Former GOP adviser Evan McMullin announced his bid for the presidency in August. McMullin, an Independent, has an impressive resume and has proved himself to be an advocate for refugees.

McMullin served as a CIA operative in Africa, the Middle East and Asia for over 10 years. He also worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and a policy director for the House Republican Conference, where he pushed an agenda spotlighting international affairs, homeland security and gender equality.

McMullin is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He speaks Arabic and holds both a master’s degree in business administration from the Wharton School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in international law and diplomacy from Brigham Young University.

Most remarkable, however, is the 40-year-old Utah native’s special interest in helping refugees. To begin his career, McMullin volunteered as a U.N. refugee resettlement officer in Jordan’s capital Amman, evaluating and relocating Syrian refugees displaced by civil war.

Years after completing his work for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), he still feels strongly about the plight of asylum seekers. During a January GOP Debate, McMullin reaffirmed himself as an advocate for refugees by tweeting, “People who talk tough about ISIS, but then spend all of their time attacking refugees, know little about keeping America safe.”

Evan McMullin further demonstrated his concern for those affected by war when he gave a TedX talk at the London School of Business in May. His speech focused on the crisis in Syria and the atrocities committed by Bashar al-Assad’s regime. During the lecture, McMullin recalled his time with the UNHCR, saying it “left him with a deep sympathy for the world’s most vulnerable people.”

In July 2014, feeling “compelled to help,” he persuaded a Syrian refugee to testify before Congress and expose the Assad administration’s brutalities. The refugee was a double-agent, a government employee turned spy for the Syrian opposition, who was forced to fake his own death to avoid being discovered by Assad. As an asylum seeker himself, he pleaded with Congress to take action against Syria’s war crimes.

Evan McMullin believes that while governments condemn political violence, they lack the willpower to end genocide. He hopes to raise awareness about refugees and the factors that drive them to flee, such as government-sponsored civilian killings.

In light of this information, what would a McMullin White House look like? As an activist, international relations expert and advocate for refugees, perhaps McMullin could instill a greater sense of humanitarianism into foreign policy and strengthen the U.S. as a global leader. According to McMullin, “the world’s humanity depends on it.”

– Kristina Evans

Photo: New Republic