Stan Jones, the Losertarian running in Montana didn't even know which office he was running for.
He was on the ballot as a candidate for senator (to drastically reduce state government) but his campaign Web site said he was running for governor and he said that he would pardon anyone convicted under laws he considered unjust.
And a conservative third-party candidate running on a pro-trains platform cost Allen the election in VA.
No, not the proposed comprehensive solution that Bush proposed, but the rabid rejection of it.
The comprehensive solution failed, the border wall passed, and Republicans lost. Obviously Reps chose wrong if their goal was preventing Democrats from retreating in Iraq, which is a *much* more important thing than a stupid wall that will be bypassed before it's finished.
Outside of Tancredo, one of the staunchest supporters of border security was our congressman, J.D. Heyworth. I had thought his seat was safe, but he lost, giving the Dems a turnover.
Senator Kyl was also a staunch border enforcer. He won, but it was not a cakewalk. And this is ARIZONA for goodness sake. If there is any state that wants to stop illegal immigration, it's us, yet our biggest border security proponent lost!?!?
Sean Hannity was out there again today pounding that we didn't build a big enough wall, or long enough wall, and if we had we would have won. Horsehocky. Even I can read the tea leaves. I turned him off.
Bush has the only solution that would have worked. Border security, AND employer sanctions, AND a guest worker program that would have legalized the 12 million mexicans who are here, and who will not be going home, most especially not now even to visit because we've got that stupid wall. They *used* to go back home for six months out of the year, but because we've cranked up the border security, they stay all year, and bring their families too. Better to try hard and cross the border one time than to go back and forth every season and leave their family where it's cheap to support them.
Republicans ... the stupid party, that can't even figure out what they did wrong when it's staring them in the face.
ping for later
I took the libertarian test. Scored 95.
I did not leave the republican party. The republican party left me.
This is a great way to lose an election: isolate yourself by being rude and obnoxious toward anyone who doesn't think exactly the way you do, then blame them for your own failures.
This sort of dysfunctional thinking is not going to help anyone -- except the Democrats, of course.
This is the way alcoholics and drug addicts dig themselves into a dead-end: it's never their fault when things go wrong in their lives, it's always somebody else's fault. They repeat this fallacious mantra all the way down to rock bottom.
Here's something worth bearing in mind: It is not the responsibility of the Libertarian Party to ensure Republican victories at the polls.
Rather, it is the responsibility of Republicans to gather enough support from their fellow citizens to earn enough votes to win.
Not so surprisingly enough, insulting them doesn't appear to be a winning strategy.
If this disdain toward those who actually want limited government, infidelity to the Republican Party platform itself, insistence on being Conservatives In Name Only, blaming others for Republican failures and refusal to look in the mirror is any indication of what Republicans have to offer in coming elections, the GOP will eventually be running its campaigns from a shopping cart in the bowery.
If you want to win elections, then cease with the name-calling and at least try to act like you're worthy of support.
Or keep pushing potential allies away and blame them for your own shortcomings.
Your call.
Choose wisely.
That third party candidate ran left of Webb I thought?
The fact is that most voters felt the country was going in the wrong direction and they wanted a change. And Iraq seems to be a quagmire and they didn't see the administration being realistic about it. Too bad the GOP was so interested in power they didn't see it. President Bush has had a very low approval rating for so long. The GOP didn't seem to care about scandalous behavior or pork barrell spending. Those should have been a big clues, too.
All of this whining about Libertarians is eerily reminiscent of lefty whining over Nader's spoiler effect in '00 and '04. It's almost as pointless, too.
Where do you see that? Looking at the numbers posted, it seems that Burns simply didn't get as many as that Tester guy.
You know, I'm glad the election turned out the way it did.
If not, you wouldn't have shown me how much libertarians are hated by the GOP.
I will be sure to not vote for the GOP candidate any more. If there is a republican that is actually conservative with gov growth, I might. But not just someone with an R by their name.
Here take this test, you might be surprised.
http://www.theadvocates.org/quiz.html
Libertarians are similar in some ways to RINOs. I like some of the issues or attitudes Libertarians have. But I'd never be able to get past the fact that on social issues they're as bad as the worst of the Dems.
In fact, I looked for the Right-to-Life line yesterday. I forgot that it isn't there any more. They didn't get enough votes 4 years ago to remain on the ballot automatically, and I guess they didn't get their petitions in for a slate this time. (Hey, for all I know, the party doesn't exist in this state any more.)
As for a rise of a third party, I think that's a good thing. Whether they took votes away or got more people to vote, who can say. Voter turnout was up, so maybe they had something to do with that.
The truth is, dedicated libertarians are not a reliable part of the conservative or republican constituency. They can't be counted on, so they can't be counted as part of the constituency.
They didn't cost us anything, just like the same few thousand libertarians weren't with us when we won elections past.
Frankly, Republicans and conservatives shouldn't flirt with these guys. Like the chubby older woman sitting alone at the bar at 2:45 am, long past everyone else has paired off, she looks attractive after more than a few drinks and more than a few strikeouts, but it's nobody you really want in your bed or have to humor in the short, medium, or long term.
Loserdopians: GIVE ME LICENSE OR GIVE ME DEATH!
To me "life support" means breathing tubes, oxygen tank, etc. Shiavo breathed on her own.
Enough with the Libertarian bashing. We're supposed to only get .00001% of the vote and be insignificant anyway, right? So why every other thread here on FR is a Libertarian-bash fest?
Republicans lose because of Republicans. Libertarians (no I'm not a card-carrying member but I'm a small-L and sympathize with Libertarians in general) don't owe the GOP jack.
If Repbulicans would govern like Conservatives (no earmarks, no entitlements, privatize social security) Talent, Burns (kept his hands clean) wouldn't have this problem (losing).......It's time to get back to basics. I'm conservative (but have libertarian leanings when it comes to gov't)
I voted yesterday, but I'm sure a lot of true conservatives didn't bother.
Stan Jones is the head of the LSC (Libertarian Smurf Caucus) and occasionally suffers bouts of dementia brought about by a lifelong addiction to smurfberries. 
The Republicans kicked themselves in the 'nads. They have no one to blame but themselves.