Ye Olde Libertarian Pub (2)

[tampasteve]

You could well be right about all of that, IMO.

I still feel that a minor party that has at last achieved some degree of name recognition and was on 50 state ballots last time around ought to look too attractive not to lure somebody respectable into the race. But maybe not.

One would certainly hope so, but I have little knowledge of what goes on inside the upper levels of the party, they very well could be shunning or turning away people that they do not feel are "Libertarian enough". The person currently polling the highest (Hornbeger) has literally no experience. What would happen if any of these candidates actually were allowed on the National Debate stage? It would be a complete embarrassment and make the "Aleppo" slip look like just an amusement.

Honestly, unless someone makes a bid in the next couple of weeks to a month - the LP is done for. They will become like the Reform Party...still able to attract a semi-name candidate on occasion based on their previous cache, but not a force to be bothered with any longer other than as a vehicle for getting on some state ballots.

 

[Albion]

One would certainly hope so, but I have little knowledge of what goes on inside the upper levels of the party, they very well could be shunning or turning away people that they do not feel are "Libertarian enough".

From what I've heard, that isn't the case. And look at who has been welcomed in. Lincoln Chafee, for example, who has libertarian views (and a record) on only about two points and is distinctly non-libertarian otherwise.

The person currently polling the highest (Hornbeger) has literally no experience.

That's true, but FWIW such were the party's nominees before Bob Barr. Hornberger does present a decent image, speaks well, and is reasonable when it comes to some touchy issues.

I'd guess that he's the frontrunner right now, but that doesn't mean he would be able to prevent the outcome of the 2020 election from being what you forecast earlier.

What would happen if any of these candidates actually were allowed on the National Debate stage? It would be a complete embarrassment and make the "Aleppo" slip look like just an amusement.

My personal view is that several of them wouldn't disgrace the party, Hornberger included, and it would be hard to do worse than Johnson did, right?

Honestly, unless someone makes a bid in the next couple of weeks to a month - the LP is done for. They will become like the Reform Party...still able to attract a semi-name candidate on occasion based on their previous cache, but not a force to be bothered with any longer other than as a vehicle for getting on some state ballots.

That's entirely possible. Just what you said here.

 

[98cwitr]

Voted for Kokesh

 

[9Rock9]

I think I'm really a conservative, but I find myself more and more embracing the Libertarian Party.

I don't like what the GOP has become, but I don't agree with the Democrats on a whole lot. They're both authoritarians, just in different ways.

So, I think I'll be voting Libertarian for the foreseeable future since I see no better option.

 

[Albion]

I think I'm really a conservative, but I find myself more and more embracing the Libertarian Party.

I don't like what the GOP has become, but I don't agree with the Democrats on a whole lot. They're both authoritarians, just in different ways.

So, I think I'll be voting Libertarian for the foreseeable future since I see no better option.

Interesting post, 9Rock9. If you don't mind, here are some thoughts about that subject.

1. Practically speaking, you may have no other choice but to go Libertarian. None of the other minor parties has any significant following and/or organization. To vote for them would be simply an act of conscience. The votes cast for those candidates are usually not even reported.

2. Surprising as it may be, the LP does incorporate a wide range of ideologies, and the Party is okay with that.

3. Conservatism and Libertarianism are different, but there is a certain overlap that makes your possible decision to go with LP understandable. Limited government, free speech, private enterprise, and human rights, for instance.