Ex-Rep. Bob Barr to seek Libertarian nod, may get Ron Paul O.K.

Just when you thought we might be whittling down the number of presidential candidates, there's a new one about to jump in.

According to a political website, Fitsnews.com, former Republican Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia is about to announce his candidacy with the Libertarian Party.

The same site predicts tonight that GOP Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who has refused to endorse the presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain and continues his own vain campaign, will endorse Barr's bid.

That would indeed make for an unusual sight, an active candidate in one party endorsing a new one in another party.

Paul actually ran as the Libertarian Party's candidate for president in 1988, but has consistently rejected a third-party bid throughout this campaign.

The 72-year-old Paul's campaign -- he's the only survivor beyond McCain of 11 Republicans from last year -- surprised many political observers with its financial potency. Some 800,000 eager and energetic voters, many of them new to politics, have given him in excess of $32 million in the last year, nearly $20 million of it in the last quarter of 2007, to make him the largest GOP fundraiser then. They developed a whole range of creative ideas to arouse political support, including a pinup calendar of nearly naked Hotties4Ron Paul.

Barr, who represented Georgia's 7th District for eight years until 2003, like Paul has made no secret of his dissatisfaction with current Republican Party leadership. He's praised Paul for....

tapping into that same dissatisfaction with his strict constitutionalist approach and desire to drastically reduce the size of the federal government. You may also remember Barr as the activist House floor manager during the impeachment proceedings against former President Bill Clinton.

Paul has said he will continue to slog on as long as his supporters support him with their energy and donations. He reported about $5 million cash in hand at the end of February and zero campaign debt.

As an ardent opponent of the Iraq war, Paul has declined to endorse McCain and don't expect him to change his mind. In a recent interview with Newsweek, he said his supporters would like to work within the GOP but often find themselves unwelcome. He was asked if he would urge them to vote for Republican McCain come November.

"I'm not going to tell them what to do," Paul replied. "But I honestly can't imagine any of them supporting him. That would be a tough sale. The odds of him all of a sudden coming to one of our rallies and being cheered on are not very high."

--Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[Anon]

Barr gave Paul a great introduction at CPAC this year!! He told the audience that RON PAUL is the true conservative and he is right! The Revolution to take back the GOP is just getting underway, watch out, here we come! 32 million was nothing compared to what we can really raise!! Lastly, the media was completely baised against Paul, the only person talking sense to the American people, anyone who reads this beware of the corporate media, cancel your cable bill and join us her on the net! Til the bitter end!!

[Keith]

G-D IT! I thought the Paul thing was gone finally, well this is probably a dead cat bounce anyway. Happy Trails Mr. Ron!

[Flo]

Wonderful news from abroad. Paul was right. No I hope you can still laugh

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/usa-2008-the-great-depression-803095.html

[mikey]

"The odds of him [John McCain] all of a sudden coming to one of our rallies and being cheered on are not very high."

I have seen video of McCain's fundraisers, and there is not much cheering going on at McCain's events. There aren't many enthusiastic McCain supporters.

[Ron Paul]

Ron is a shame on all Texans. This liberal is really a Democrat in drag. Shame on him.

[dave]

i'm sure ron paul would never tell bob barr what to do, just like he wouldn't tell anyone in favor of his own agenda whom to support. all he can do is give good advice, as he always is happy to do - and i can't see that he is asking anyone to abandon his own campaign which would mean to weaken it, and give away his realistic chances to take back the republican party from the neocon hijackers. but he will welcome any honest support for his own campaign, any time.

[George Whitfield]

I hope that Bob Barr will announce and that the Libertarian Party will nominate him for President. There is a very large and growing number of Ron Paul supporters who will never vote for McCain or Hillary/Obama. They are activists and generous in donating both time and money to the cause of liberty and restoring the US Constitution. They need somone to rally around and I think Bob Barr would be an excellent person for that position. I know I will support him.

[Darryl Schmitz]

Political tags aside, Ron Paul and Bob Barr are a whole lot closer to the governmental philosophy of our founding fathers than anyone we've had in the White House for the past 60 years or more. If the Libertarian Party's hardcore libertarians are willing to adopt our founders' brand of libertarian republicanism (which I believe the vast majority are) by considering Bob Barr - a highly-qualified leader - for president, I'd vote Libertarian in a heartbeat. What would make the most sense would be if the Constitution Party and Libertarian Party realize that they are very similar in philosophy and merge. They are appealing to the same constitutional-government voters and making their uphill battle even more difficult.

[dave]

there is a very large and growing number of people who support ron paul and his message, and ron paul is right there for them; and will make an excellent president.

[James Bell]

Bob Barr for President? Campaign May Change Georgia’s Political Landscape Forever

Atlanta Georgia: With the news that former Republican Congressman Bob Barr maybe considering seeking the Libertarian Party nomination for president of the United States, Georgia Libertarians see the potential for historic change in Georgia politics.

As a “third party”, Libertarians must follow tough ballot access laws which are considered some of the most restrictive in the nation.

