|
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The LP Says Our Obligation Is To Our Troops, Not Iraq
Talk of Iraq in Monday's State
of the Union address reignites Party's call for Iraq exit
Washington, D.C. - After Monday's State of the Union address delivered
by President George W. Bush, the Libertarian Party is renewing its call for a safe and timely troop withdrawal from Iraq.
"President Bush's State of the Union address once again emphasized his desire to remain in Iraq without any finite
objective or operational goal," says William Redpath, chairman of the Libertarian Party.
"While we are
pleased to see a decline in violence in Iraq, this should by no means become a mandate for sustaining our presence in the
country," says Redpath. "We were wrong for invading Iraq, and we as a country have paid for that mistake in dollars
and blood. Our obligation is not to Iraq, or any other nation in the world. Our obligation is to our soldiers:
to keep them as safe as possible and to use them only in the direct defense of our nation. Each day we remain in Iraq
is a rebuke of the promise we have made to the members of our Armed Forces."
The Libertarian Party believes
in a non-interventionist foreign policy, which stresses trade with all nations of the world, but condemns pre-emptive warfare
that initiates hostilities. The Libertarian Party believes the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq violated this non-interventionist
stance.
"The president says he will return our troops 'on success,' but never identifies what this
'success' is," says Shane Cory, executive director of the Libertarian Party and a Marine Corps veteran. "Is
success a free and democratic Iraq? Is success an Iraq without terrorists? Is success a peaceful Iraq? All of these
are things that most of America wants to see, but they are not clear and reasonable objectives for our military to achieve.
Without a realistic endgame, the president is setting America up for a perpetual state of war for decades to come."
"We must leave Iraq as quickly as possible in a matter that is consistent with the safety of our troops,"
Redpath concludes. "Democracy cannot come from the barrel of a gun, and to try to force it into existence only results
in catastrophe. Every day that we continue the occupation of Iraq is another day that our troops are in harm's way
and another day that we have failed to learn from our mistakes."
For more information on this issue,
or to arrange an interview, please call Andrew Davis at (202) 333-0008 during normal business hours, or at (202) 731-0002
during any other time.
The Libertarian Party is America's third largest political party, founded in 1971 as
an alternative to the two main political parties. You can find more information on the Libertarian Party by visiting
www.lp.org. The Libertarian Party proudly stands for smaller government, lower taxes and more freedom.
Listen To The Future
9:25 pm est
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Mary Jane From A Vending Machine
2:42 pm est
Sunday, January 20, 2008
My Campaign Site...
4:37 pm est
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
George Bush & Religious FreedomWould Thomas
Jefferson celebrate Religious Freedom Day?
"Believing with you that religion
is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that
the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act
of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between church and State."
- Thomas Jefferson
Washington, D.C. - The Libertarian Party is calling
President Bush's proclamation establishing Jan. 16, 2008 as "Religious Freedom Day" an ironic twist of reality.
"Apparently there are only certain Constitutional rights President Bush finds worthy of appreciation," says Libertarian
Party Executive Director Shane Cory.
"While the President says that religious freedom should be universally
accepted," states Cory, "he's denied the right of habeas corpus to people both in America and abroad.
Rather than focusing on religious freedom in the United States, the President should be focusing on the other Amendments in
the Constitution he has apparently forgotten."
From Bush condoning former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales'
denial of the writ of habeas corpus, to the Bush administration's illegal wiretaps on American citizens, the Libertarian
Party has consistently maintained Bush has violated the First, Fourth and Sixth Amendments during his time as President.
"Instead of celebrating just one part of the Constitution," says Cory, "we should be focused on restoring
all of our Constitutional rights that have been abused during the last seven years."
"Religious
Freedom Day is a large dose of historical irony," says Libertarian Party National Media Coordinator Andrew Davis. "The
President invokes the name of Thomas Jefferson, who called for a 'wall of separation' between church and State and
said what a person believes is no business of the government. I'm curious to see how Bush justifies the government's
call for all people to reflect upon religious freedom against Jefferson's call for government to butt-out altogether."
The 1786 Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which Jefferson authored in 1779, states, "no man shall be compelled
to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever." This statement, along with Jefferson's
belief that religion is a deeply personal relationship between a man and his god, indicates that Bush's proclamation might
not be well received by Jefferson, were Jefferson alive today.
The Libertarian Party believes that religious freedom
is a fundamental right of the Constitution, and a part of protecting that right is to keep government out of religion.
"I'm a Southern Baptist," says Davis. "I don't need the the government to step in and help
me appreciate my faith."
The Libertarian Party is America's third largest political party, founded in
1971 as an alternative to the two main political parties. You can find more information on the Libertarian Party by
visiting www.lp.org. The Libertarian Party proudly stands for smaller government, lower taxes and more freedom.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Ode To G.I. Joe
3:29 pm est
Friday, January 11, 2008
Ron Paul Has Taken Everything This Poor Man Has Got
5:41 pm est
Thursday, January 10, 2008
"Onward!" Says Dr. PaulDid you see that funny YouTube where Mike Huckabee's young Iowa spokesman
endorsed me, "by mistake"? We know what was in his mind! Indeed, I am amazed at the friendliness of the supporters
of other candidates. Many
Obama voters, for example, in Iowa and New Hampshire are reading our literature, and studying
our ideas. It's just one of the reasons I am so optimistic about what we are doing, and where we are heading. And so were
the
500 or 600 people at our New Hampshire rally after the primary. I talked to everyone there, and they are rightly
enthusiastic about our movement.
This does not mean we will have an easy time of it -- just the opposite, of course.
