May 12, 2008 10:30 AM
McCain's Ralph Nader?: Bob Barr announces libertarian candidacy
Bob Barr is very popular with the Ron Paul crowd. Do you think this could make any difference in November?
Heaping scorn on both major political parties, former Republican Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia declared his candidacy Monday for the Libertarian Party presidential nomination.
Barr, 59, vowed to slash the federal government, restore civil liberties curbed since 2001 and pull back U.S. troops from abroad, both in Iraq and at bases around the world.
His campaign could draw support from libertarian-minded or conservative Republicans who are unhappy with the expected nomination of Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
I'm thinking McCain's Perot. Perot ran not just on the issues but personally motivated to take Bush Sr. down. I think Barr thinks it's time for the Bush Jr Republicans to end.
i dubt he'll take many votes away from mccain that mccain wasnt gonna get anyway.
doubt*
I'd love to see two or three more viable political parties pop up. IMHO, it would be a very healthy thing for our country, long-term...
Bring it on.
No No No. He's McCain's Hillary Clinton.
Hillary is doing the EXACT SAME thing Nader did, only 100x worse.
New phrase for the English language:
'To pull a Hillary', verb, meaning to cluelessly pursue something even after it's clear to all that the effort is futile.
"McCain's Ralph Nader?"
or
Obama's Hillary Clinton.
when i see his face all i can think of is his reaction to Borat's cheese. priceless.
I was intrigued then I looked him up...I'm a Goldwater conservative, but I cannot in good conscience vote for a New-con thug. I was disappointed to see that a guy that so firmly believes in civil liberties still wants to outlaw abortion and continue the drug war. He was also key in the Clinton Impeachment. Just another Neo-Con thug...
I'm thinking that this could take some away from McCain when November comes around especially if he is going up against Obama. McCain still isn't to popular with the Conservatives and they may find something better in Barr. The only problem Barr has is time. He needs time to get his message out there and time for people to find out what he is about. If he can do that and he appeals to voters, McCain might find that he just is not match for the likes of Obama.
What a joke -- but he'll probably carry the racists in Georgia.
I thought he was a deep right wing guy.... Did I miss the Memo???
He was very anti- Clinton back in the day...
What's the real story with this guy?
Aaah, let the games begin... as if they hadn't already. This oughta be fun to watch... the demise of McMundane's political career, hopefully.
And his wife had an abortion???
He said some republicans had asked him not to run, so they must think he can damage McCain's chances to some degree. McCain is already swimming upstream against the current so I'm sure he was not happy to hear about Barr. I, on the other hand, look forward to watching it play out.
Bob Barr may be a fine fellow, I like him much better as Libertarian Candidate. Not enough to vote for him, but more power to him.
Personally, I would like to see every single
wingnutRepublican run for President. They can each vote for themselves. The more the merrier.Meanwhile, we need Nader to know the unvarnished truth.
As for Perot, he got 19 million votes. There would have been no President Clinton without Perot. Hillary who?
I don't know if this is a good thing - I know a lot of "tough-guy" conservatives that are big on guns and immigration but not social conservatives, and these are guys who are seriously considering crossing over for Obama. They've realized that the GOP is a sinking ship, and they don't necessarily like Obama's policy positions but don't see him as part of the whimping Democratic consultant class (like the much-reviled Clintons). They distrust Obama less than they hate McCain, who is a paramount villain among the tough-guy bloc for his immigration waffling and early anti-MMA stance (McCain is the Nevada Gaming Commission's pocket, and came out against Ultimate Fighting before Ultimate Fighting went mainstream).
If Bob Barr was in their minds a feasible alternative to vote for, that's lost crossover support for Obama. We'll see.
Ayatohllah of Diet Cola @ 9:
He is also the guy that got caught cheating on his wife while dating a future wife (thrice married). Of course, this is just being a Republican. And being GOP, he saw no conflict in going after Clinton for his adultry. I wonder if he will consider his personal life fair game?
