A Divder, Not a Uniter - Bob Barr tires to tear apart Freedom movement
Sean Scallon
September 12, 2008
Washington Post and American Prospect writer Harold Meyerson observed that non-major parties divide movements instead of uniting them. A clear example of this division took place on Wednesday, Sept. 10 when Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr decided to open a chasm the size of the Grand Canyon within the Freedom movement that Ron Paul was able to coalesce around his presidential campaign for the past year and a half.
Bob Barr pulled out off a press conference Paul´s Campaign for Liberty held at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. which included independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney and Constitution Party candidate Rev. Chuck Baldwin. Apparently the former Georgia Congressman does not wish to been seen in the presence of two candidates from "minor political parties." He feels he´s above the rest of the non-major party crowd and is a "player" in this year´s election. That's why he won't participate in any kind of joint appearances or debates with such candidates.
His campaign is also perturbed that Paul will not give his campaign his full endorsement or his fundraising lists and that Paul allowed his name to be put on the ballot by his local supporters in Louisiana and Montana. Thus Barr´s a no show at the press conference.
That´s not indefensible position. But it would have nice if Barr hadn´t pulled out of the press conference at the last minute, nor himself sign the same declaration of Paul influenced principles the other candidates signed as well. Apparently Barr can put his name next to Chuck Baldwin, Ralph Nader and Cynthia McKinney, he just doesn´t want to bee seen standing next to them.
Barr´s major beef is that Paul´s lack of an endorsement of his campaign, the lack of sharing his fundraising lists and the lack of his grassroots supporters flocking to his standard in both money and numbers is holding Barr´s campaign back and ultimately dividing the movement. However in truth, it's Paul that´s trying to do his best not cause any divisions while Barr is doing his best to make them worse.
Paul stated clearly at his rally in Minneapolis that the movement is bigger than just one party and those who share his ideas or give them credit can share in his support no matter what their ideology or party. He knows that what he stands for can only succeed if it´s adopted in some form by all parties and today´s press conference was a big step in that direction. Indeed, the whole Campaign for Liberty organization is a great means to train non-major party activists for their particular party´s benefit with a structure they could not afford to build or maintain on their own. It could also be the template for new party involving such groups in a broad coalition and collection of interests, as all political parties are. A non-major party vote may be divided among four candidates but at least one thing is for sure, it´s a vote NOT going to McCain or Obama, who have turned the current presidential campaign into an issueless forum which can easily be dominated by trivial nonsense like lipstick promoted by the media. Nader, McKinney, Baldwin and Barr are the only serious people running for president. At least I thought so until Barr made a fool of himself.
Skipping the press conference was one thing, easily defensible if done way before hand and for honest reasons. Instead, Barr decides to piggy-back his own press conference after Paul´s in the very same building that whined about Paul´s lack of an endorsement and called it a lack of leadership and then offered the bizarre notion that Paul would somehow accept being Barr´s vice-presidential candidate in substitution for Wayne Allyn Root.
Not content to let matters stay there, Barr´s campaign permitted its field director Mike Ferguson to launch a vicious attack on Paul on his MySpace web page as a money grubbing politician and his supporters as dupes for following him.
One gets the feeling the walls are closing in on the whole Barr campaign, ready to collapse. This writer defended the Barr campaign against those libertarian purists and crazies who were busy forming their own party or trying to substitute other candidates on the LP line in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Now what´s there to defend? The regular libertarians have been deserting Barr steadily since the summer and now that John McCain has picked Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential nominee, disgruntled GOP conservatives and libertarians who might have voted for Barr as a protest vote are ready to back McCain/Palin. By attacking Ron Paul supporters, they won´t be too eager to contribute money, time or votes to the campaign. Indeed, who´s left to support Barr other than a few cosmo libertarians and those involved with the moribund Republican Liberty Caucus assuming that they haven´t fallen head over heels for Palin. The fact that Root was so willing to be pushed aside for Paul shows an almost lack of heart and interest in the campaign from his perspective. By the rate their going, the Barr/Root ticket will be endorsing McCain just before Nov. 4.
This incident would not have happened if Barr simply used his better judgment, bit his tongue and showed up at the press conference. It would not have happened if Barr had a better understanding of how Paul views non-major party politics and what his Campaign for Liberty is about. And it wouldn´t have happened if the Barr campaign staff wasn´t so torn up in jealous rage. But now the cat´s out of the bag and their true feelings have been exposed for what they are. What could have been an especially productive campaign gaining record votes on the presidential line for the LP may very well wind up in Badnarik territory thanks to a thankless tact that wound up alienating a great deal of the supporters of the person whose campaign made Barr´s own White House bid possible. Paul refused to marginalize himself and the Barr campaign attacked him for refusing to do just that.
Paul ´s relative success was largely due to the fact he was able to unite so many disparate groups, both ideologically and culturally, together for one presidential campaign because they all agreed they could support his honesty and integrity and because he had their complete support on many big issues. If 80 percent of this group couldn´t come up with someone who could succeed Paul, why would Paul want to make an endorsement that was bound to split the movement in several ways? He simply said vote third party and hopefully many will depending on their point of view. It´s too bad Bob Barr wasn´t at the press conference to share and promote this perspective in a show on non-major party unity against the establishment. Now they´ll get no chance all thanks to such stupid and sadly typical non-major party behavior.
