Bob Barr

May 27, 2008

Just because Michael Bloomberg decided not to use a billion of his wealth to run for president on a third party ticket doesn’t mean others can’t spend a few million doing so. In the city that will select the Democratic nominee for president, the Libertarian party picked it’s candidate for this year’s election cycle- BOB BARR!

The Libertarian Party yesterday picked former Republican representative Bob Barr to be its presidential candidate after six rounds of balloting. Barr was victorious over Mary Ruwart, a research scientist who also sought the party’s presidential nominee unsuccessfully in 1983, on the final ballot. The vote was 324 to 276.

He endorsed Wayne Allyn Root, who was eliminated in the fifth round, to be his vice-presidential nominee.

Barr, 59, left the GOP in 2006 over what he called bloated spending and civil liberties intrusions by the Bush administration. The former representative from Georgia said he is in the race to win. Let me see, isn’t that what Hillary is saying also? “I do not view the role of the Libertarian Party to be a spoiler and I certainly have no intention of being a spoiler,” he said.

Barr said he expects the party to be on the ballot in at least 48 states and perhaps all 50 if the party can qualify in West Virginia and Oklahoma. Barr said he also hopes to take part in the national political debates by qualifying with poll support of 15 percent or more of registered voters. Now, wouldn’t that be a hoot?

Barr, who represented a district north of Atlanta, was first elected to Congress in 1994 and served four terms. He received national prominence for his role in Bill Clinton’s impeachment proceedings. He was defeated in 2002 after Georgia’s Democratic-controlled Legislature put him in a district in which he had to oppose John Linder, a popular Republican incumbent. After leaving office, Barr has promoted Libertarian causes by giving speeches and writing articles for Creative Loafing and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Third party runs in America are still alive, albeit nominally so.

So, now we have several smaller third parties and Ron Paul seemingly taking away some of two main parites drawing power. Who knows what Paul will do, but we do know that Chuck Baldwin is running for the Constitutional party, Ralph Nader is running as an Independent, and hey, even Cynthia McKinney (rememebr her?) says she’s hoping to get the Green party nod at their July convention.

I can’t wait!

Written by Ernie · Filed Under A Third Party?, Daily Commentary