Based on my knowledge of Bob Barr (I’m from Georgia and met him when he was a Reagan Republican prosecutor wearing a red-white-and-blue tie) and the things I’ve read, I think Bob Barr will be a disaster for McCain if only for this reason: He puts Georgia in play, big time. Barr, the former Congressman, has campaigned in two different districts. He served in Cobb county in the 1990s and then in the new millennium, he was shifted over into a Gwinnett County district, where, as a sitting representative, he ran and lost against the buttoned-down conservative incumbent, John Linder. So he’s got people from two different Republican districts who’ve voted for him already. Also, his column has run regularly in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, so he also has an audience. Georgia is a big state---which already has a tradition of electing blacks statewide Attorney General, state Supreme Court, and Labor Commissioner. Georgia could be a toss-up on election night, and don’t be surprised if he gets twice the votes a Libertarian typically gets. (Call it the Borat bump.)
If Clinton turned out to be the Democratic nominee, I would vote for Rep. Barr. I consider myself a progressive libertarian, and I just do not trust Sen. Clinton with anything. I'm just happy that Obama is going to win and I don't have to "throw my vote away".
You can't be a libertarian if you're for prosecuting people for personal indescretions.
Alice (Rome didn't fall in one day) @ 16:
Bob Barr may be a fine fellow, I like him much better as Libertarian Candidate. Not enough to vote for him, but more power to him.
snark/
This plus Ron Paul's protest will be . . . fun. =)
I'm not going to vote for him, but I like the idea of pulling the troops out and restoring Constitutional freedoms and protections (especially since that is a notion that is conspicuously absent from any discussions being conducted by either, McCain, Obama or Clinton). Of course, if he's really serious, the MSM will make mince-meat out of him, because shortening or ending the war is not favored by corporate Amerika, and any talk whatsoever about the Constitution has been declared off-limits and strictly verbötten by the same crew. He's going to have a hard time overcoming his neocon credentials.
Indigowatcher @ 4:
I couldn't agree more!
According to the wiki link, Barr now regrets voting for the Patriot Act.
And then there's this:
"Barr has been a vocal opponent of President George W. Bush's claim of authorization to wiretap transnational phone calls without individual judicial license. He has said, "What’s wrong with it is several-fold. One, it’s bad policy for our government to be spying on American citizens through the National Security Agency. Secondly, it’s bad to be spying on Americans without court oversight. And thirdly, it’s bad to be spying on Americans apparently in violation of federal laws against doing it without court order."
BTW, what you are looking at is just one of the faces (guises) of Republican re-branding.
Scy @ 23:
Ron Paul would be running as the libertarian if we weren't stuck with the two-party-go-nowhere system.
I just can't see how Barr's candidacy can be seen as an asset for McCain in any way. I mean, I can not see any circumstances where an Obama supporter would jump ship and support McCain or Barr over Clinton. Nor can I imagine a Clinton supporter jumping shipping ship and backing McCain or Barr over Obama. I just don't see that as being likely. I can see where McCain and Barr could split the right leaning independent or even far right voting block though. To me, that is highly likely indeed.
I have a feeling some McCain voters are very interested in Barr. McCain was thrown at them and now they might feel they have a choice.
Working for a small progressive-leaning media company I once sat in on and then edited an interview and discussion with Bob Barr and Tom Hartman. The discussion focused a great deal on civil liberties and the mounting evidence (2004-5) that the BushCheney axis was seriously assaulting the citizens' rights and privileges vis a vis privacy. I was genuinely shocked to hear make basically the same argument made by the left of center Hartman. In fact there was much he said that seemed quite reasonable and downright patriotic substantively, rather then jingoistically. Barr is anti-imperialist in the small-r republican vein, takes the same position as Paul on that score. I think with Barr we see how at the furthest reaches of the right one often runs into what is considered the furthest reaches of the left, namely a healthy reaction against government intrusiveness in the lives of The People - the "Don't Tread on Me" credo - and also a principled stand against the American Republic's metamorphisis into a blatent Imperium. Barr and Paul's critique of "big, bloated governement" seems also timely, since this entire culture appears to be waking up to the fact that we've all grown accustomed to living beyond our means, and the establishment US government is the prime examplar of that. So, while I intend to support Obama for a variety of reasons, I also find much to appreciate in Barr and Paul's rhetoric.
based on what he is vowing to do, I'd vote for him before I'd vote for Hillary.
I think Ron Paul realizes that he can do more to change the republican party from the inside, rather than the outside.
Planet B @ 32:
Why do you believe him? Are you aware of his past political record?
I know nothing about this guy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Barr
I know this is from Wikipedia, but it does share some insight into this man.
