Now that John McCain appears to be the likely GOP candidate, a lot of conservatives and libertarians (Ron Paul fans in particular) are going to look long and hard at third-party options. Let's have a look at who some of those options could be. by Tara Davis
(libertarian)
Monday, February 11, 2008
In a likely race between John McCain and either Clinton or Obama, fans of small government and civil liberties find themselves on the outside looking in. Many have spoken about the possibility of drafting Ron Paul to the Libertarian Party ticket, but he's made it abundantly clear that he intends to stay in the Republican Party and try to hold on to his seat in Congress.
So, if we are to draft somebody to stand for us, who should it be? It's not enough to simply grab somebody who passes a "Ron Paul Purity Test." It's going to have to be somebody who can steal votes from both parties.
As a Minnesotan, I have some experience with this sort of thing. Jesse Ventura, (who had a political talk show on the radio and stumped for Reform Party candidates before he ran for Governor) managed to get elected on what was largely a populist libertarian message. It *can* be done.
Let's look at some of the best options out there, as well as the ones that seem to have some current "buzz", shall we?
Rand Paul seems, on the surface, to have a lot going for him. He founded a conservative PAC in Kentucky, and delivered some effective stump speeches for the Ron Paul campaign, and certainly wouldn't have a hard time being endorsed by his father. However, with little experience and no name recognition outside of close followers of the Ron Paul campaign, he's very unlikely to gain traction among the general population, and would probably get little more than a small anti-McCain protest vote from angry Republicans.
Newt Gingrich has re-emerged as a hero of the conservative movement lately. A lot of people have forgotten just how persuasive he can be. While he doesn't favor a pull-out from Iraq, he's one of the few people on the right who acknowledges the difficulties involved and the failures which have occurred.
Ralph Nader has had his time in the sun. Liberal Democrats now resent him, libertarian Republicans distrust him, and mainstream America mostly sees him as some kind of kook.
Wayne Allen Root, Mike Jingozian, Bob Jackson and Daniel Imperato are the current "front runners" in the Libertarian Party nominating process. However, there's a reason why "undeclared" keeps winning all the LP straw polls. Most party members are waiting for Ron Paul or some other strong candidate to join the race.
Tim Penny would be an intriguing choice. A Democrat for most of his career, Penny resigned from Congress at the height of the Clinton years out of disgust for the lack of fiscal responsibility among his peers. He's been a member of the Cato Institute, and has helped write many books and periodicals through the famous libertarian think-tank. He became a critical adviser to the Ventura administration in Minnesota, but has been out of the public eye since his unsuccessful bid for governor. He's a moderate democrat who does not line up with libertarians on every single issue, but he has tremendous credibility as a candidate and a policy wonk.
Sam Nunn is another moderate Democrat who would be promising. He worked with Barry Goldwater to reorganize the department of defense, pushed for a balanced-budget amendment, and often broke with his party on various issues. He was one of the few to vote against the first Gulf War. On the down-side, he's rather weak on many civil-liberties issues.
In my view, not a single one of these candidates holds a candle to Ron Paul, but any one of them would be preferable to Clinton, Huckabee, McCain or Obama.
Unless some unexpected convention miracle puts Ron Paul at the top of the GOP ticket after all, lovers of freedom and limited government will need to move quickly to find the right candidate to rally around in the general election. Please feel free to suggest other options in the comments section of this article, or simply chime in to state your case for or against one of the people I've listed. The time to start this discussion is now.
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Posted By: Jonathan Grubbs
Date: 2008-02-11 12:54:48
The following is from a Constitution Party e-mail:
As the date of the Constitution Party National Convention (April 23-26 in Kansas City, Missouri) approaches, several prominent Americans have expressed an openness to considering the possibility of seeking the Constitution Party Presidential nomination. Among those are former United States Senator Bob Smith; former Alabama Chief Justice, Roy Moore; the 2004 Vice-Presidential Nominee of the Constitution Party, Chuck Baldwin; WorldNetDaily. com writer and author of the best selling “The Late, Great USA”, Dr. Jerome Corsi; and former Ambassador to the United Nations, Alan Keyes. This is is not a closed list and it is possible that there may still be others who are considering the possibility of seeking the 2008 Constitution Party nomination.
