• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Libertarian Gary Johnson Announces 2016 White House Run

L

Luke Skywalker

Banned
DP Veteran
Joined
May 4, 2007
Messages
1,151
Reaction score
1,022
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Undisclosed
Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson is giving a White House run another try in 2016.
The former New Mexico governor announced during a FOX Business interview that he'll run for the Libertarian nomination for the presidency.
Click to expand...

This guy has my vote locked up - the ONLY true conservative (with the possible exception of Rand Paul) whom has entered this race so far. Us Libertarians probably won't win, but we are right and both major parties are wrong. I am choosing to be on the right side, instead of drinking the red or blue cool aid and caving in to all the right/left wing media hype. IF you want real change and/or to really take your country back in 2016, then I hope you'll follow my example.

Donald Duck and/or HiLIARy wouldn't have a prayer if Johnson received half the media attention they do, by the way.

Read more here: Libertarian Gary Johnson Announces 2016 White House Run - NBC News
 
Last edited:
Took his time. Jesus.
 
Not a surprise, but it would be nice to see him do better against establishment Republicans and Democrats.
 
He is a good guy, but the LP is a freaking joke. In 46 years of running candidates, they have never gotten above 1% in a presidential election, never elected a congressman, never elected a senator. Massive fail.

Only time they elect someone is when a candidates runs for a podunk city or county board and they don't have an opponent.
 
Luke Skywalker said:
This guy has my vote locked up - the ONLY true conservative (with the possible exception of Rand Paul) whom has entered this race so far. Us Libertarians probably won't win, but we are right and both major parties are wrong. I am choosing to be on the right side, instead of drinking the red or blue cool aid and caving in to all the right/left wing media hype. IF you want real change and/or to really take your country back in 2016, then I hope you'll follow my example.

Donald Duck and/or HiLIARy wouldn't have a prayer if Johnson received half the media attention they do, by the way.

Read more here: Libertarian Gary Johnson Announces 2016 White House Run - NBC News
Click to expand...

I like Gary. He's a good guy and a rare straight-forward, honest politician.
 
OrphanSlug said:
Not a surprise, but it would be nice to see him do better against establishment Republicans and Democrats.
Click to expand...

beefheart said:
He is a good guy, but the LP is a freaking joke. In 46 years of running candidates, they have never gotten above 1% in a presidential election, never elected a congressman, never elected a senator. Massive fail.

Only time they elect someone is when a candidates runs for a podunk city or county board and they don't have an opponent.
Click to expand...

We all know this is basically a media war - the guy can't even nudge his way into a major debate.

Look, I still have enough faith in the American people to possibly elect a Libertarian in the White House some day. They just don't really understand what Libertarians stand for - it's Greek to them, or something. Part of the problem is - imho - the way our kids are educated (brainwashed).

Ignorance, however, can be corrected - stupidity can't be. I really believe people - for the most part - are just plain ignorant, which is the mainstream media's fault.
 
Luke Skywalker said:
We all know this is basically a media war - the guy can't even nudge his way into a major debate.

Look, I still have enough faith in the American people to possibly elect a Libertarian in the White House some day. They just don't really understand what Libertarians stand for - it's Greek to them, or something. Part of the problem is - imho - the way our kids are educated (brainwashed).

Ignorance, however, can be corrected - stupidity can't be. I really believe people - for the most part - are just plain ignorant, which is the mainstream media's fault.
Click to expand...

I went to a LP convention once, it was the biggest joke ever. Everyone was all being "an indivdualist" and no consensus on anything could be reached. It is a terribly run embarassment.
 
poweRob said:
I like Gary. He's a good guy and a rare straight-forward, honest politician.
Click to expand...

Exactly - and probably also explains why he doesn't do that well against establishment candidates. :(
 
beefheart said:
He is a good guy, but the LP is a freaking joke. In 46 years of running candidates, they have never gotten above 1% in a presidential election, never elected a congressman, never elected a senator. Massive fail.

Only time they elect someone is when a candidates runs for a podunk city or county board and they don't have an opponent.
Click to expand...

Well, I can say I have been to enough Libertarian meetings in my area that I can no longer claim that lean at all. It is difficult for their message to take hold, so much of it is based on a sense of individualism that even basic government interactions are in question, and often the rhetoric comes off as militant.

I have always liked their general Constitutional lean, and see many associations to old school Classical Liberalism. But we are so far down the road in our society of being somewhere between the selfishness / complacency and apathy / dependence stages that it is near impossible for Libertarian messages to mean much. You add that to our two party dominant system of politics and it is lights out for their cause.

Independents have a better chance, even with their also lack of organization politically.

But for Libertarians their fail is their lack of unified message. Libertarians here in GA complain about judicial latitude in deciding bail amounts and conditions when not talking about open carry rights, Libertarians out west complain about government in economics and in schools, Libertarians elsewhere complain about the Fed and oligarchy, some every so often will talk about our foreign policy. Just all over the place.

This time I think Gary Johnson is literally running to see through the lawsuit against... really anyone... who excludes Libertarians from general election debates.
 
beefheart said:
I went to a LP convention once, it was the biggest joke ever. Everyone was all being "an indivdualist" and no consensus on anything could be reached. It is a terribly run embarassment.
Click to expand...

Sure, but was there booze?
 
The best he can do is take a few critical votes away from one of the other two candidates, whoever they may be.
 
azgreg said:
Sure, but was there booze?
Click to expand...

No. But there were tons of very armed people running around talking about any anti-government subject you could think of, and a few I've never even considered. It was so all over the place and disorganized I knew after several meetings over time I was in the wrong group.
 
azgreg said:
Sure, but was there booze?
Click to expand...