I think a lot of true conservatives will love Barr. He offers them a true alternative to the fake conservative and fake liberal McCain. McCain is just a fake.
http://www.chbn.com/Clip.aspx?key=8BF2D6BFC8CACD0C
Jordan @ 17:
I agree with Josh Marshall on this. His appeal to social conservatives is not so hot. If he helps Obama, it'll be in northern red states where Obama did fairly well and brought them into play. Dakotas, Montana, Colorado, maybe helping in Michigan if he runs well.
He has a bit of a flake reputation. He was one of the managers of the Clinton Impeachment, but I saw him on Bill Moyers once and he impressed me with his disdain for the Bush assault on the constitution and favored criminal charges and impeachment for the lot.
Republicans hear about Obama's plan to put the US under jurisdiction of UN courts and plans to take people's kids away if they don't have health insurance and they run as far away as they can from Obama.
In how many states will he be on the ballot?
Sure this guy is a nutcase beyond repair, but one of his proposals is to GET OUT OF IRAQ NOW !
That alone makes him a viable candidate.
tehghey @ 41:
Huh? Elaborate with citations, please.
tehghey @ 41:
Where might I find Obama's positions as you stated above?
Bob Barr, the John Edwards of the Right
Based on his own platform, Barr will have to conduct a John Edwards campaign, running against pretty much his entire voting record during his Congressional career. On every issue Barr names, he voted in the manner in which he now criticizes.
Let’s count them up:
Iraq War: voted to authorize.
Eavesdropping and “suspending habeas corpus” (which hasn’t happened — and war detainees have never had it): Voted for the Patriot Act.
Runaway spending: voted for Medicare, Part D — which McCain opposed.
What will he use for a campaign slogan — “In hindsight, I was a lousy Congressman”? That didn’t work for John Edwards this year in a major-party primary, and it won’t convince people to vote Libertarian, either.
---Ed Morrissey
I don't usually comment on such superficial matters as appearance, but with a face like Barr's, one shouldn't wear a mustache.
If you think this is going to hurt McCain, you people are nuts. McCain is a patriotic war hero and he will trounce Barack HUSSEIN Obama who can't even wear the flag pin and say the pledge. Patriotic whites will not vote for the unpatriotic black and you know it.
srday@cox.net
Day @ 48:
That's nice. Since you seem to be convinced that you have future predicting powers, may I request the Powerball number for the rest of this week and all of next?
After that you can return to merely parroting talking points.
Thanks in advance.
Re-Select John McCain and let the Republicans AND DemocRATS finish the contract ON
America!!!!!
Day @ 48:
wow!
words can't explain how wrong you are.
I don't know why people are making such a big deal about the election. There isn't going to be an election. Democracy is dead.
So let's see: all the Hillary supporters will vote McCain if Hill doesn't get the nomination and all the Hillary haters can now vote for Barr if Obama doesn't get the nomination. Barr offered the first resolution to inquire into impeachment proceedings, even before LewinskyGate. He was a #1 Clinton-hater. It's sad to think that any Dem would vote for anyone other than a Dem, but, these are the wacky, up-is-down times we are living in.
is it just me - or does this guy look part black.
Day @ 48:
You really do need to get out more. Out there where the truth lives and breathes.
Hey Dan, your moms calling you. Time to go have your pants changed, again...
Just wondering if anyone thought this guy looks like Wright had a baby with dustin diamond?
mudshark @ 36:
Thanks...I checked him...doesn't seem to be that much different than McBain...I get the feeling he's just a political opportunist, who flip-flops as much as, if not more so than ol' stinky-pants McBain...
I doubt he'll be much more than a bump in the road for either candidate.
Day @ 48:
John McCain was captured and subjected to over 5 years of brutal Russian-style brainwashing techniques.
Yep, that's the guy I want for President. Good choice.
Day @ 48:
The truth is, that most McCainites either don't know or ignore that fact that their "War Hero" graduated almost at the bottom of his class (894/899) at Annapolis. Moreover, I don't see how flying an A-4 Skyhawk poorly and getting caught makes him a hero...
I would support him, if it weren't for his statist history concerning the drug war. His stance in the past was anything but libertarian.
Ron Paul 2008
Day @ 48:
Ah STFU you racist, brainwashed, troglodyte, phillistine TROLL!
