Pompeo also presents a little bit of a challenge to me in my role as Swiss commentator in that he is a personal friend as well as former weekly guest on the Hugh Hewitt Show, so allow for the lie of the green as you read this. But as objectively as I know how, here’s the best case for, and the best case against Mike Pompeo.

The case for Mike Pompeo

1. Grown-up in the room – Quite simply, the former Secretary of State and former CIA director in the Trump administration is regarded as the single greatest cabinet appointment the former president made. Turnover in Trump world in just four years made his presidency tumultuous at best, but Pompeo was a steady hand on foreign policy and national security, had Trump’s ear the entire time, and by all accounts, his advice was largely heeded. He was the Trump whisperer.

2. Executive as well as Legislative Branch experience – before he was in government at Foggy Bottom and Langley, Pompeo was a player on the Hill as a Congressman from Kansas. Serving on House Intel, the select committee on the Benghazi disaster, and also on Energy and Commerce. Assuming that Republicans take control of the House in November of 2022, and Joe Biden’s recession takes him out in 2024, it’s likely the House will remain in GOP hands for the start of the would-be Pompeo administration in 2025. Incoming Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Pompeo have a history and a good working relationship.

3. Religious liberty – Though most Republican candidates for president would be good on religious liberty grounds, there isn’t one who has a stronger track record than Pompeo, especially as Secretary of State. He routinely held international symposiums to advance human rights and religious freedom around the world, and was the orchestrator of a fairly unified U.S. voice, National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, Attorney General William Barr, and FBI Director Christopher Wray being the other three administration officials, to call out China for human rights concerns as well as a host of other growing hostilities to the United States. Donald Trump gets the credit for setting in motion the turning tide of national opinion towards the U.S.-China relationship, but it was Pompeo that took the ball and ran with it, and continues to speak out against China as a growing menace.

4. Peace in the Middle East – what was considered to be a pipe dream actually began to take shape as Pompeo, along with Jared Kushner and Avi Berkowitz, negotiated historic trade deals between Israel and former enemy states UAE and Bahrain. Once those deals were cemented, it led to similar deals with Sudan, Oman, Morocco, and Jordan. What former Democratic diplomats like Hillary Clinton and John Kerry thought impossible, Pompeo oversaw, and that was after successfully implementing the moving of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

5. Redistricting Trust – One of the reasons it’s a near-mortal lock that Republicans will take over the House of Representatives in November is because the Democrats only have a 5-seat majority, and Republicans will most likely pick up at least that many due to redistricting. After each Census at the end of a decade, all 50 states go through various processes to determine how their state’s Congressional delegation will be drawn out in districts. Up to now, the Democrats had largely gamed that system to their advantage. This cycle, however, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Pompeo, both potential competitors in a 2024 presidential primary field, were named as co-chairs of the National Republican Redistricting Trust to step in where necessary, sue if appropriate, in order to protect the interests of the GOP. The result is that without the NRRT, Democrats would have gained a net total of six seats, which could have made it easier for them to hold the majority in November. With the NRRT, the national redistricting after the Census is even, although Republicans have at least five seats that are much more solid than they otherwise would have been, allowing the NRCC, the campaign arm of the House Republicans, to go on offense a lot more this cycle. So Pompeo not only knows macro foreign policy issues, he also is immersed in the granular micro level of politics.

6. First in his class – There’s something to be said for having military experience before becoming commander-in-chief. Pompeo was first in his class at West Point before a career in the Army as a tank commander.

The case against Mike Pompeo

1. The Trump brand – His biggest issue in a 2024 campaign will be trying to run as his own man with his own agenda and not be lumped in with all the negative baggage of the Trump presidency. He’s regarded as a Trump loyalist through and through, and it will be fascinating to see how Pompeo and Trump would deal with each other on a debate stage, were they both to be candidates for the ’24 cycle.

2. Bandwagon – In an interview last week on the Hugh Hewitt Show with former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Haley recounted who was in the room when the decision was made to relocate the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Haley claims that there were only three voices who approved of the idea, and specifically said Pompeo was not one of those people. Pompeo responded that of course, he supported the move, and has previously taken credit for solidifying the relocation after his move to State from CIA. Expect opponents of his to question whether he really thought it a good idea in the first place, and whether he’s being opportunistic in claiming credit for things in which he didn’t believe.

3. Crowded field – in a potential GOP presidential field for 2024, the lane on the right edge of the party is going to be awfully crowded, with Ted Cruz, Tom Cotton, Ron DeSantis, Glenn Youngkin, Tim Scott all competing for the same voters. And while Pompeo does have name ID with a Republican base, history isn’t very favorable towards people trying to walk the path from Foggy Bottom to the White House. Only six times in history have secretaries of state gone on to become president, the last being James Buchanan. And the Civil War followed that administration.

4. Year of the governor – It’s an old argument, but one that’s going to be very relevant in this cycle, I believe. There could be up to eight Republican governors throwing their hat into the ring this cycle (Ron DeSantis in Florida, Doug Ducey in Arizona, Rick Scott from Florida, Nikki Haley from South Carolina, Chris Christie from New Jersey, Larry Hogan from Maryland, Glenn Youngkin from Virginia, Greg Abbott in Texas), and all will make the case that you have to have run a state to truly know how to appreciate and recover from the damage of the Biden administration. Pompeo had a golden opportunity to run for governor in his home state of Kansas against a weak Democrat Laura Kelly, and would have mopped the floor with her this cycle, but demurred. Expect the governors to say Pompeo is a great guy and a great ally in the Republican Party, but he hasn’t run anything and isn’t ready for the big job, yet.

5. Ethics violations – In 2020, Donald Trump fired State Department Inspector General Steve Linick. It was later reported that Linick had begun an investigation into ethics violations by Secretary Pompeo based on whistleblower testimony. Nothing more has been reported on whether the investigation was indeed dropped for lack of evidence or whether it was dropped for political reasons. But in a field as large as the one the Republicans could potentially have in 2024, someone will bring this up. Pompeo will have to have an answer for it.

6. Weight loss – Topping out at nearly 300 pounds as Secretary of State, Pompeo spent much of the year following his term in office losing around 90 pounds. He looks and feels great, and that would normally be a good thing. He’s losing weight to get into fighting shape for a future presidential run. Except the naysayers are saying it doesn’t happen the way he says it happens – by changing diet and working out a little bit every day. The Hill, Vanity Fair, lots of other media outlets began to cite fitness experts who were doubting the weight loss was as innocent and organic as what Pompeo claims. As someone who has lost 36 pounds in 8 weeks through diet and exercise, I think this is a ridiculous charge, but people who do not like Pompeo will see a hidden conspiracy behind the reason for his weight loss and claim he’s lying about it.

As always, your comments are welcome and entertaining. Future editions of this series will continue in the weeks ahead.