It would appear as though my prediction, is at least partially right, although there seems to be some trouble brewing. It would appear that the Libertarian Presidential Candidate Bob Barr, did not show at the press conference hosted by Ron Paul, with the unconfirmed report being that it “just wasn’t worth it.” In my opinion this was a huge mistake on Barr’s part as the third party candidate that is doing best in the polls. As potential fallout, I see Barr possibly not even hitting the $1 million mark in campaign contributions, and his 6% that he has been clinging to in the polls, drifting to dismally low levels in the coming days.
On the flip-side, Bob Barr has invited Dr. Paul to be his vice-presidential running mate in the upcoming election, with Wayne Allan Root stepping aside to make it happen. If anything, I would say it would be best if Bob took Wayne’s spot, and Ron took the slot at the head of the ticket. Even if that were the offer I doubt that Dr. Paul would agree to it.
With the outlook rather bleak as far as getting any noticeable media attention for this press conference or third party candidates in general, I would recommend a course of action that may not have been considered — Ron Paul running as a Republican write-in. This move would certainly win him no favors within the party, but there are a couple of advantages to taking this route.
First, by running as a Republican write-in, Dr. Paul keeps his promise of staying within the Republican Party, and not running as a 3rd party candidate. The downside to this is that he will not have ballot access in a number of states due to strict ballot access laws, but he will still have access in some states.
Second, by choosing this route, it would not be possible for Dr. Paul to win, as there would be no way to secure enough electoral college votes. However, he would certainly be able to get the 15% necessary in the polls to participate in the debates and bring attention to the cause of Liberty and third party access (I stand corrected – he would not have his name on enough ballots, therefore he would not be eligible).
Another possible scenario that would likely get good results follows my announcement prediction to some extent. In this scenario, a large donor (a Ross Perot type) would purchase major network air time (this would take a lot of money), and would host their own debate, inviting the other candidates as well, but with guidelines suggested by Dr. Paul in order to avoid problems with McCain/Fiengold legislation. This would bring attention to the cause of liberty, as well as help to open the field for third party candidates in the future.
Well, there you have it. We have such great momentum going forward right now and I would hate to see it fizzle out due to snubs and such. Even if my advice isn’t taken (and I don’t expect anyone to listen to this Michigander), we must continue to push forward with the message of Liberty, even though it seems the field of presidential candidates is… shall we say, “slim pickens.”
Tags: bob barr, Debates, Election, Libertarian, Republican, Ron Paul, Thrid Party