I find it most disturbing that what appears to be a community of well-informed and well-intended individuals that make up C&L's readership, can at the same time be so ignorant. A 2-party system is nothing short of an ideological dictatorship... If you really think Obama or Clinton will be anything but a facelift to the monster that is the 2-party fascist system this country has so well established, you really need to wake up and get a reality check. Your torches should have been lit a long time ago rather than siding with the lesser of 2 evils and think it will make any difference. Real change takes real measures.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 58:
The funny thing is, that he's going to spew all this backwards and upside down crap and some of the people will buy it.
And I'd like to say(not implying you) that anyone who says that they'll vote for this bunghole over the Dem nominee just because the nominee is not the one that they supported. Is showing that they're part of Limpbaughlls campaign to split the party.That's pretty obvious to me.
What happens when parents can't pay the insurance premiums mandated by Obama's forced insurance plan?
Will it be the same consequences as not paying the federal income tax?
Pay up or men with guns show up at your door?
Herbert @ 60:
Prisoner - yes
Survivor - yes
Victim - yes
Hero - no
election observation @ 54:
There is a rumor in Georgia that he's passing for white. In fact, he used to play "Dixie" as the background in his Congressional ads just to reassure white voters.
One of Barr's likely VP candidates is Daniel E. Williams. He is a proponent of repealing all drug laws. He is the author of "The Naked Truth about Drugs" which he sent to me to review. If you email him and mention the review, he will send you a free copy of the book.
RHM
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 61:
That makes a lot of sense: send him on his way pissed off, instead of trying to convert his logic and capture a potential vote. Hatred in either form sucks...
Wow! Who would of thought Barr would bring out ALL the winger trolls?
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 61:
Hurrr... Man use big word.
In the last few primaries, even when the math says that McCain's got it all locked up for the nomination, 1 out of 4 voters is casting an anybody-but-McCain vote. Run, Bob Barr, run.
Iznogood @ 62:
I'll take a Democratic ideological dictatorship over a Republican ideological dictatorship any day.
Herbert @ 68:
Wow, is it 2 for 1 day? Because we just got a right wing troll and a concern troll in this thread...
Yeah, like you can reason with someone who considers McCain a patriot war hero, and who was obviously trolling for effect. You will have more success extracting olive oil from granite rocks. LOL
If concern trolls and hippies in general spend as much time defending the interest of the common people as they do losing sleep over the feelings of the troglodyte tribe, that is the right wing in this country, we would be in much much better shape.
But I will rest assured that when McCain gets elected and we end up with yet another war, you and your friends will do the best interpretative dance and puppetry show this side of the Mississippi in protest, that will show'em!
Bob Barr may be a little nutty but at least he's his own conservative voice. I actually like watching the guy on TV. He's true to his own principals, whatever they may be, instead of carrying the usual wingnut talking points.
Herbert @ 68:
Quite possibly the most intelligent comment I have ever seen on C&L.
RHM
theWalrus @ 72:
When discussing what part of a shit smells the least offensive, it should be pointed that at the end of the day you are talking about just that: shit.
I am personally tired of having to hold my nose every time I have to go to the voting booth.
Biggus Diggus @ 74:
Here Biggus, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Barr
mudshark @ 63:
I agree. Though I'm not one to vote a straight dem or repub ticket do or die...I will vote for any candidate, no matter what party they're from,if I think they are the best for the job, and if they have a decent chance of winning.
Herbert @ 68:
Normally, I would agree with you, but these Trolls can't be converted. They are likely on the GOP payroll. It would be a waste of time to try to convert them.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 79:
It was probably a hit-and-run troll anyway.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 78:
While I do keep a reluctant eye out for republicans that seem to have viable options, It's been my experience that they are all full of shit.. There hasn't been a decent one since Eisenhower, and even he had some issues that I disagree with.
mudshark @ 81:
Can't argue with that at all...
Rusty Shackleford @ 80:
Yeah...you're right...those bastards!
Fran Taylor @ 6:
I thought that statement was "Stay the Course" not "pull a Hill", but mcsame thing in my book! Why aren't people calling Hillary's steadfast, deadender, stay the course mentality pulling a GW?
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 82:
But I will say this, Sen Hagel seems to be worth looking at. Or is it that he's just able to read the writing on the wall?
theWalrus @ 72:
I guess that's what i'm taking issue with... you're really fighting against your own cause.
Yes, more monkey wrenches!
As for Day@48, i think he's kidding.