After all, we are seeking to reverse more than a century of big government, of the warfare-welfare state, of Federal Reserve's
dollar
manipulation, of a fat and happy military-industrial complex, of the subversion of our Constitution. So all the
media and other "second-hand dealers in ideas," as F.A. Hayek called them, who have a vested interest in the current
order, will do everything possible to smear me. They will do and say anything to try to block our movement. Even vote fraud
is not beyond these people.
And we have been successful. This movement has always operated on two tracks -- intellectual
and political, and must. The first and most important is the intellectual. Such heroes of freedom as Ludwig von Mises, Hayek,
Henry Hazlitt, Murray Rothbard, and so many others like Rose Wilder Lane, John T. Flynn, Isabel Patterson, and Garret Garrett,
have helped build the foundations of freedom, prosperity, and peace. We carry on their work, to change hearts and minds.
The other track is political. Here too, we have touched millions with our ideas, and recruited many, many thousands
-- not only in Meetup Groups and as voters, but as sympathizers and future voters too. Walter Block
was kind enough to
call this effort the most important in the long history of libertarianism. I don't know about that, but I do know that
even if we place a solid fourth, rather than the higher place we all want and are working so hard
for, that is huge progress.
But we can never forget that this is a long struggle. Many great men and women have lived and died in this cause.
I have been deeply involved in it all my life. It is a matter of educational work, and elections. We may not accomplish all
we want, in one or even two elections. But we will accomplish it. Young people now living will see the free society that you
and I dream of, as their everyday reality, an America at peace, prosperous and free, with the federal government chained down
y the Constitution, as Jefferson said.
Does this mean our campaign has done everything right? No! We have made
mistakes, and will make them again. Not only because errors are to be found in any human endeavor, but because an effort like
this, to repeal a hundred years and more of evil, is brand-new on the face of the earth. But now is the time to stick together
like the brothers and sisters we are, to stand side by side in this fight against the media toadies, warmongers, and Wall
Street rip-off artists who stand against us, and who always remind me of Tolkein's Orcs.
If you have suggestions
for me to do better, I want to hear them. But beating back the enemy, teaching so many young people and others about liberty,
that is our victory, and it is real and permanent. Won't you link arms with me? We will have more vote victories too,
if we stick together and do not let the enemy divide us.
As you know, and as our neocon enemies try to cover up,
we are in a financial crisis. It may chug along at this pace, slowly into recession, or it might drop off a cliff, like the
dollar. In that case, we will have the only coherent solution, and we must get our message out.
All my life, I've
been working to make sure that when the Fed had done its work, and the special interests had looted the system to their hearts'
content, and there was a crisis, I would be in a position to speak the truth about why, and what to do about it. In this fight,
I need your heart, your mind, your time, and your financial support. I also need you to become a precinct leader https://voters.ronpaul2008.com/grassroots/ . What a fight we are in. What stakes there are. Together, we can build a new America faithful to the values of the framers.
Bother the enemy, help the good cause: make your most generous contribution https://www.ronpaul2008.com/donate/, and let's roll up our sleeves and get to work, together.
Sincerely,
Ron
7:57 pm est
Saturday, January 5, 2008
LP Says Let Ron Paul In DebateWashington,
D.C. - The Libertarian Party says the decision by Fox News to cut GOP presidential hopeful Ron Paul out of this weekend's
debate illustrates the culture of censorship of competitive views in mainstream politics. "There is simply no tolerance
of competing voices against the political elite of two-party politics," says Shane Cory, executive director of the Libertarian
Party.
"The leading GOP fundraiser for the fourth-quarter is being snubbed from the debates for nothing more
than having political views outside of mainstream Republicanism," says Cory. "The Republican establishment shuns
Paul for his pro-liberty views, and will do everything it can to marginalize him. Unfortunately, this is nothing new.
There is a long-standing culture of censorship among the political elite when it comes to competing viewpoints."
Third party candidates, such as those from the Libertarian Party, are routinely denied participation in political debates,
both locally and nationally. The Libertarian Party claims the competition of opinion is vital for healthy and open debates,
which are essential to democracy.
Despite the institutional bias against competing viewpoints, one group has taken
up the charge to try to open debates to third party candidates.
"We have people dying in Iraq to promote
democracy in that part of the world, and in this country, we can't even have full, open, inclusive debates," says
Rockthedebates.org founder Bob Sullentrup. "There is something fundamentally wrong with that."
Rockthedebates.org
is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to opening up debates to all candidates. Rockthedebates.org has asked presidential
candidates if they would be open to debating a third party candidate. Of those that have responded, Ron Paul and Mike
Huckabee are the only two current GOP candidates that have agreed to do so. Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney have said
they are opposed to open debates. Democrat Barack Obama has also said he is opposed to debating a third party candidate,
while Hillary Clinton has been ambiguous with her answer and John Edwards has yet to respond.
"The
Republican and Democratic Parties may say they are dedicated to open and democratic debates," Cory concludes, "but
their track records with limiting competition in debates shows the hypocrisy of their rhetoric."
The Libertarian
Party is America's third largest political party, founded in 1971 as an alternative to the two main political parties.
You can find more information on the Libertarian Party by visiting www.lp.org. The Libertarian Party proudly stands for smaller
government, lower taxes and more freedom.
11:56 am est
Friday, January 4, 2008
Quite Good"We need to remember that even 10 percent in a state like Iowa
is quite good. First, Iowa Republicans are dominated by the Religious Right, which has decided to embrace the Iraq War, the
Drug War, and all of the other excesses of the Official Culture of Government Abuse. Second, Iowa Republicans believe that they are entitled to vast subsidies for corn and
corn-based ethanol. Ron Paul has clearly stated his opposition to this government boondoggle. With those two strikes against him, it is amazing he received even as much of the vote
as he got."
Bill Anderson, Lew Rockwell Blog
|
