Posted on 08/01/2013 9:28:50 AM PDT by Responsibility2nd
Way back in 1975, a Republican agitator named Ronald Reagan had this to say about an esoteric young movement that was roiling politics: “If you analyze it, I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism.”
Neither the GOP old guard nor the rowdy libertarians ever quite bought that argument.
They both lay claim to the same conservative economic philosophy. But libertarians are more isolationist and antiwar than Republican orthodoxy allows on foreign policy and more permissive on social issues.
Still, in the nearly four decades since Reagan made those comments, the two have managed — at least most of the time — to maintain an uneasy marriage of expedience.
Libertarianism once again appears to be on the rise, particularly among the young. But its alliance with the Republican establishment is fraying, as demonstrated by the increasingly personal war of words between two leading potential 2016 presidential contenders.
The sparring began last week, when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) posited: “As a former prosecutor who was appointed by President George W. Bush on Sept. 10, 2001, I just want us to be really cautious, because this strain of libertarianism that’s going through both parties right now and making big headlines, I think, is a very dangerous thought.”
After Christie made it clear that he was referring to Rand Paul, the Senate’s leading critic of the National Security Agency and its surveillance programs, the Kentucky Republican fired back on his Twitter account: “Christie worries about the dangers of freedom. I worry about the danger of losing that freedom. Spying without warrants is unconstitutional.”
Their feud — which is being watched closely as a possible warmup round for 2016 — has continued, expanded and spilled over into other issues.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
You could just respond to the post and list those changes to the platform that you claim chased you away from what you had been supporting.
No one changed the platform that you had been supporting.
Care to list those changes or reversals, in the platform that you are claiming, they should be easy to share with us since they are what turned you away from your party.
They need us more than they know...if we’re not there who else are they going to blame for the abject failure of their party? I loved how they told us to leave and not let the door hit us in the ass last year before the election and somehow we were the bad guys for doing as they said on election day.
So you support them on immigration and homosexual issues?
That is an impressive example of the main liberal tactic. Isolate a target, freeze it, destroy it.
Personal attacks when losing the argument is pure Saul Alinski. Care to debate the intelligence of demanding a group of 80% allies not vote for your party, not donate to your candidates and cease to help get out the vote?
That is what I did when as a libertarian, I decided to vote republican as the best way to advance my agenda. Nominating Romney chased me away. Silly nanny staters spewing venom on message boards bothers me not at all.
Baloney. Most libertarians are godless atheists. Had they been at the last Democratic Convention they would have joined with the majority voting God out. They are for the most part Godless hippies of the right. I can never make common cause with such types.
Thank you. And may I wish you good luck with Ron Paul redux (Rand).
Ron Paul, hands down.
A lot of people here would reject him out of hand because of kooky
foreign-policy, but [IMO] they're idiots* because that's exactly why Congress has a hand in the president's cabinet: to moderate bad kooky/extreme views held by the president.
* Ironically, I think most of them would be nodding in agreement with the majority of points Ron Paul put in his farewell speech.
I approve of people having faith. I myself am not a Christian, but I do have a religious faith.
I’m not the only one either. A lot of folks I’ve met of a similar mindset are “agnostic” in the sense that they are fed up with organized religions but believe a high power exists.
Take that for what it’s worth.
Rand isn’t Ron.
I’m asking for it I guess.
Libertarian
You own your life, you own your property. Government force is to be used for the common defense of the states, government force is reserved to prevent individuals from harming another individuals. If that harm is theoretical or a potential act, the harm must be proven in a court of law.
Signed, an anti-baby killing Libertarian.
We should control our borders, we can and should remove immigrants that have broken our immigration laws and send them home. Churches should be free from government interference unless they advocate using force. People have free speech rights and should not be penalized for living or espousing their religion as long as they are not using force or advocating violence.
What you eat, drink, ingest in any manner is no business of the government. We can’t even keep certain contraband out of our prisons. Attempting to regulate banned items, only makes the smuggling more profitable and creates a government enforced monopoly and government boosted price controls.
Charitable organizations can and should seek to educate, create educational materials and train parents to have serious discussions with their children about abusing drugs, food anything that can cause harm if done in excess.
The idea that Government is a Nanny that can control behavior better than communities and society is a Progressive idea and has propelled our nation to our present collapse of our culture.
This Libertarian would be pleased if my federal government shrank to 1/10 of it present size.
If the difference between conservatives and libertarians is projecting force internationally to control other countries behavior, it’s a pretty mixed bag on how that is working out anymore. We are not stopping countries from acquiring nuclear war capability right now. We take out slime ball dictators only to see them replaced with the Muslim brotherhood or some other jihadist group. What did we gain again?
End Social Security through phase out
Free market solutions for medical care
End all federal and state social programs to be replaced with private charity
End federal involvement in education
Remaining Cabinet department - Department of Defense.
Am I Libertarian or a Conservative?
Conservatives are fighting for gun rights.
Now ask a libertarian if he agrees with this libertarian position on personal relationships. Those that are ok with the idea are the real libertarians.
"Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity should have no impact on the government's treatment of individuals, such as in current marriage, child custody, adoption, immigration or military service laws. Government does not have the authority to define, license or restrict personal relationships."
How so? Libertarian-leaning folks want the Government OUT of peoples' lives as much as possible. We want the Bill of Rights to be enforced. We want the State to have to follow its own rules instead of just doing what it wants when it wants and how it wants.
We want low taxes, fewer laws, a severe reduction in "regulations", an extreme reduction in the number of Government busybodies who pester you day in and day out and we figure that what you do behind the closed doors of your own home, so long as it doesn't harm anyone, is nobody's business but your own.
It is leftists who claim the mantle of being conservatives who have ruined the brand.
The nut don’t fall far from the tree.
He may not be Ron, but its all the same, IMO..
Now Ted Cruz... There’s a conservative Tea Party man we can all get behind.
But I guess he’s not liberaltarian enough for the fringe here.
What is the Libertarians platform on abortion?
“Libertarianism needs to go away and go away NOW. Start a 3rd Party, join the Dims, I don’t care. I’m as likely to vote for ODumbo as I am a Libertarian.”
I’m far more likely to vote for a libertarian than Zero or a RINO.
This is one thing I don't get about libertarian detractors here. They go to great lengths to make the philosophy seem kooky, but when you think about paring the FedGov back down into it's Art 1 Sec 8 lockbox... What things do you have to do?
Cut taxes. Cut spending. Do away with all of the alphabet agencies that don't have a specific and enumerated Art 1 Sec 8 power... Including the FDA, EPA, Dep of Ed, Dep of Energy, DEA, NASA, BATFE, etc...
So... Are they just bigger government RINO's who want to wield the power the socialists now have?
If so, why the hell are they HERE on FR?
1.4 Abortion Recognizing that abortion is a sensitive issue and that people can hold good-faith views on all sides, we believe that government should be kept out of the matter, leaving the question to each person for their conscientious consideration.
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