Retired colonel pursues Nevada’s 3rd Congressional seat

Earlier this year, retired U.S. Army Col. Mark Robertson decided to stake heavy connected himself for the accidental to situation Democratic Rep. Susie Lee successful Nevada’s plaything 3rd Congressional District.

The Henderson nonmigratory sold his involvement successful a fiscal readying business, RDJ Financial Architects, successful January — immoderate 17 months earlier the 2022 superior election, and astir 2 years retired from the general.

“I americium moving full-time connected this campaign,” the Republican first-time campaigner told the Review-Journal successful an interrogation Wednesday. “I privation to walk arsenic overmuch clip talking to radical successful CD-3. I’m doing 2 oregon 3 meet-and-greet events successful people’s homes and astir the territory each week.”

Robertson spent 30 years successful the U.S. Army and its reserves, enlisting arsenic a backstage astatine 17-years-old and retiring arsenic a colonel. He served successful 10 antithetic countries and earned a Bronze Star and a Legion of Merit for his actions successful Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.

He yet served successful the Pentagon arsenic a nationalist defence advisor to the Secretary of Defense’s bureau and was portion of the U.S. delegation to Jordan for a conjugation gathering to combat ISIS.

First in

Robertson was the archetypal campaigner to participate the 3rd District’s Republican primary, and helium has raised astir $174,000 since January, putting him down the highest illustration candidate, lawyer April Becker ($394,000), but good up of the much caller competitors, lawyer Noah Malgeri and operation developer John Kovacs.

“I’m not blessed with the absorption that the Democrat socialists are taking us,” Robertson said. “There is simply a monopoly of powerfulness with Democrats successful control, and they are moving america towards socialism.”

Robertson said predetermination and borderline information are cardinal issues for him. He would question to outlaw ballot harvesting, enact elector ID laws and bounds mail-in voting to lone those who petition an absentee ballot, arsenic helium did for galore years successful the military.

Asked if “election integrity” — 1 of Republicans’ galore favored buzz presumption implicit the past 10 months — meant to him that the results of the 2020 predetermination successful Nevada were not accurate, Robertson said determination was apt immoderate fraud successful caller elections, but helium had not seen capable grounds to amusement a effect should person been overturned.

Fighting to support idiosyncratic freedoms, including First and Second Amendment rights, are besides important run tenets, Robertson said.

“Monopolistic tech companies person the powerfulness to censor a U.S. president,” helium said, referring to Facebook, Twitter and different companies’ decisions to prohibition erstwhile President Donald Trump from their platforms. “I posted a Facebook Live talking astir what’s happening successful Cuba, and it disappeared. No informing oregon announcement of violation.”

Robertson besides supports schoolhouse prime and a voucher strategy for parents who privation to enroll their students successful backstage oregon charter schools.

“Our children merit the betterment successful acquisition that comes from competition, and the innovation that contention brings,” helium said.

Big sanction support

His website lists a wide breadth of different topics, arsenic good arsenic a lengthy database of supporters that includes Rep. Mark Amodei, the Nevada legislature delegation’s lone Republican, and erstwhile Clark County Commissioner Bruce Woodbury, who is chairing Robertson’s campaign.

Amodei has not formally endorsed Robertson, the campaigner said, but helium has donated wealth to his campaign.

Robertson said helium and his woman were precocious flown to Washington, D.C. by the National Republican Congressional Committee, which explained the requirements for inclusion successful their “Young Guns” programme successful 2022: Build a beardown run committee, rise $100,000 successful a 4th and $500,000 earlier the June primary.

The nationalist radical did not respond to a petition for confirmation of this gathering and its requirements. Robertson said helium has met the archetypal 2 requirements and volition scope the 3rd goal.

He said helium believes his subject acquisition and overseas argumentation cognition acceptable him isolated from the remainder of the Republican field. He has besides lived and owned a concern successful the territory for longer than astir of the different challengers.

Robertson holds a concern grade from Brigham Young University and a master’s successful concern medication from City University of Seattle. He antecedently taught concern courses astatine UNLV, and done his erstwhile business, advised radical connected creating a fund and gathering fiscal goals.

In July, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released a connection condemning the 3rd District’s Republican tract arsenic a whole.

“The GOP superior successful Nevada’s Third District is already shaping up to beryllium a damaging contention to the right,” spokeswoman Johanna Warshaw said. “As extremist candidates scramble to align themselves with the astir far-right fringes of their party, congresswoman Susie Lee is focused connected getting Nevadans backmost to enactment and ensuring a beardown economical betterment for confederate Nevada.”

Contact Rory Appleton astatine rappleton@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0276. Follow @RoryDoesPhonics connected Twitter.