Posted on 08/27/2008 7:12:34 PM PDT by CounterCounterCulture
This amusing story comes from Ballot Access News:
Section 192.031 of the Texas election code says that political parties must certify their presidential and vice-presidential candidates for the November ballot no later than 70 days before the general election. It says, “A political party is entitled to have the names of its nominees for president and vice-president placed on the ballot if before 5 p.m. of the 70th day before presidential election day, the party’s state chair signs and delivers to the secretary of state a written certification of the name’s of the party’s nominees for president and vice-president.”
This year, that deadline is August 26. UPDATE: At 2:30 pm Texas time, August 27, Kim Kizer of the Texas Secretary of State’s elections division says neither major party’s certification has been received in the Elections Division. The Executive Office of the Secretary of State refers all questions back to the Elections Division.
This year, neither the Democratic Party nor the Republican Party obeyed this law. See this link to the Secretary of State’s web page showing a blank for the Republicans and Democrats for president. It does show Bob Barr on the ballot; scroll down a little bit. If the Republicans have indeed filed, one wonders who they listed for vice-president, and why their filing is missing from the state web page.
August 27, 2008 5:23 pm EST
Atlanta, GA - Bob Barr is slated to be the only presidential candidate on the ballot in Texas after Republicans and Democrats missed the Aug. 26 deadline to file in the state.
"Unless the state of Texas violates its own election laws, Congressman Barr will be the only presidential candidate on the ballot," says Russell Verney, campaign manager for the Barr Campaign and the former campaign manager for Ross Perot. "Texas law makes no exceptions for missing deadlines."
The Texas Secretary of State Web site shows only Bob Barr as the official candidate for president in Texas.
"We know all about deadlines," says Verney. "We are up against them constantly in our fight to get on the ballot across the nation. When we miss deadlines, we get no second chances. This is a great example of how unreasonable deadlines chill democracy."
"Republicans and Democrats make certain that third party candidates are held to ballot access laws, no matter how absurd or unreasonable," says Verney. "Therefore, Republicans and Democrats should be held to the same standards."
Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003.
That makes Texas votes pretty irrelevant I suppose. Might as well stay home.
Lol. Rule of Law.
I didn’t know Miss Texas has a deadline. Any pics?
Suits me.
Go Bob Barrf!
A little known codicil of the Constitution comes into play. We do not actually vote for president or vice-president. We vote for electors. /sarc
There will be an exception granted or the law will be changed retroactively. Laws ... we don’t need no stinkin’ laws. Politicians are royalty that gaze down upon the humbled masses that are supposed to be their bosses.
same thing happened in Alabama in 2004 with Bush.
maybe the ballot can say
Democrat electors for President
Republican electors for President
electors for Bob Barr for President
I used to like Bob Barr allot. However going by some of the statements he has made lately I think he has gone off the cliff.
Kind of stupid to have a deadline that falls before the two major parties have even picked their candidates.
The Democrats still haven’t chosen their VP, and the republicans don’t have either a President or a VP candidate yet.
Bob Barr is a piece of excrement.
Bob Barr’s nomination would offer conservatives a choice.
Neocons and statists in the Republican ranks have attacked Mr. Barr for joining Congressman Dick Armey (ACU record 97%) in working with the ACLU in defending the Fourth Amendment. Even one of the smartest and most conservative talk show hosts to grace the air waves recently made the totally ridiculous statement that Congressman Barr isn’t a “real” conservative because he has sided with the ACLU in that fight. Yet it is interesting that some, maybe even most, of those who have attacked Mr. Barr for working with the ACLU on protecting the Fourth Amendment and the rule of law had no qualms about siding with the ACLU themselves to fight the McCain-Feingold attack on free speech.
These hypocrites generally neglect to mention that Mr. Barr was not just siding with the ACLU in this effort to protect the Fourth Amendment. He was also siding with groups like the American Conservative Union, Americans for Tax Reform, the Free Congress Foundation, the Second Amendment Foundation, and other solidly conservative groups. Nor do they mention that bedrock conservative groups like the Christian Coalition, the National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, the National Association of Manufacturers, the Family Research Council, the Southeastern Legal Foundation, the Business-Industry Political Action Committee, the National Right to Life Committee, to name just a few, have also worked with the ACLU to protect a Constitutional right.