Bob Barr pulled out off a press conference Paul´s Campaign for Liberty held at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. which included independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney and Constitution Party candidate Rev. Chuck Baldwin. Apparently the former Georgia Congressman does not wish to been seen in the presence of two candidates from "minor political parties." He feels he´s above the rest of the non-major party crowd and is a "player" in this year´s election. That's why he won't participate in any kind of joint appearances or debates with such candidates.
His campaign is also perturbed that Paul will not give his campaign his full endorsement or his fundraising lists and that Paul allowed his name to be put on the ballot by his local supporters in Louisiana and Montana. Thus Barr´s a no show at the press conference.
That´s not indefensible position. But it would have nice if Barr hadn´t pulled out of the press conference at the last minute, nor himself sign the same declaration of Paul influenced principles the other candidates signed as well. Apparently Barr can put his name next to Chuck Baldwin, Ralph Nader and Cynthia McKinney, he just doesn´t want to bee seen standing next to them.
Barr´s major beef is that Paul´s lack of an endorsement of his campaign, the lack of sharing his fundraising lists and the lack of his grassroots supporters flocking to his standard in both money and numbers is holding Barr´s campaign back and ultimately dividing the movement. However in truth, it's Paul that´s trying to do his best not cause any divisions while Barr is doing his best to make them worse.
Paul stated clearly at his rally in Minneapolis that the movement is bigger than just one party and those who share his ideas or give them credit can share in his support no matter what their ideology or party. He knows that what he stands for can only succeed if it´s adopted in some form by all parties and today´s press conference was a big step in that direction. Indeed, the whole Campaign for Liberty organization is a great means to train non-major party activists for their particular party´s benefit with a structure they could not afford to build or maintain on their own. It could also be the template for new party involving such groups in a broad coalition and collection of interests, as all political parties are. A non-major party vote may be divided among four candidates but at least one thing is for sure, it´s a vote NOT going to McCain or Obama, who have turned the current presidential campaign into an issueless forum which can easily be dominated by trivial nonsense like lipstick promoted by the media. Nader, McKinney, Baldwin and Barr are the only serious people running for president. At least I thought so until Barr made a fool of himself.
Skipping the press conference was one thing, easily defensible if done way before hand and for honest reasons. Instead, Barr decides to piggy-back his own press conference after Paul´s in the very same building that whined about Paul´s lack of an endorsement and called it a lack of leadership and then offered the bizarre notion that Paul would somehow accept being Barr´s vice-presidential candidate in substitution for Wayne Allyn Root.
Not content to let matters stay there, Barr´s campaign permitted its field director Mike Ferguson to launch a vicious attack on Paul on his MySpace web page as a money grubbing politician and his supporters as dupes for following him.
One gets the feeling the walls are closing in on the whole Barr campaign, ready to collapse. This writer defended the Barr campaign against those libertarian purists and crazies who were busy forming their own party or trying to substitute other candidates on the LP line in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Now what´s there to defend? The regular libertarians have been deserting Barr steadily since the summer and now that John McCain has picked Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential nominee, disgruntled GOP conservatives and libertarians who might have voted for Barr as a protest vote are ready to back McCain/Palin. By attacking Ron Paul supporters, they won´t be too eager to contribute money, time or votes to the campaign. Indeed, who´s left to support Barr other than a few cosmo libertarians and those involved with the moribund Republican Liberty Caucus assuming that they haven´t fallen head over heels for Palin. The fact that Root was so willing to be pushed aside for Paul shows an almost lack of heart and interest in the campaign from his perspective. By the rate their going, the Barr/Root ticket will be endorsing McCain just before Nov. 4.
This incident would not have happened if Barr simply used his better judgment, bit his tongue and showed up at the press conference. It would not have happened if Barr had a better understanding of how Paul views non-major party politics and what his Campaign for Liberty is about. And it wouldn´t have happened if the Barr campaign staff wasn´t so torn up in jealous rage. But now the cat´s out of the bag and their true feelings have been exposed for what they are. What could have been an especially productive campaign gaining record votes on the presidential line for the LP may very well wind up in Badnarik territory thanks to a thankless tact that wound up alienating a great deal of the supporters of the person whose campaign made Barr´s own White House bid possible. Paul refused to marginalize himself and the Barr campaign attacked him for refusing to do just that.
Paul ´s relative success was largely due to the fact he was able to unite so many disparate groups, both ideologically and culturally, together for one presidential campaign because they all agreed they could support his honesty and integrity and because he had their complete support on many big issues. If 80 percent of this group couldn´t come up with someone who could succeed Paul, why would Paul want to make an endorsement that was bound to split the movement in several ways? He simply said vote third party and hopefully many will depending on their point of view. It´s too bad Bob Barr wasn´t at the press conference to share and promote this perspective in a show on non-major party unity against the establishment. Now they´ll get no chance all thanks to such stupid and sadly typical non-major party behavior.
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