Our next president
This is going to be a longer post than usual. This is the first presidential election that I have paid any mind to, and I think it is important after spending the past six years wondering when we were going to get rid of Bush. It is my firm belief that we need a strong leader to get us out of the Middle East, restore our civil liberties, and reform government spending. There are a number of candidates that I am interested in, and I am going to take the time to summarize their political views and why I do or do not like them. I am taking two democrats (Clinton and Obama), two republicans (Paul and Giuliani), and one libertarian (Kubby). I’d like to do the greens and independents, but I don’t particularly care for either party. Libertarian is my party of choice, so that’s the only reason I am including a third party at all.
Democratic candidates
Hillary Rodham Clinton: Hillary is a strong democrat, and currently the only woman who ever had a good shot at being president. I like her support for some personal liberties, such as same-sex marriage and abortion as well as her support of net neutrality. However, had it not been for the democrat’s continual insistence that personal safety be regulated whether or not it breaches personal liberties such as the right to bear arms, I would probably be liberal. I would probably never vote for Hillary. I really don’t have a problem with a woman president. The idea of a woman president scares me a little, but I think that’s just because I am afraid of change. I am sure there are plenty of competent women out there that could run this country better than our current and many past presidents. I just don’t think that she is the right person for the job. Overall, the most I can say for Hillary is that she is okay. It’s probably true that I don’t like her because she’s a woman, but I think some of my views are motivated by her potential or lack thereof as a president.
Barack Hussein Obama: Barack is a great guy, and probably someone I would want in the White House. His only problem is getting by Hillary in the primaries. Anyone who has read The Audacity of Hope knows how intelligent he is. The name might damage him a little–having the middle name Hussein and a last name that sounds like Osama might deter potential voters. Some people may look at his race as well. It’s a shame, but I think that if he can beat Hillary in the primaries, he could give any republican opponent a run for his money. He supports many of the same policies that Clinton does, and supports mild gun control. Obama’s gun control system makes more sense to me, and he didn’t vote against the 2006 Vitter Amendment, which prohibits the confiscation of lawfully-acquired firearms during a disaster. This is an obvious breech on the second amendment, and Hillary supported it. I support Obama over Hillary mostly because his book was brilliant, and he doesn’t smear the opponents in his own party like Hillary does. It seems like Obama “gets” that politics should not be a game or competition, especially when it comes to the leader of one of the most powerful nations in the world. If you don’t currently support Obama, read his books and you will most likely be assuaged.
Republican candidates
Rudy Giuliani: Giuliani was the mayor of NYC during and following the September 11, 2001 attacks. His political views don’t make him a true republican–he is a moderate, if anything. I really like the way he feels about global warming (that the debate is irrelevant–we should be dealing with pollution anyway), but this isn’t exactly within the realm of presidential duties. On the topic of abortion, his views are pretty much in line with mine, “I hate [abortion]…However, I believe in a woman’s right to choose.” Hell, this guy is a quoting machine, “I’ve supported four or five hundred candidates in my time, but I’ve not yet found one with whom I can agree completely. In fact, I don’t even agree with myself on everything. There’s not a candidate with a clean skirt out there. Hell, I’ve been married myself three times.” I think I am starting to like this guy. My only problem with him is his failure to support same-sex marriages and his views on prayer in school. Other than that, he looks like a pretty solid candidate.
Ron Paul: Ron Paul is a libertarian disguised as a republican. Although many of his views aren’t in line with true libertarians, he could probably run as one without a hitch (and did–as a libertarian nominee in 1988). He supports the use of Marijuana for medical use and the abolition of the federal income tax. Ron Paul does have some admiral qualities, and I think this country could use a good libertarian president. I’m just not sure he could give either Hillary or Obama good opposition. Congressman Paul has been quoted on record in supporting the primary facets of libertarianism. He believes that the lives and actions of people are their own responsibility, not the government’s. Government exists to protect liberty, not to redistribute wealth or to grant special privileges. However, there are many sections of the electorate that do wish to regulate private affairs, including religious groups and people with dollar signs in their eyes. These are the people who would probably not give their vote to Paul.
Libertarian Candidate
Steve Kubby: Steve Kubby is a true libertarian. He wants to enforce complete personal and economic liberty for all citizens. He is probably the most colorful potential presidential candidate. He has said that he has cheated death by using medical marijuana to treat a type of cancer. In 1968 he was given five years to live, but has lived 25 since. His past criminal record (relating to the marijuana he uses) will probably be a turn-off to voters. This is probably the man that I want in office, and there’s a strong chance that I would vote for him.
All in all, there are quite a few good candidates and it will be interesting to see who wins primaries. The way it looks to me, Obama will probably be my first choice, followed by Paul and Kubby. I would like to see Paul and Obama running against each other, mostly because I would like to see either of them in office. I would vote for Kubby in this case to give the Libertarians a boost in the popular vote. The way presidential elections are set up wouldn’t allow my vote to count for Kubby anyway except on popular vote.
Who would you like to see run for president, and who would you vote for?
You can take a very simple quiz to determine where your views fall on the two-dimensional political spectrum. I’m a solid libertarian.
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