Roger Paxton: We are Libertarians
This was sent to the State Chairs list
February 27, 2014
We are not “Republican-light.” We are not “Democratic-light.” We are Libertarians.
It is tiresome to continually be asked why we would want to run a Libertarian candidate against a “good Republican” or “a good libertarian leaning Republican.” Would this same person ask that of the Democratic Party? Would this same person expect the Democratic Party to not run someone against a “good moderate Republican?” Of course not. So why do they ask us?
I believe Republicans and conservatives do this because they have a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to be a Libertarian. They believe we share some sort of camaraderie with them but can offer no proof of what makes them think this way. They throw around words like “Republican-libertarian,” and “conservative libertarian,” and “constitutional libertarian” like these word salads have some sort of meaning. They do not.
A libertarian is someone who believes in the non-aggression principle, plain and simple. Simply put, the non-aggression principle states that no man may initiate force or fraud against another person or his property. This is also called “classically liberal” in many circles and fits just as well as the word libertarian. The political party that upholds these libertarian principles is conveniently named The Libertarian Party. Republicans and Democrats have no such moral compass. This is evident in the sort of legislation both parties have brought us. However, since I am talking about the Republicans today, let’s see what they have done to this state and country recently.
· Republicans have brought us, in the last legislative session in Arkansas alone, a bill that steals $125 million from the taxpayer’s pockets to give to a for-profit steel mill.
· The Republicans also passed legislation in the last session making it more difficult for the Libertarian Party to get on the ballot, restricting our freedom of speech and freedom of choice.
· The Republicans also passed legislation increasing an already ridiculous burden for the citizens of Arkansas to bring ballot initiatives to the people to vote on. · The Republicans also brought us a bill to be voted on that will double their term limits.
· The Republicans have also brought us a bill making it much more difficult and expensive for a person to get certain body modifications to their own body. And this was all just in the last session alone!
· Now, in the current fiscal session, the Arkansas Republicans are trying to ram the private option funding through the House any way they can! The private option is the largest expansion of Medicaid in Arkansas history and was passed initially last session in our Republican-controlled legislature! And one of the biggest supporters of getting this passed in this fiscal session? Nate Bell, the supposed “libertarian Republican!” And you wonder why these word salads like “libertarian Republican” have no meaning.
Federally, things are just as bad, if not worse. Republicans brought us the PATRIOT Act, Homeland Security, TSA, Medicaid Part D, multiple stimulus packages to prop up private companies, multiple wars to massively increase the military budget, pork, etc. I could keep going, but you get the point. All of these programs stole money from our pockets and stole freedom from our lives.
These are supposedly the “fiscally conservative” Republicans. And yet you wonder why Libertarians candidates run against “good Republicans.”
As independent reporter Steve Brawner said in the Times Record today, “”Libertarians are the party of less government — really less government…That sounds like Republican rhetoric, but Libertarians are a lot more serious about it, and the party’s less government philosophy lands it to the left of many Arkansas Democrats on social issues.” Mr. Brawner gets it. Why don’t the Republicans get it?
This is the reason the Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing party in Arkansas, because we get it. We get that the people of this great country and great state are fed up with the false choices they are being given at the ballot box. We get that people are finally saying, “ENOUGH!” The Libertarian Party is giving these voters real choice, a real difference from the eerily similar Republican and Democrat parties. People every day are fed up, looking around, and realizing that they too are Libertarians.
R. Lee Wrights, the Vice-Chair of the Libertarian National Committee, said today on his Facebook page, “Libertarians do nothing for America or themselves by joining and supporting our oppressors! WE gain nothing and America loses every time someone falls for this load of elephant droppings. Republicans cannot be trusted. We have learned even the Democrats have more integrity than Republicans. Not by much, mind you, but by a degree. Democrats tell us they are going to take our money and give it to others, then, they get elected and do it. Republicans lie through their teeth and tell us, “Vote for us, we are not like that!” Then, they get elected, take our money, and give it to their friends. Republicans and Democrats are two wings on the same bird of prey.”
I could not have said it better myself. We are no longer content with elephant and donkey droppings. We are no longer content pulling the lever for these people who campaign one way and then legislate another. We are no longer willing to play their games and allow them to run roughshod over us. We are not Republicans. We are not Democrats. WE ARE LIBERTARIANS! And, in Arkansas anyway, we are here to stay and to win.