It sounds like my fake rant I did at some rightwing site:
The Dude @ 73:
You can reason with anyone dude, if you have facts and not call names. Or as in your case, try to use an ad hominem attack. Are you a child?
BobD @ 84:
Maybe because other people in other states haven't had the opportunity to vote yet.
mudshark @ 85:
Don't know squat about him either, I'll have to give him a look-see.
seagull.girl @ 44:
Libertarian conservitive here... He is correct.
I am a Ron Paul guy, not the crazy kind. I am lamenting going out for Obama but would find it a necessary evil if a very unknown L was on the ballot. I would will now vote for Barr. The liberals problem with his prosecution of Clinton can be washed away when you consider partisan politics. What Clinton did was wrong and an abuse of power. Not to mention the purgery. If a R did it you would go after him like crazy. The fact of the matter is I dont care one way or the other. I want to government to shrink and stop stealing my money and forcing me into slave labor to carry out whatever needless goal it currently has. This goes for Iraq and Healthcare.
Day @ 48:
PLEASE remove your cranium from your anus.
Bob Barr is popular with many democrats too. Not just the "Ron Paul crowd".
Herbert @ 88:
I have to call bullshit on that, no offense Herbert, but some people can't be reasoned with AT ALL! And the GOP operative that started this shit-storm in the first place, can't be turned, they're on a mission, under orders, to divide and conquer.
I understand totally where you're coming from, but I think in this case your concern is misplaced.
These trolls need to be id'd and run off ASAP, to minimize the damage they're attemping to do to us.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 90:
Here Liberalinmoderation, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Hagel
The guy seems to be worth looking at.
Drew @ 93:
Seriously doubt that.
Dr. Acula @ 96:
We're Talkin SERIOUSLY doubt.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 94:
Isn't calling someone a child an ad hominem attack?
I'm from Georgia, and I use to think Bob Barr was an a$$, but over the years, some of the things he talking about changed my view about him, like his view of the war, but I a strong Sen. Obama fan, but I wish Mr. Barr well, someone in the Republican party or used to be in the party to see we are headed in the wrong direction, and I look at Mr. Barr as the anti-Liberman.
Fanon @ 98:
No, look it up.
Nick @ 91:
No he isn't.
I doubt that anyone into Ron Paul is interested in Bob Barr. Not at this point anyway.
Herbert @ 100:
Do you think because you phrased it as a question that it doesn't meet the criteria?
mudshark @ 95:
Thanks, I've seen this guy on my teevee before...he struck me as a no BS kinda guy.
Jordan @ 17:
I had a brother-in-law who voted for George Wallace. He hated Nixon, but he could bring himself to vote third party. This guy will do nicely for all the folks out there who just can't find someone conservative enough to vote for and think McCain is too old and clueless.
Fanon @ 103:
I think that you have no interest in the post about Bob Barr.
"Republicans hear about Obama’s plan to put the US under jurisdiction of UN courts and plans to take people’s kids away if they don’t have health insurance and they run as far away as they can from Obama."
Are you ignorant or do you think that your audience is ignorant? You must know that neither of these claims is true at all and that, furthermore, these are the kinds of reactionary lies that certain operatives spew in order to control the uninformed populace's vote through fear. Do you REALLY think Obama wants the U.S. to surrender its sovereignty to the U.N. or that Obama will take away people's civil liberties and CHILDREN in the cause of his health-care plan? If you do, you are worse than misinformed. You are dangerously ignorant and, alas, not alone. So which is it? Are you buying other people's lies about certain Obama policies or are you consciously spewing the lies yourself? Are you, in essence, a crook or a rube?
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 104:
Hagel is a stand up guy.
Fanon @ 103:
GAH! My head is aching now...lol! the definition for ad hominem is friggin huge!
I blame Bush.
Bob Barr on the Libertarian ticket will cancel out the negative effect of Ralph Nader on the Green Party ticketl
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 109:
Sorry LINmod. Didn't mean to give you a headache. ;)
Wasn't Barr the author of the Defense of Marriage act?
mudshark @ 36:
Fanon @ 112:
yes. Here Fanon.
mudshark @ 113:
Picking through that, now...
Herbert @ 88:
Yeah, and I am sure that if we wait long enough and wish hard enough pigs will come out flying out of my ass.