More like "were there sober people?"

There were some real nutters, one guy dressed up as statue of liberty the whole time, with the torch in one hand and a big glass of scotch in the other, didn't talk to anyone. I had a friend that was way into LP back then, and I happened to be in Chicago visiting a friend. so I went....it was enough to keep me from being in the party.
 
Luke Skywalker said:
Exactly - and probably also explains why he doesn't do that well against establishment candidates. :(
Click to expand...

He does well. He's just in a third party and the two party system works together to quash third parties. They conspire to keep them out of debates and out of view of the public as much as they can. Then when they make it on the news all the reporter does is start off with, "Well you know you can't win..." before they start any questions. Gary was always a straight-forewards good guy politician even when he was governor here in New Mexico. So he can win, but the battle as third party is fraught with obstacles of conspiracy and deceit.
 
beefheart said:
I went to a LP convention once, it was the biggest joke ever. Everyone was all being "an indivdualist" and no consensus on anything could be reached. It is a terribly run embarassment.
Click to expand...

Both major parties' ability to organize is impeccable - the secret to their success. Libertarians are individualists - we just want to be left alone - and don't really agree on anything, which frankly is one of our flaws. You know what they say - no two humans ever agree on anything 100% of the time.

Most establishment voters basically have their party do the thinking for them - it's "How does the Democratic and/or Republican Party feel about this issue?" "Gee, maybe that's how I should think, as well!" Libertarians, on the other hand, operate precisely the opposite. We decide first how we feel about the issues, then try to match a candidate that closely aligns with us. It's what Ayn Rand calls Intellectualism - whom happens to be one of our heroes, by the way.

But I do agree with your basic point - we do not organize well. Intellectualism and Individuality do not work well when trying to mobilize people to win an election. Like I said - we won't win. But, we can at least send a message and try, anyway, to get people to think for themselves.
 
azgreg said:
I wish he was in this GOP race.
Click to expand...

That would be boss... a general between he and Bernie. Man, talk about a good debate on policy views and direction. But I would always have faith that both of them truly have the public's best interest in mind. Just differing views on what to do.
 
beefheart said:
I went to a LP convention once, it was the biggest joke ever. Everyone was all being "an indivdualist" and no consensus on anything could be reached. It is a terribly run embarassment.
Click to expand...

As was my experience in the green party. Everybody claimed to want to grow the party but never agreed on anything except on occasion and that occasion they would vote in a manner that always assured that nothing would change and it'd remain their own little tiny private club gathering.

Bottom line of local third party orgs... they tend to be too purist and aren't accepting of very much outside of themselves.
 
Last edited:
My best wishes to him possibly eclipsing 1% in the popular vote this time.
 
Luke Skywalker said:
Both major parties' ability to organize is impeccable - the secret to their success. Libertarians are individualists - we just want to be left alone - and don't really agree on anything, which frankly is one of our flaws. You know what they say - no two humans ever agree on anything 100% of the time.

Most establishment voters basically have their party do the thinking for them - it's "How does the Democratic and/or Republican Party feel about this issue?" "Gee, maybe that's how I should think, as well!" Libertarians, on the other hand, operate precisely the opposite. We decide first how we feel about the issues, then try to match a candidate that closely aligns with us. It's what Ayn Rand calls Intellectualism - whom happens to be one of our heroes, by the way.

But I do agree with your basic point - we do not organize well. Intellectualism and Individuality do not work well when trying to mobilize people to win an election. Like I said - we won't win. But, we can at least send a message and try, anyway, to get people to think for themselves.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but so many terrible candidates, Badnarik, Marrou, and then you had the whack job who took too much colloidial silver (one of those medicines THEY don't want you to know about) that his skin literally turned a shade of blue....permanently. You can't take a party seriously when they have a smurf as one of their politicians.
 
Zyphlin said:
My best wishes to him possibly eclipsing 1% in the popular vote this time.
Click to expand...

With a trump nomination by the GOP, many republicans might look elsewhere. Maybe not enough to win but maybe to gather a much larger percentage of the general election vote. There is a HUGE upside to that. Because in the next election that would put the Libertarian Party on the ballot so that they wouldn't have to collect signatures just to be seen on the ballot.

Most states have a general election threshold that if a party's candidate meets it... that's automatic ballot access for that party in the next election.

THAT is perhaps the biggest obstacle to third parties right there and his run could fix that for an election cycle or two for the Libertarians.
 
beefheart said:
Yeah, but so many terrible candidates, Badnarik, Marrou, and then you had the whack job who took too much colloidial silver (one of those medicines THEY don't want you to know about) that his skin literally turned a shade of blue....permanently. You can't take a party seriously when they have a smurf as one of their politicians.
Click to expand...

Chuckled at that last one - but that aside, I hope you are wrong about people not taking Gary seriously. I think that's all Libertarians want these days - to get the respect they deserve.

I just try to stay positive these days and not abandon the Libertarian Party quite yet.

I will confess that sometimes I want to jump ship myself and throw up my hands and go for one of the other major parties. Then Gary Johnson comes along and announces another candidacy. I really like him, so I'll stick around a little longer.
 
Luke Skywalker said:
We all know this is basically a media war - the guy can't even nudge his way into a major debate.

Look, I still have enough faith in the American people to possibly elect a Libertarian in the White House some day. They just don't really understand what Libertarians stand for - it's Greek to them, or something. Part of the problem is - imho - the way our kids are educated (brainwashed).

Ignorance, however, can be corrected - stupidity can't be. I really believe people - for the most part - are just plain ignorant, which is the mainstream media's fault.
Click to expand...

Gary Johnson was in several major debates four years ago.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom