Posted on 12/31/2004 12:18:54 PM PST by freepatriot32
After being elected twice as a Republican to the position of county attorney in Anderson County, Kan., Fred Campbell decided following the Nov. 2 elections to drop his Republican Party affiliation in favor of the Libertarian Party, saying the GOP has abandoned the idea of minimal government.
Campbell was re-elected in November with no opposition. He has been a Republican for years, primarily because he's "always been in favor of less government rather than more," he said.
"I've always thought that the Republican Party was the major party that went along with that philosophy," Campbell explained. "But in the last four years, I've seen no evidence of that. For the last four years, we've had a Republican majority on the national and local level. But even though the Republicans had the majority in the national arena, I haven't seen a reining in of bureaucracy; I don't see anything getting smaller; I don't see government getting out of my life.
"Government is way too big, and too involved in every facet of our lives. After the election, I thought, 'Why do I maintain support for this Republican Party that is not doing anything to change the way things are?' So I decided to change my affiliation to something that more accurately represents what I believe."
He followed that decision with action, heading down to his county clerk's office to fill out a new voter registration form -- thereby making a statement that he wants to see changes in government.
He didn't expect his statement to be made public, at least not as rapidly as it was.
"Apparently the county clerk was worried about the next election, four years from now, and called the secretary of state's office to see how my leaving the Republican Party would affect me in that race," Campbell said. "And the newspaper picked up on it somehow, and it became news."
Campbell graduated from law school in 1997, and the same year was hired as an assistant county attorney in Anderson County -- a small rural county in east-central Kansas.
The Republican county attorney he was hired to assist never bothered to move to the county, however, and in 1999 Campbell was asked to replace him.
"After that, I ran unopposed in both the 2000 and 2004 elections, as a Republican. Ever since I've been in this position, I've told people that if I am ever opposed in an election, I will lose -- because I don't tell people what they want to hear. I'm not a good politician; I'm actually ashamed to call myself a politician. I'm just here to do what I think is right for the community and what is right for the job.
"The interesting thing about this last election was that, although we are a Republican majority county, almost all Republicans that ran for local office lost to Democrats. In all national and state elections, the county voted Republican, but in local elections, the voters went for the Democrats. I think there's a great deal of frustration with the Republican Party here, and I find that very interesting."
With that in mind, Campbell decided to follow his personal ideals -- which led him to the Libertarian Party.
"I don't remember where I first heard of the Libertarian Party," he said. "I've considered myself basically a Libertarian for years because I think the views that are expressed are very much in line with what I personally believe, including primarily a belief in minimally intrusive government.
"A year or two ago, I read the entire writings of Lincoln, seven or eight volumes of his works. And I decided (while reading what he wrote during the founding of the Republican Party) that in this day and age, Lincoln would be a Libertarian. From what he wrote about the origins of the Republican Party, it sounds much more like he was describing the Libertarian Party than the Republican Party we have now."
One question that remains to be answered is whether Campbell's affiliation will affect the way he goes about his job as a prosecutor for the county; he doesn't think his actions will change.
"It's my job to enforce the laws, whether or not I believe the laws are just and right," he said. "I had this discussion with a judge a few weeks ago, not before the bench but in conversation.
"I was concerned about a charge that I had made: I charged someone with a weapons crime that I disagree with, but the law is on the books. The judge said I have prosecutorial discretion, which essentially means I can decide which laws to prosecute people under.
"But as I told him, if I used my discretion to eliminate [all crimes] I think the government shouldn't have a hand in, the judge would have a very light load. As an elected official, as a county attorney, I'm supposed to do what the law says. But I certainly would like to see some of the laws taken off the books."
Looking at a coffee cup on his desk, Campbell read the following quote: "The best way to get a bad law repealed is to uphold it strictly."
"I've been dealing with this philosophical problem for years," he said. "That's not going to change. There are laws on the books that shouldn't be there."
there are about 1 million laws on the books that shouldnt bethere but always will be becasue the republicans just cant be bothered maybe that will start changing now
libertarian ping for you
if anyone wants on my libertarian ping list let me know
I'll take the ping.
I wish this guy was here in Travis County...
Does this mean he has to become a pot-smoking, blue-skinned hippie?
youve been added to my list
Thanks! Happy New Year! And... Long live the Republic!
You're not fooling anyone Fred. We all know this is really about the pot and the kiddie porn.
Good. I'm glad he switched. Small government idealists have been marginalized by the Republican party.
Please. That's ridiculous. It's about Constitutional government, not NAMBLA and NORMYL.
Well, at least he isn't burning anymore black churches.
He gets elected as a Republican, then immediately changes his party affiliation. Classy, Mr. Jeffords... er, Campbell. BTW, thanks to the Losertarian party, Washington state has a Dem governor. Ideological purity has a steep price.
Hey, at least there's one way for a Libertarian to hold an elected office. Getting elected just isn't an option.
I suggest to you that principles are never easy and that the "lesser of two evils" philosophy has a much steeper price.
And what does he think of the Libertarians wasting taxpayer dollars in a futile effort to block the inauguration of President Bush next month? Hmmm...
The question is will the Libertarian Party provide enough campaign funds for this guy's re-election. He is going to be heavily targeted by both parties come next election.
I'm sorry, but Libertarians are for the most part "pro-choice" on abortion.
I agree that Libertarian Ruth Bennett tilted the outcome of the Washington state governor's race by receiving 63,416 votes.
However, Bennett is a lesbian in an open relationship with another woman, so I really, really doubt thise 63,414 votes were all going to go to Rossi. Or even a majority of them. It's unlikely those Bennett voters were all your typical bearded, Ayn Rand-quotin', dope smokin', wife swappin', gun totin' Libertarian.
IMO it's much more likely that Bennett tilted the race to Rossi for the first two recounts.
Hey, at least there's one way for a Libertarian to hold an elected office. Getting elected just isn't an option.
Republican Congressman Ron Paul, who was the Libertarian presidential candidate in 1988, received 100% of the vote in the Texas 14th Congressional district this November 2.
William F. Buckley is advocating drug legalizaion and there is no military draft nor is there likely to be one. It's a more libertarian (small "l") country than it was when John Hospers first ran for president in 1972.
Patience! Rome wasn't burnt in a day, after all!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.