Posted on 04/26/2008 5:34:17 PM PDT by deport
Constitution Party stunner: Chuck Baldwin KOs firebrand Alan Keyes
Convening its national convention in Kansas City today, the Constitution Party picked radio talk-show host Chuck Baldwin over former Ambassador Alan Keyes as its 2008 presidential candidate.
The pick was seen as something of an upset, given Keyes' higher national profile. Known for his fiery stem-winders, Keyes is a two-time GOP presidential candidate who abandoned the Republican Party this month to join the Constitution Party, which believes in limited government and is committed to ending abortion and bringing American troops home from Iraq.
But Baldwin's roots in the Constitution Party run deeper. He was the party's 2004 vice-presidential candidate, and party members said his stands were more in line with party thinking.
"Chuck is the real deal," said Jim Clymer, the party's national chairman.
Still, the two waged a fierce battle described as the most contentious in the party's 16-year history. Baldwin wound up winning easily on a 384-126 vote. The Missouri and Kansas delegations basically split their votes between the two.
"They just rejected the most qualified man to be president," said Tom Hoefling of Lohrville, Iowa, Keyes' national political director. "Chuck Baldwin will have no impact on this election whatsoever."
The party's immediate tasks, Clymer said, are raising money and gaining ballot access in each state. The party now has qualified to be on the ballots of 21 states. He expects the eventual total to top 40 and include Kansas and Missouri.
"We're always short on money," Clymer said.
In his acceptance speech, Baldwin said his presidency would result in the ending of illegal immigration, abortion, the streamlining of the federal government, the tapping of oil reserves in Alaska and withdrawal from Iraq.
"We will stop the international meddling...this international empire-building," Baldwin said.
When he takes office, Baldwin said, "The new world order comes crashing down!"
He pledged not only to pull out of the United Nations, but to push the international organization out of New York.
"The U.N. is going to have to find themselves another (home) because their rent is up in New York City," he said.
He said he would phase out the Internal Revenue Service and end the paying of personal income taxes. He said the country should return to the gold standard.
Home schoolers, he said, would have the best friend they ever had in the White House.
That took care of it for me.
WOW! You don’t understand life, it is sad.
Michael Jordan did only one thing better than score baskets.
He missed baskets BETTER than he scored baskets. He thought nothing of it.
He took a chance. I can tell by your outlook of reality where you are in life.
Which Baldwin brother is this?
I suppose anything can happen between now and November to turn things around......only God knows.
There is no one....NO ONE....my conscience would vote for with the present contenders.
It really does reach a point where you can’t expect to be taken seriously.
ROTFLMAO! Ol' Tom must have a man crush on Alan because that's the only way anyone would take this gig.
How does he keep the names of all three supporters straight?
WOW! You don’t understand life, it is sad.
Educate me then.......
Sad. What we need is a genuine conservative party, with a leader who can pull people together. Neither the Constitution Party nor the Libertarian Party shows any signs of being that sort of party.
That's a shame.
Who you voting for, newbie?
That’s me that was quoted, for the record.
It is one thing to have a candidate who fully understands the Constitution and the necessity of personal morality. It is another thing entirely for that candidate to speak so strongly about morality during a campaign that too many voters start to suspect that he might use government to enforce his understanding of morality.
Along these lines, this would explain why he as a fantastic UN Ambassador, yet may be suitable as a President.
(Full disclosure: I consider Keyes to be one of my intellectual heroes, and wish him nothing but success.)
Sorry typO!
>>, yet may be suitable as President <<
Correction: NOT suitable as President.
And I stilll WON’T vote for Senator McCain!
Nothing short of naming a true conservative (very few of those left these days because most have slowly migrated toward the liberal side in the Republican Party) to vice president would change my mind!
That ain’t likely.
Well, you have my condolences.
Who you voting for, newbie?
An unenthusiastic vote for McNutcase.
Keyes bump
If a man has the right message, is able to deliver it passionately, and is ignored, is this the mark of a bad candidate? ... Or is it the mark of a people who merely chase after what they wish to hear?
If there ever was a sorry excuse for a party, the CP is it. SOme great ideas but incompetent folks running the joint
There is a new party that is going to supplant the GOP in years to come. It aint the CP. See tagline.
Keyes is available.
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