Rodger Paxton is currently the secretary of the Libertarian Party of Arkansas. He ran for Congress in 2012, receiving more than 20 % of the vote in a two-way race. It appears he’ll be running for that same office again this year (District 51).
This was sent to the State Chairs list
February 27, 2014
We are not “Republican-light.” We are not “Democratic-light.” We are Libertarians.
It is tiresome to continually be asked why we would want to run a Libertarian candidate against a “good Republican” or “a good libertarian leaning Republican.” Would this same person ask that of the Democratic Party? Would this same person expect the Democratic Party to not run someone against a “good moderate Republican?” Of course not. So why do they ask us?
I believe Republicans and conservatives do this because they have a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to be a Libertarian. They believe we share some sort of camaraderie with them but can offer no proof of what makes them think this way. They throw around words like “Republican-libertarian,” and “conservative libertarian,” and “constitutional libertarian” like these word salads have some sort of meaning. They do not.
A libertarian is someone who believes in the non-aggression principle, plain and simple. Simply put, the non-aggression principle states that no man may initiate force or fraud against another person or his property. This is also called “classically liberal” in many circles and fits just as well as the word libertarian. The political party that upholds these libertarian principles is conveniently named The Libertarian Party. Republicans and Democrats have no such moral compass. This is evident in the sort of legislation both parties have brought us. However, since I am talking about the Republicans today, let’s see what they have done to this state and country recently.
· Republicans have brought us, in the last legislative session in Arkansas alone, a bill that steals $125 million from the taxpayer’s pockets to give to a for-profit steel mill.
· The Republicans also passed legislation in the last session making it more difficult for the Libertarian Party to get on the ballot, restricting our freedom of speech and freedom of choice.
· The Republicans also passed legislation increasing an already ridiculous burden for the citizens of Arkansas to bring ballot initiatives to the people to vote on. · The Republicans also brought us a bill to be voted on that will double their term limits.
· The Republicans have also brought us a bill making it much more difficult and expensive for a person to get certain body modifications to their own body. And this was all just in the last session alone!
· Now, in the current fiscal session, the Arkansas Republicans are trying to ram the private option funding through the House any way they can! The private option is the largest expansion of Medicaid in Arkansas history and was passed initially last session in our Republican-controlled legislature! And one of the biggest supporters of getting this passed in this fiscal session? Nate Bell, the supposed “libertarian Republican!” And you wonder why these word salads like “libertarian Republican” have no meaning.
Federally, things are just as bad, if not worse. Republicans brought us the PATRIOT Act, Homeland Security, TSA, Medicaid Part D, multiple stimulus packages to prop up private companies, multiple wars to massively increase the military budget, pork, etc. I could keep going, but you get the point. All of these programs stole money from our pockets and stole freedom from our lives.
These are supposedly the “fiscally conservative” Republicans. And yet you wonder why Libertarians candidates run against “good Republicans.”
As independent reporter Steve Brawner said in the Times Record today, “”Libertarians are the party of less government — really less government…That sounds like Republican rhetoric, but Libertarians are a lot more serious about it, and the party’s less government philosophy lands it to the left of many Arkansas Democrats on social issues.” Mr. Brawner gets it. Why don’t the Republicans get it?
This is the reason the Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing party in Arkansas, because we get it. We get that the people of this great country and great state are fed up with the false choices they are being given at the ballot box. We get that people are finally saying, “ENOUGH!” The Libertarian Party is giving these voters real choice, a real difference from the eerily similar Republican and Democrat parties. People every day are fed up, looking around, and realizing that they too are Libertarians.
R. Lee Wrights, the Vice-Chair of the Libertarian National Committee, said today on his Facebook page, “Libertarians do nothing for America or themselves by joining and supporting our oppressors! WE gain nothing and America loses every time someone falls for this load of elephant droppings. Republicans cannot be trusted. We have learned even the Democrats have more integrity than Republicans. Not by much, mind you, but by a degree. Democrats tell us they are going to take our money and give it to others, then, they get elected and do it. Republicans lie through their teeth and tell us, “Vote for us, we are not like that!” Then, they get elected, take our money, and give it to their friends. Republicans and Democrats are two wings on the same bird of prey.”