My advice to you: stop wasting time defending the feelings of those who hate your guts and want you gone, and start concentrating on defending your own interests.
There is a reason why liberals/leftist are pretty much an extinct breed in this country. And my gut feeling is that this whole hippie love child crapfest ended up creating dolts who are unable to pick the correct fight.
Herbert @ 100:
LOL, why do concern trolls walk the hypocrisy waltz so well?
Nick @ 91:
I guess that I would take you seriously, but if you can't even spell your own political affiliation correctly (It is "conservative" btw) without any citations to back the original claim. Then let me call BULLSHIT on that one.
I am also fascinated by libertarians, who can equate healthcare (you know caring for your fellow man and their health) with the Iraq war (an illegal war of aggression). Truly speaks volumes about the twisted logic of the libertarians...
The Dude @ 115:
I thought we were done with the word vomiting dude...I really don't care about your inaccurate reasoning anymore.
Although Barr introduced the bill to impeach Clinton, he also had an affair while married. Earlier though.
http://www.americanpolitics.com/011399GailBarr.html
I knew the neocons would figure out a way to rip McSame a new one. This is it.
They are basically going to concede the election to the Dems (barring a complete disaster or collapse by the Dems before November - not an altogether impossible occurence) and then sit back and wait for the new administration to make mistakes while trying to untangle the absolute mess that was made the past 8 years.
They're looking ahead already to 2012. McSame will go down in flames ( a la his Vietnam combat experience) and Barr may actually do quite well down south. The Dems, meanwhile, should consider this a god-send.....unless they can find a way to screw up as close to a "sure thing" as they'll ever have. Oh no........knock on wood.
C'mon Rick -- don't jinx the dems -- as you've intimated, they're good enough at f*cking things up on their own!
casper46 @ 69:
What about the Bon Jovi trolls?
Go BOB!
Barr/Perot 08
:D
This man was THE author of the Defense of Marriage Act. How can he possibly call himself a libertarian and how could he possibly be chosen as the Libertarian nominee? Next to the Patriot Act, DOMA is probably the most UN-libertarian piece of legislation to come out of Washington D.C. in the last twenty years.
Are there any libertarians here who can explain this to me?
I'm a left-leaning Libertarian, believe it or not!
I'm planning to vote for Obama (and already voted for him in the primary) -- but having a Libertarian spoil a Republican campaign, allowing Obama to become president, would probably be the best thing that could possibly happen for my personal political agenda at the national level.
Obama doesn't seem like a particularly Libertarian candidate, but he does seem to understand the government's responsibilities in the relationship between the government and the people. Even if my ideal is a government that governs as little as reasonable, having a big government that understands its responsibilities is something that I can really get behind! Especially after Bush.
Bring on the post-Busholini era NOW!
I hope that Bob Barr can siphon off enough votes from McCain to not only keep him out of the White House but also to make this election cycle one of the most embarassing ones for the GOP in their history. I hope that Libertarians make great strides and inroads into splintering the GOP. And surely, Bob Barr is the man to do it. Unusual for third-party campaigns, Barr already is recognized nationally - in particular for his ugly and vengeful pursuit of Bill Clinton during the impeachment proceedings.
Good luck, Bob. I hope that you can rid us of the menace of another Bush term by kicking McCain to the curb.
Has Barr gotten himself a nifty blimp yet?
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 91:
Hagel voted for the Iraq War and the Patriot Act (just like Hillary, Just like McCain, Kerry, Edwards...)
ron paul for his VP?
I wouldn't doubt an avid voter, yet also a disgruntled republican voter, would not hesitate to vote for a more fringe conservative party, to send a message to the republicans to change thier ways .
Herbert @ 119:
It is so easy to see your true colors when you have to deal with some one having the audacity of disagreeing with you, then voila... LOL
Please, spare me the whole high horse routine. It am really tired of the hypocrisy displayed by the likes of you, always forcing other people to follow your standard of "understanding" that none of you bother to apply to yourselves. It started with your complaining about ad hominem attacks with... taadaaa an ad hominem attack.
Anyhow, back to Bob Barr and his merry bunch of insane conservatives. If anything, good for him...
tehghey @ 129:
Yup, he is just trying to cover his ass. There is no honor among thieves or politicians, sad that it will be spin as Hagel having a back bone... and not what it really is: Hagel trying to save his seat.
pol @ 11:
thats a very broad and ignorant statement to make. sure there are racists in Georgia; however, there are racists all over this country, its not just in the South. statments like these are whats wrong with this counrty. I've lived in Georgia most of my life and I'm not a racist. I voted for John Edwards in the primary but I will gladly vote for Obama come Nov.