You need another option because Ron Paul will not be running if he does not with the GOP nomination. You need another option because it's looking like McCain, Huckabee, Clinton, or Obama will be the next President unless somebody steps up as an independent candidate.
Writing in "Ron Paul" might make you feel good, but it's a meaningless gesture because he won't be running. If that's your plan, you might as well write in "Mickey Mouse" for all the good it would do.
The Revolution is not, and never was, about one man. It's about advancing the agenda of scaling down a government that has become too large and too corrupt. Writing in a non-candidate does nothing to help with that cause.
Newt Gingrich seems to be the most viable option, due to his name recognition and support among conservatives. Also, a lot of people feel the same about the war as he does... not ready to pull out, but at the same time acknowledging the quagmire that it is. In fact, despite what Fox News would have us believe, most "pro-war" republicans are probably in that camp.
Having said that, I've gotten to the point where I am done voting for the "lesser of evils", and prefer to look at the long term when making voting decisions. A republican loss of the presidency is probably the only chance of salvaging the republican platform within the next 20 years by returning to a more conservative (read "constitutional") base. I am more concerned with what would most effectively push forward the ideals I support.
My best recommendation to RP supporters is to just write in the good doctor's name come November. If 6% (a current estimate of ron paul supporters nationwide) of the presidential votes go to a write-in candidate, what kind of message would that send to the Republican party and the country as a whole? What kind of encouragement would that give to other politicians who are constitutionally-minded like Ron Paul? Things may change between now and November, but barring the appearance of any really viable third party contender, this seems to be the most effective option.
*final note: being from MN myself, I feel the need to distinguish between those who speak a libertarian/small government agenda, and those who really live it out. A lot of people were severely disappointed with Ventura's actions while governer, and were expecting something much different out of the man they voted for. People like Ron Paul have an amazing record of ACTION... in the coming years, support those like Ron Paul who have demonstrated their ideals, not just talked about them. I'm afraid that in the wake of the Ron Paul revolution there will be a lot of the latter coming on the scene...
While I agree that Ventura fell short of the mark as governor, my point was that he won on a very libertarian platform. The fact that he didn't govern that way is one of the main reasons that he knew better than to stand for re-election.
A write-in "protest vote" would send a message, but a third-party victory would be a much greater outcome. It could force a long-overdue realignment of the parties.
A write-in for Ron Paul will not even get counted and so will not send any message at all. A huge migration to third parties would definitely send a message.
Allen Keys & Newt would not carry many of Ron Paul's Supporters. Though Keys and Newt are conservative, they do not have the libertarian leanings that Paul has. It is Paul's fiscal discipline that attracts fiscal conservatives but it is the belief in individual freedom which attracts many on the left. Keys and Newt do not have that "live and let live" attitude. Both, Keys and Newt are about control.
Mike said that the write-ins would not be counted. I don't know if that is true or not; Mike's response my be attributed to his reasonable distrust of the system or it might be that some states do not count them. That I do not know.
A third party run is not a feasible idea because of the lack of state ballot access. However, a consorted effort to have all the third parties and RP supporters write RP's name on the ballot seems to be a feasible alternative but only if those write-in votes are counted.
Indeed, I do distrust the system, LOL, but my post was just the result of my own limited research...
- in some States write-ins will not be counted if the candidate does not file as a write-in candidate; - in some States a candidate losing the primary cannot file as a write-in; - in some States write-ins are not allowed for the office of President.
BTW, I do not advocate a third party run for Ron Paul - besides we know now that he will not do that. My suggestion is to vote for the third party candidate of your choice. For me that is Libertarian.
For reference:
This page (http://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/writein.asp) is a write-in FAQ for Missouri. NOTE: "If a candidate files for nomination to an office and is not nominated at a primary election, that candidate cannot file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for the same office at the general election."