I could not have said it better myself. We are no longer content with elephant and donkey droppings. We are no longer content pulling the lever for these people who campaign one way and then legislate another. We are no longer willing to play their games and allow them to run roughshod over us. We are not Republicans. We are not Democrats. WE ARE LIBERTARIANS! And, in Arkansas anyway, we are here to stay and to win.
Rodger Paxton is currently the secretary of the Libertarian Party of Arkansas. He ran for Congress in 2012, receiving more than 20 % of the vote in a two-way race. It appears he’ll be running for that same office again this year (District 51).
My response:
I encourage you to run a Libertarian candidate at every election.
Ron Paul's first campaign for president was as a Libertarian candidate. As a Libertarian candidate, he didn't poll very well and despite the party's best efforts, RP lost miserably.
Ron then ran his next 2 presidential campaigns as a Republican candidate (even though he retained and continued espousing his Libertarian philosophy). As a result, it is important to note that Ron achieved increasing polling success with each campaign despite being cheated, robbed, and stabbed in the back by his own, corrupt, Republican party.
Thanks to Mr. Obama's "fundamental transformation of America" he shocked and alerted the Citizens with his Marxist policies and millions united under the the Tea Party banner which, to Mr. Obama's chagrin, fundamentally transformed the political landscape in 2010 and remains a growing political force.
I believe that the Tea Party exists because the Citizens have come to realize and accept that BOTH the Democrat and Republican parties are corrupt. The Republicans used to stand for the Republic but they have become a shadow of themselves. And rather than try to start another political party, the Tea Party is intent on getting their candidates elected to return the party back to its' original, conservative roots.
And while I agree with Mr. Paxton's rant against the Republican party, he ignores the greater damage wrought by the Democrat party:
1. The Democrat party endorsed a constitutionally unqualified candidate. (And what's scary worse is that despite the overwhelming evidence against Obama, "We the People" were fooled not only once but twice). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3aCfR8rmrw;
2. ONLY the Democrats (unanimously) passed the single biggest, costliest, most intrusive social welfare program: Obamacare;
3. Has added more unsustainable debt than all previous presidents combined;
4. Has pushed not only to infringe more on our Second Amendment Rights but openly pushing to ban all weapons;
5. Pushing for amnesty for illegal immigrants;
6. Gave us Detroit and virtually everywhere else where Democrats dominate, the economies are suffering and going bankrupt because of their liberal spending policies and unfunded pension liabilities;
7. More than the Republicans, the Democrat party prostitutes itself by voting for increasing "free" social welfare programs from our treasury in order to keep buying more votes to stay in power. This policy does nothing more than to enslave and make "We the People" increasingly more dependent in government, dulling an individual's independence and initiative. Is it any wonder that there is an increasing class divide.
8. The voters of Seattle, Washington just elected an openly socialist Mayor.
The Democrats are controlled by the Socialist/Marxist unions and, as a result, have become Socialist/Marxist themselves. The Democrat party continues lurching further and further left until the Republicans dig their heels in and "nothing gets done in Washington, D.C." Then the Democrats scream like stuck pigs about "compromise" until the Republicans relent which only serves to drag the Republican party further left. The only difference between the Democrat and Republican party is that the Democrats are on the High Speed Rail to Socialism while the Republicans are on AMTRAK.
While I believe that BOTH Democrat and Republican parties are corrupt, Mr. Paxton's obviously biased remarks makes me suspicious of his true political leanings.
The Tea Party has had a greater impact on the political process in the 5 years it has existed compared to all the decades that the Libertarian Party has existed. Why? Trying to get the Libertarians to march in the same direction is like herding cats. At least the Tea Party is cohesive because they are united by one thing: The Constitution of the United States (1791). They want to bring fiscal sanity and protect free markets and have succeeded in getting people like Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, and many others elected into Congress. Just the thought of a Federal Reserve Bank audit scares the crap out of the Wall Street banking elites.
Finally, R. Lee Wrights is quoted as saying "We have learned even the Democrats have more integrity than Republicans...Democrats tell us they are going to take our money and give it to others, then, they get elected and do it." No truer words were ever spoken but while they may have more "integrity" in that respect, it certainly doesn't mean that they aren't more evil in their intentions.
The take away here is that "We the People" must stop voting blindly for party which divides us, and VOTE FOR THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, which unites us. But in order to do that, "We the People" must know and understand it. We have to read it, study it, and understand the Republic that our Founding Fathers intended. Then we need to teach it to our children because the COTUS isn't held in high esteem or being taught in our schools like it needs to be.