Zeke @ 124:
Expecting a libertarian to follow logic, is like expecting a carrot to understand the subtetlies of the quantum physics.
The libertarian party is nothing but a bunch of uneducated, over entitled boobs, trying to find a loop hole and a marketing approach to make "I got mine so fuck you" a valid and acceptable social doctrine.
The Dude, Hagel is not trying to save his seat. He's leaving the Senate.
McCain is going to get thrashed in any event, and Barr, opportunist that he is, can see this as a great chance to get public attention when people know their vote for McCain won't matter anyway. So, IMO, he stands a great chance of attracting a large GOP protest vote. Of course, if this happens, the MSM, retards that they (generally) are, will be all over how the US is becoming Libertarian...
The Dude @ 134:
I can see that you've met some Libertarians. Of course, met one, met 'em all...
The Dude @ 134:
I agree except for one word: uneducated. My experience is that, to the contrary, many libertarians are highly educated. Most often, they are economists or engineering types (including many software engineers). People who think that every aspect of the whole world, including social policy, can effectively be reduced to a system of equations. Which is their strength as engineers, but their weakness as participants in the political arena. Just my opinion, YMMV.
Bob Barr is hardly a Libertarian. He's an Authoritarian who thinks the Libertarian Party is just less evil than the Republicans right now, and the lesser evil between Progressives and Libertarians.
I doubt people will take him seriously.
Except maybe in his home state of Georgia.......which would be awesome, since it's solidly red. It'd be great to split conservatives there, and snatch up all 15 electoral votes for Obama with a small plurality of the popular vote.
Rusty Shackleford @ 138:
I wish libertarian-minded people weren't all immediately associated with the Libertarian Party of the United States. Not everyone who is influence by libertarian thought agrees with the orthodox stances of what has come to be American Libertarianism.
I'm still a libertarian-progressive. This seems oxymoronic to Americans, but not the rest of the western world.
Karen - that little capitalization does make a lot of difference, dunnit? Wish I could say I was democratic if starting to disassociate from the Democratic Party. So I just have to say I'm liberal, or progressive, but vote Democratic out of no-other-choice.
I fear that what's happening with the Democrats is what has happened with the Republicans; the definition of Republican has become nearly totally divorced from the definition of conservative over the past ten, fifteen years of neo-Con infection. So many decent, good-hearted conservatives - some I'm happy to call friends - shudder to be linked with the Republican Party any longer. I don't really want to end up the same way, but it might just happen to us as well...
The Dude @ 116:
Stop talking.
Karen @ 140:
My theory is that everybody is a libertarian when the government does something they don't like. :^)
El Cid @ 1:
I hope so.
Karen @ 139:
There is still plenty of time for McSame to self destruct. He could gain lots of votes between now and then.
Joe O. @ 29:
You people must not understand anything. Bob Barr will pull a lot of republican votes and the votes Hillary would have got if Obama is the ge canidate. He will get the votes that do not like either McCain or Obama and I can tell you that there a lot of people that will love to have a third person for whom to vote. I think that you will be surprised how many votes that he will get.
Ruthless People @ 7:
Maybe he's Rosie O'Donnel's Larry King?
Yeah, that doesnt make much sense, but this whole thread does remind me of a Doonesbury strip of why people are voting for people they dont want to vote for...it might have been in 2004.
'Im voting for Kerry to send a message to Bush'
'Im voting for Bush to send a message to Clinton'
'Im voting for Kucinich, but thinking about Perot and dedicating it to DeLay'
Garry Trudeau > *
Day @ 48:
we'll see
People should vote for this guy if Paul doesn't pull off a miracle. People have a chance here to get rid of the corruption. Leave the Partisan issues behind for now.
Say what you will about Barr, he was a lonely but vocal republican voice for constitutional liberties during the Bush/ Cheney nightmare.
People can disagree about things like abortion, and in fact both the left and right often oversimplify the issue. But when an administration decides to buttfuck the constitution, that's something that any true American should oppose, regardless of party lines. Given the lock-step culture of the 'Publicans, I give Barr kudos for doing so.
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