On this page for South Carolina (http://www.state.sc.us/scsec/writein.htm) NOTE: "A defeated primary candidate may not actively offer or campaign as a write-in candidate for the ensuing election." and "Write-in votes are not allowed in primary elections or the election of President or Vice-president."
In this file for Michigan (http://www.michigan.gov/documents/sos/Ballot_Pres_20081_208311_7.pdf) NOTE: "Write-in votes cast for an individual seeking the office of U.S. President who fails to file the required documents are not counted."
Indeed, censoredagain, Keyes and Gingrich both have that problem. Unfortunately, Penny and Nunn (not to mention Bloomberg) also have similar "nanny state" advocacy problems in their past voting records. If somebody wishes to propose another viable candidate who would be more our cup of tea, I'm certainly all ears.
It appears that a write in candidate like a 3rd party candidate will have several obstacles to ballot access . I know in NC there are only two recognized political parties, you guessed it kids The people's socialist party aka the Democratic party and God's socialist party aka the Republican party.
If an individual registered for another party (such as when I registered as a Libertarian) if said party does not get x % of the vote then that party is no longer recognized by the state of North Carolina and all individuals who are registered with that party's affiliation are then converted to unaffiliated.
Further, in order to gain ballot access one seeking to be a write in candidates needs 500 signatures. However, if one wants to run as an unaffiliated (independent) candidate needs to obtain 69,734 signatures (2% of the number of votes in the most resent general election for governor) NC also states that parties my nominate by petition and that takes 10k signatures of the voters in that party. However in NC they only have 2 parties everyone else is unaffiliated; so how can one get 10k signatures of voters in a 3rd party?
Tara, You are right about that. I would suggest Harry Brown but he does not have the name recognition. I guess there is always Clint Eastwood. But again we face the Ventura Syndrome with Clint.... He does not have a voting record nor does he have administrative experience so he might talk a good talk but administer like a drunken frat boy (oh that's bush my bad).
You know, you just don't get it do you? Alot of the Ron Paul supporters, like myself, have been lifelong Democrats. It was not until this year that I had my eyes opened to what "reality" in politics is. I love this country and I love the message of freedom that Ron Paul gave to us. However, when I was a Democrat, I remember thinking how "vile" Newt Gingrich was and I guarantee you, that man will in NO WAY unite our country. This is not a game. We do not just vote for a party , we vote for a message and NO ONE that you have mentioned in this article can hold a candle to the message spread by Ron Paul. I am not naive enough to think that things are going to change with this election. But, if I could vote Republican (for Ron Paul), then I could vote 3rd party for someone who has the integrity and conviction and determination to uphold the Constitution. (If only there actually were someone like that)
Ron Paul has called for a march on Washington DC!!!! Everybody get ready, we're going to do it...the Ron Paul R3VOLution is taking the country back! He also suggested there might be some dirt coming out on the other candidates between now and the Convention...
Posted By: David Englert
Date: 2008-02-12 11:47:45
Go ahead have your march, even if people come out in the numbers your dreams expect, when its over it will be over, it will problaby be cast by the media as another anti-war protest and the Liberty message will be lost. The next morning there is nothing to show for it, what next? There is a party that already believes much of what Ron Paul believes and that is the Libertarian Party, after all Ron ran as a Libertarian once, he didn't do it this time because its to hard to run as a third party. We can make it easier, vote Libertarian weather or not Ron accepts thier invitation. If they go from sub 1% to 10%, that might get some attention and make it easier for future Ron Pauls to get on the ballot. I voted for Ron Paul today even though I disagree with him on some issues, because the message of Liberty is more important than the messenger. Don't waste the movement that is developing here by wrapping it up in one person.
Wayne Root has possibilities, but no experience that would make him credible. If someone with name recognition were to want to run as a Libertarian, and Ron Paul were to indorse the LP candidate, there might be some headway. I still feel it's better to vote third party than not at all.