Of course, it’s easier to attack one man than to attack scores of groups with millions of members and the resources to counter attack. It is easy to demonize an individual true conservative, but very risky to attack groups with millions of conservative members. Attacking every conservative leader or group who ever sided with the ACLU on an issue would immediately expose these hypocrites for what they are. Some of the talk show personalities, bloggers, columnists and talking heads, who have attacked Congressman Barr as not being a conservative because he works with the ACLU defending the Fourth Amendment and the rule of law, by their own reasoning must not be “real” conservatives either, since they sided with the ACLU defending the First Amendment.
The truth of the matter is, if when Bob Barr got the Libertarian Party’s nomination, he became the only conservative in the race. His candidacy will offer conservatives a choice of voting their convictions by voting for a man with an unblemished track record of supporting classical conservative positions, or voting for the lesser of two evils.
Barr, a former Member of Congress, has served with the U.S. Department of Justice and Central Intelligence Agency. He continues to serve on the Board of Directors of the National Rifle Association and works with such groups as the American Conservative Union Foundation and the ACLU on issues related to privacy and national security and also serves as the Chairman for Patriots to Restore Checks and Balances.
McCain’s lifetime ACU record is 82% but his 2006, the most recent year for which ratings are available, ACU record was 65%. Among Republican Senators only Lincoln Chafee, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe and Arlen Specter had worse voting records.
Barr led the Clinton impeachment hearing in the House and Bob was adored at this site untill the ascendancy of the neo and theo conservatives who started posting here beginning around 2003.
This Statement used to adorn the home page of FR
Free Republic has sponsored several rallies at our nation’s Capitol. The first was the nationally televised “March for Justice” on October 31, 1998, where Congressman Bob Barr called for the impeachment of President William Jefferson Clinton. The enthusiastic crowd of 4,000 FReepers also enjoyed rousing speeches by Alan Keyes, Larry Klayman, Gary Aldrich and other great conservatives. The MFJ was a moving experience for all.
Congressman Barr called the FReepers back to Washington on December, 5th, 1998, for the “Judgment Day” rally, held on the Capitol steps. He and many other conservative speakers urged the Congress to vote for impeachment. According to Barr and several other Congressmen, these rallies, coupled with ads we ran in the Washington Times, and the resulting surge of grassroots activism, helped to move some of the reluctant Congressmen to vote for impeachment.
We were cosponsors with the Free Congress Foundation for the “House Managers Tribute” rally and dinner honoring the House Managers on May 4th, 1999, at the Washington Hilton and Towers. All thirteen House Managers, plus Congressman Tom DeLay and many other conservative notables attended. Henry Hyde and Steve Forbes were our keynote speakers. Alan Keyes, Larry Klayman, Congressmen Bob Barr, James Rogan and Chris Cannon and many other conservative leaders spoke at the rally.
That was then.
I now expect the new brand of (?)conservatism which is touted here these days to try and trash this fine conservative man. But back then we sure appreciated his contributions to our cause.
It’s funny the way people pick and choose. I’d bet that many of Bob Barr’s critics are the same people who enthusiastically supported Joe Lieberman — who really is a liberal POS — except that he supported the war.
And if these people were honest — I know that’s asking a lot — they’d admit that they have as many, if not more, points of disagreement with the GOP than they do with Barr.
The electors were chosen for both parties at the State Conventions and they have been certified across the Country which is why both parties can hold their Conventions so late.
I will say it again : Barr is nuttier than “the little hand grenade with a bad haircut” ,Ross Perot on LSD.
Go away Bob, just go away.
Groucho (to pretty lady at dinner): Would you sleep with me for $52 million?
Pretty lady (laughing): Of course!
Groucho (leering wildly): How about for $10?
Pretty lady: Mr. Marx, what do you take me for?
Groucho: We've already established what you are. Now we're just haggling over price.
Tis a pity.
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.