Moulton Confirms He May Seek Presidency

Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., asks a question of Budget Director Mick Mulvaney during a the House Budget Committee hearing, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington.

By Colin A. Young | State House News Service

February 11, 2019

U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton is considering running for president in 2020, he told Buzzfeed News at the outset of a week that will see the congressman make the rounds in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C.

"I'm thinking about running for president," Moulton said in an interview Buzzfeed News labeled an exclusive. "I’m not definitely running, but I’m going to take a very hard look at it. A very serious look at it."

Amid speculation that he might seek the White House in 2020, Moulton has recently visited New Hampshire and this week will make a major speech on foreign policy in D.C. On Monday morning, he is expected to give a talk about "the future of work and higher education" at Salem State University.

In his interview with Buzzfeed, the Marine Corps combat veteran said he thinks America needs a president who has made difficult decisions and is not solely focused on shooing President Donald Trump from office.

"I think it would be valuable to have a commander in chief who's had to make life-or-death decisions before. I think we need someone who you know, for whom standing up to a bully like Donald Trump isn't the biggest challenge he or she has ever faced in life," he said when asked how his military service would play into a candidacy. "And I think we need leaders who are focused on the future. Who are respectful of the past but are ready to turn the page, and chart a bright new course for this country."

Moulton, who defeated an incumbent Democrat to win his seat in Congress, last year was among a small group of Democrats who unsuccessfully tried to force a change in U.S. House leadership.

On Tuesday, Moulton will give a speech at the Brookings Institution where he plans to outline his "vision for the future of U.S foreign policy," according to his campaign. After the speech, the Salem Democrat will take part in a conversation with Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O'Hanlon on what the new divided Congress means for foreign policy, budget and strategic planning.