I'm with you if you are interested in reclaiming the Republic and restoring the Constitution of the United States (1791).
Thank you for your time and consideration.
I encourage you to run a Libertarian candidate at every election.
Ron Paul's first campaign for president was as a Libertarian candidate. As a Libertarian candidate, he didn't poll very well and despite the party's best efforts, RP lost miserably.
Ron then ran his next 2 presidential campaigns as a Republican candidate (even though he retained and continued espousing his Libertarian philosophy). As a result, it is important to note that Ron achieved increasing polling success with each campaign despite being cheated, robbed, and stabbed in the back by his own, corrupt, Republican party.
Thanks to Mr. Obama's "fundamental transformation of America" he shocked and alerted the Citizens with his Marxist policies and millions united under the the Tea Party banner which, to Mr. Obama's chagrin, fundamentally transformed the political landscape in 2010 and remains a growing political force.
I believe that the Tea Party exists because the Citizens have come to realize and accept that BOTH the Democrat and Republican parties are corrupt. The Republicans used to stand for the Republic but they have become a shadow of themselves. And rather than try to start another political party, the Tea Party is intent on getting their candidates elected to return the party back to its' original, conservative roots.
And while I agree with Mr. Paxton's rant against the Republican party, he ignores the greater damage wrought by the Democrat party:
1. The Democrat party endorsed a constitutionally unqualified candidate. (And what's scary worse is that despite the overwhelming evidence against Obama, "We the People" were fooled not only once but twice). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3aCfR8rmrw;
2. ONLY the Democrats (unanimously) passed the single biggest, costliest, most intrusive social welfare program: Obamacare;
3. Has added more unsustainable debt than all previous presidents combined;
4. Has pushed not only to infringe more on our Second Amendment Rights but openly pushing to ban all weapons;
5. Pushing for amnesty for illegal immigrants;
6. Gave us Detroit and virtually everywhere else where Democrats dominate, the economies are suffering and going bankrupt because of their liberal spending policies and unfunded pension liabilities;
7. More than the Republicans, the Democrat party prostitutes itself by voting for increasing "free" social welfare programs from our treasury in order to keep buying more votes to stay in power. This policy does nothing more than to enslave and make "We the People" increasingly more dependent in government, dulling an individual's independence and initiative. Is it any wonder that there is an increasing class divide.
8. The voters of Seattle, Washington just elected an openly socialist Mayor.
The Democrats are controlled by the Socialist/Marxist unions and, as a result, have become Socialist/Marxist themselves. The Democrat party continues lurching further and further left until the Republicans dig their heels in and "nothing gets done in Washington, D.C." Then the Democrats scream like stuck pigs about "compromise" until the Republicans relent which only serves to drag the Republican party further left. The only difference between the Democrat and Republican party is that the Democrats are on the High Speed Rail to Socialism while the Republicans are on AMTRAK.
While I believe that BOTH Democrat and Republican parties are corrupt, Mr. Paxton's obviously biased remarks makes me suspicious of his true political leanings.
The Tea Party has had a greater impact on the political process in the 5 years it has existed compared to all the decades that the Libertarian Party has existed. Why? Trying to get the Libertarians to march in the same direction is like herding cats. At least the Tea Party is cohesive because they are united by one thing: The Constitution of the United States (1791). They want to bring fiscal sanity and protect free markets and have succeeded in getting people like Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, and many others elected into Congress. Just the thought of a Federal Reserve Bank audit scares the crap out of the Wall Street banking elites.
Finally, R. Lee Wrights is quoted as saying "We have learned even the Democrats have more integrity than Republicans...Democrats tell us they are going to take our money and give it to others, then, they get elected and do it." No truer words were ever spoken but while they may have more "integrity" in that respect, it certainly doesn't mean that they aren't more evil in their intentions.
The take away here is that "We the People" must stop voting blindly for party which divides us, and VOTE FOR THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, which unites us. But in order to do that, "We the People" must know and understand it. We have to read it, study it, and understand the Republic that our Founding Fathers intended. Then we need to teach it to our children because the COTUS isn't held in high esteem or being taught in our schools like it needs to be.
I'm with you if you are interested in reclaiming the Republic and restoring the Constitution of the United States (1791).
Thank you for your time and consideration.