Presidential candidate and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley is making a strategic break from fellow candidate Hillary Clinton in the lead up to the presidential race.

O’Malley publicly stated on October 11 that he opposed Clinton’s idea for a no-fly zone over Syria. Clinton proposed this idea in order to try to, “stop the carnage on the ground.” O’Malley argued, “Senator Clinton’s always quick for military intervention. No-fly zones sound attractive, but no-fly zones have to be enforced.”

In the past, O’Malley and the Clintons have enjoyed a friendly relationship. Former President Bill Clinton even appeared in O’Malley’s campaign ad in his first run for governor back in 2006, and O’Malley was an early supporter of Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid in 2008.

Now O’Malley is trying to distance himself from Clinton in an effort to stand out. He is quick to jab at Clinton’s policy toward Syria, which has become hot-button topic for all the presidential candidates. O’Malley was also critical of Clinton’s late response to the Syrian refugee crisis. He was the first to call for the U.S. to take in 65,000 refugees, while Clinton waited weeks to state what she thought should be done. She then cited the same number as O’Malley, which he was quick to notice, saying, “It’s the kind of pattern of this campaign. We lead, and then she follows public opinion polls.”

Analysts have said that O’Malley is smart to raise this issue as Clinton’s campaign is showing signs of stress after the e-mail scandal. O’Malley is in a position to lead the discussion of new policies because he has nothing to lose. On average, O’Malley has been polling in the low single digits and he hasn’t garnered much publicity. To seriously compete for the presidency, especially alongside Clinton and Bernie Sanders, he will need more public support. O’Malley had the opportunity to prove himself in the Democratic debates, but only time will tell if the public will get behind his campaign.

The Baltimore Sun contributed to this report.

Photo courtesy of Gregory Hauenstein on Flickr :https://www.flickr.com/photos/greghauenstein/14472320651/in/photolist-o3SqHR-nLG8bt-owToFh-fJy3fr-pAiKTi-uArCn5-pNoUSg-8NawYV-a3aBNW-8NauYr-ihm6dt-pSSyo5-cuKZZQ-e3jN6x-8Lbiwo-8XMp2U-8L8fDi-ihmLhD-ihn6tq-ihmyLV-c1fGpb-8XMmiL-ihmhKC-ihmSLo-bAassq-8ZXxwg-911DiC-o1B79w-o1B6EA-ihmDqK-ihmNMS-uArvKC-uABc5F-o3UuAr-nLHctX-o3uevB-ec72Pm-dWHnhQ-ckH6AL-ej7Q5R-kuPoiZ-kuPjcc-ejdzaw-dWBD3V-epSq6U-pT1MrC-e3qrtm-ej7JWe-kuHCCG-ej7Jsi