Why Bob Barr?
There's a sharp divide amongst liberty loving voters about whether to support a candidate like Bob Barr for President. I support him almost whole-heartedly. My only caveat is that my support will disappear if he starts sounding like the "compassionate conservative" he was over 5 years ago.
Most of the candidates I support don't win elections, but they do their best to morph the debate towards liberty and the Constitution. With the two major party candidates rarely mentioning the "supreme law of the land" it is refreshing to hear a candidate who invokes the Constitution either directly or through implication by rhetoric. Bob Barr is such a candidate.
What makes Barr even more "special" in this regard is that he has extensive media access due to his Republican celebrity past. To me that is a means to an end. An end that has the libertarian message being heard by more people than ever. There is nothing more important than spreading that "voice" to as many people as possible.
Make no mistake though, Bob Barr is a moderate Libertarian. He angers some of the more purist (or radical) libertarians, especially when considering his past anti-liberty voting record. To me this is more of a strength than a weakness. Barr's transformation mimics many voter's own transformations. The majority of America supported the Iraq war based on false pretenses. Now the majority is against it. Voter's can identify with a candidate who has experienced a similar transformation.
The "flip-flop" label is always thrown around for any perceived wavering on an issue. There should be a distinction that "flip-flopping" is only truly "flip-flopping" if it is done purely for political gain. Suggesting Barr, a former popular Republican, joining the Libertarian Party and "adopting" its ideology was for political gain is almost laughable. It is not politically expedient to join the Libertarian Party. No matter what libertarians may personally hope or believe, the party is considered a fringe party by the casual disinterested voters that make up the majority of the electorate.
I support Bob Barr for President because:
- His has the capability to spread the libertarian message to the masses.
- He is spreading the libertarian message with each opportunity.
- He is a moderate conservative libertarian.
- He is the candidate most likely to follow his oath of office.
- Ron Paul is no longer in the race.
It really is as simple as that.
Check out http://bobbarr2008.com/
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Comments
And wasn't it the Ron Paul supporters who asked him to run in the first place? I don't have a problem if someone wants to vote for Baldwin, but when someone says they'd write in RP instead.... it just makes me wonder if this person knows what exactly a write-in is. Before Bob Barr even had a website, there was discussion about him. I was on the side of the write-in (and this was when know one even knew Baldwin was an option). However, I realized that a write-in is essentially the same as not voting. If we really want to show our power in politics and our dislike for our party's nominee, we need to support the 3rd party candidates.
Put it simply Ron Paul isn't running for president any longer. He is in congress and has his new campaign for liberty to concentrate on. On the other hand, Bob Barr is running and IMO is better than the other two jokers. Ron Paul probably won't endorse him but like I said since he's not running I'm going to be voting for Barr.