Presidential Hopeful Will Hurd Challenges Trump Loyalty in GOP Race: "I Will Not Sign a Blood Oath to Donald Trump"

Will Hurd, a former U.S. representative from Texas who has been having trouble gaining traction for his presidential candidacy, was unable to make the cut for the first Republican presidential debate. During the same time, former President Donald Trump revealed on a social media platform that he wouldn't be participating in the debate. Hurd, for a very long time, has been a loud opponent of Trump. Moreover, due to poor poll ratings and his unwillingness to pledge his loyalty to Trump, Hurd did not make it into the first GOP presidential debate, reported The Texas Tribune.

Hurd stated at the time, "I have said from day one of my candidacy that I will not sign a blood oath to Donald Trump. The biggest difference between me and every single candidate who will be on the debate stage in Milwaukee is that I never bent the knee to Trump." Hurd, 45, spent three terms in the House of Representatives (until January 2021), during which time he was the only Black Republican in the House.

When Hurd announced his presidency, he said in a statement on CBS Morning, "We need common sense. I believe the Republican Party can be the party of the future, not the past." He further said in the video, "Our enemies plot, create chaos, and threaten the American Dream. At home, illegal immigration and fentanyl stream into our country. Inflation, still out of control. Crime and homelessness growing in our cities. President Biden can’t solve these problems — or won’t. And if we nominate a lawless, selfish, failed politician like Donald Trump — who lost the House, the Senate, and the White House — we all know Joe Biden will win again."

In July, at the Iowa Republican Party's Lincoln Day Dinner—a huge fundraiser and cattle call for candidates—Hurd did something only a few of his other competitors would do: he attacked the former president by name. He initiated his speech with, "Donald Trump is not running for president to make America great again," and then went on to say, "Donald Trump is running to stay out of prison." Hurd continued, "Listen, I know the truth. The truth is hard. But if we elect Donald Trump, we are willingly giving Joe Biden four more years in the White House and America can’t handle that."

The loud jeers heard in the Iowa Events Center ballroom at the state party's Lincoln Dinner were indicative of both the strength and allegiance Trump still commands and the difficulties encountered by anyone attempting to oppose him. In fact, the booing after Hurd left the stage was heard plainly on the online broadcast. 

Hurd is also the first Republican to have released a policy proposal on artificial intelligence. The strategy, which was originally reported by Axios, considers the advantages and disadvantages of AI in a broad sense. However, he also advocates for stricter regulation of the industry than is typical for many Republicans' approach to private industries. He wants the federal government to make much greater use of artificial intelligence than it currently does, both in administrative tasks and in highly sensitive areas like national defense. In addition, he would push for 'strict regulations' on the export of A.I. technology, including needing licenses for organizations that wish to construct A.I. models and refusing liability exemptions for developers under current rules.