In the 1980’s the Libertarian Party of Georgia (LPGa) gained statewide ballot access by garnering the required 1% of registered voters and has maintained access by exceeding the 1% vote requirement. However, in order to run local and district races, candidates are still required to petition for ballot access. This petitioning process is considered to be unfair and prohibitive. No candidate has ever successfully met the requirement since it became law in 1943.

Georgia law also says that in order to be a “Political Party” rather than a “Political Body” it must receive 20 percent of the votes in a gubernatorial or presidential race. By receiving the 20 percent this will mean Libertarians will have full ballot access and be able to participate in the primary election process.

How does Bob Barr affect this issue?

With Bob Barr’s name recognition in Georgia and a strong political network, he could potentially receive the 20 percent of the votes needed to allow the Libertarian Party to gain full ballot access and run local candidates; leveling the playing field.

James Bell, communications director for LPGa., said a Barr presidential bid would propel the Libertarian Party to the forefront of a national public debate about taxation and personal freedom.

“Barr could be the spoiler that kicks the Republicans out of the White House”, Bell said.
“The Republicans are holding their noses over the apparent nomination of John McCain and we see the potential that many fiscal conservative and civil libertarians will just ship and vote Libertarian in 2008.”

"There is great deal [of] dissatisfaction with the candidates for the two major parties, particularly among conservatives, but also a great deal of Internet and other support for a candidate like Ron Paul who advocates libertarian and true conservative principles," said Mr. Barr, who is now a Libertarian. – Washington Times

[Hot 27 Year Old Female]

Andrew Malcolm, you'll go on the list of reporters that no one will read in the next 2 years. You didn't know of the list? Hahahahaha... The movement started behind RP last year will change a lot of things in the near futures of a lot of people.

[Red Leader]

Paul's 'vain' campaign? Hilarious. The Ronulans are taking over the delegate spots as we speak. What happens at the convention when Amnesty McCainitez has to face a crowd full of Constitutionalists?

[ellen]

I'm a Ron Paul supporter, and ...perplexed.

[Eloy Gonzalez II]

"and continues his own vain campaign"? How much did someone pay you to sneak in that line? Ron Paul stands for something right, and when you do that, you don't back down just because a popular candidate who is anything but a conservative is running against you.

RON PAUL 2008!!!

[Bo Cappella]

Has everyone forgotten that Barr was a leader in the war on drug-users? I don't see him as a Libertarian, and I wish that Dr. Paul would come over to the LP side (after the GOP convention) and run in his TRUE party.

[Tom deSabla]

Whoever said this:

"Ron is a shame on all Texans. This liberal is really a Democrat in drag. Shame on him."

You're either stupid or a liar. Libertarians like Paul bear very little resemblance to liberals or democrats. Who are you trying to con? Zip your mouth up, you anonymous coward!

[sacred chao]

Ron Paul was the only all around Conservative in the race, from the beginning.

[John Howard]

The notice above says that if I am under 13 years of age I may read, but not participate in this message board. I assume this is to protect the adults from the wisdom of children.

Any child can see that adults are mostly insane. The insanity takes the form of government and religion, the two great sources of nonsense afflicting the planet.

Good policy. We must be protected from hearing what children think. They shouldn't be allowed to voice their opinions until we are sure they are fully insanitized with faith and force.

[Aaron]

I don't see why Paul would endorse him. This guy moved to prohibit the practice of wiccan in the U.S. military. Sure, he agrees a lot with Paul on foreign policy, but many other things are WAY different. I'm not voting for Barr no matter what and I am one of the biggest Paul supporters you'll ever meet.

[Mark]

Bob Barr better make up his mind fast because the next Ron Paul fundraising day on April 14? is coming up and if he doesnt announce, I may be tapped out.

[James Orleans]

Ron Paul stands for a return of the Republican party to its roots of fiscal conservatism, personal freedom, a strong currency, and no foreign adventurism, i.e. real conservatism. Dr. Paul understands that he will not win the Republican nomination. He wants those who agree with his ideas to try to take the party back from neoconservatives who have hijacked it and are bankrupting America with their endless wars, nation building and downright idiotic economic policy.

[Franklin]

Ron Paul is such a liberal. McCain is a real conservative because real conservatives support deficit spending, restrictions on free speech, amnesty for illegal aliens, increased government spending, nation building, foreign aid for brutal dictatorships, a centrally run economy and tax hikes. Since Ron Paul is against all of these things, he is a liberal. Since John McCain supports all of these things, he is a conservative.

[Jim]

Mr. Malcolm reveals a personal bias by choosing to label Mr. Paul as vain and picking the "Hotties" example to characterize Paul supporters. I'm unimpressed with this not so subtle smear in what is otherwise presented as objective joulnalism. So much for Mr. Malcolm and his employer the LA Times.

[ronpaulsupporter]

I was wondering who, nationally, would be able to pick up Ron's mantle and carry us into the future...I hope Mr. Barr is a capable standard bearer. As much as I like Ron, he is in his 70's and the chance of him "running again" in 4 years is not likely, so we need a younger version of him...does Bob Barr have those credentials? Has he ever voted for a tax increase? and unbalanced budget? etc?

[Diane]

I'll vote for whomever the good man Ron Paul endorses. He is the only politician that I trust.

Time to get some fresh blood in this race.

The 3 stooges are pathetic.