Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) told reporters Tuesday what many already knew -- that he was considering a run for the White House in 2016.
But Jindal, accompanied by a large entourage, said he plans to decide after November whether he will run for president.
“There's no reason to be coy,” Jindal said at a breakfast sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor. “I am thinking, I am praying about whether I'll run in 2016. I said I won't make that decision until after November.”
But the governor walked a fine line as he considers a presidential run, dodging questions about evolution and climate change.
Jindal has been campaigning for governors, including Gov. Rick Scott of Florida, and releasing policy platforms as he considers a run. He handed out a glossy magazine-style energy plan Tuesday that presses for an increase in production of domestic oil, gas coal and nuclear power.
“The reality is right now we've got an administration in the Obama administration that are science deniers when it comes to harnessing America's energy resources and potential to create good-paying jobs for our economy and for our future,” Jindal said. “Right now we've got an administration whose policies are holding our economy hostage.”
Jindal criticized President Barack Obama for his “incoherent” foreign policies, saying he was “leading from behind has made the world more dangerous,” and that “his dithering, his delaying has allowed” the Islamic State to grow stronger.
He said Obama has the authority to carry out airstrikes and called on Congress to give him the authority to train and equip Syrian rebels.