional Intelligence committees asked me to re-explain the difference between Sunnis and Shias.

I also believe that many of our legislators have grown out of touch with their constituents. Along those lines, I do not think that the residents of the 23rd want their Representative to take direction from the San Francisco wing of the Democratic Party.

My mother told me a long time ago, a person has a choice to be part of the problem or part of the solution. Therefore I made a very tough decision to quit my job - a job I loved and a job I was good at - to try to use the skill set that I’ve developed and the knowledge that I have gained to solve another set of difficult problems that face our nation. After making this decision several people asked me why I wasn’t planning on taking advantage of lucrative job opportunities that are available to individuals with my security clearance and intelligence expertise. I told them that there couldn’t be a better way to continue serving my country than by fighting on behalf of great Americans who just want their voices to be heard.