https://thirdpartywatch.com/2008/06/13/comparing-ron-paul-and-bob-barr-on-the-crucial-issues-of-the-day/
7. Bob Barr can’t be trusted because he’s not been a Libertarian long enough. Barr joined the Libertarian Party in 2006. He has held libertarian
beliefs prior to joining the party. In 2004, two years prior to joining
the Libertarian Party he publicly and officially endorsed Libertarian
Candidate Michael Badnarik for President. He was called a “libertarian” due to his criticisms of George W. Bush’s Iraq war policies and
violations of civil liberties beginning in 2003. It seems that Ron Paul
and Bob Barr crossed paths in the night. Paul went back to the
Republican Party after his brief stint as the Libertarian Presidential
nominee in 1988 (although he remains a party member). Bob Barr left the
Republican Party because it left him. 6. Bob Barr is a Neocon. Maybe in the mid-nineties this was marginally true. Today he is
everything a neo-conservative is not. Would a neo-conservative advocate
bringing our troops home from Iraq as quickly and safely as possible?
Would a neo-conservative advocate bringing our troops home that are
currently stationed in South Korea, Europe, and Japan? Would a
neo-conservative be calling for switching to a non-interventionist
foreign policy? Neocon Schmeocon. If Bob Barr is a neocon then Ron Paul
is a neocon. 5. Bob Barr is Ex CIA. No one has been able to convince me that this is a bad thing. The
argument that just because Barr worked for the CIA makes him
untrustworthy is nothing more than conspiratorial horse hockey. You can
say you don’t trust him because he voted for some bad laws in his past,
but trying to argue that he’s untrustworthy because he used to work for
the CIA only strengthens your opponent’s argument. In doing this you
are generalizing to the highest degree. You are thinking of people in
groups rather than individuals. Looking beyond this “groupthink” one
should realize that being a former CIA employee is a great thing to
have on the resume when running for office. At least when viewed by the
average voter. 4. Bob Barr voted for the Iraq War Authorization. I challenge you to think back at how you felt in the days and months
following the September 11th attacks. If you were in Congress and were
presented with reasonable and logical evidence that Saddam Hussein had
weapons of mass destruction and was intent on using them against the
United States how would you have voted? Unless you are a Ron Paul I
suspect you would have gone along with the majority who voted for it.
Now that we have the benefit of hindsight rather than the patriotic
tunnel vision we had during that time it is easy to be against the war.
If you were against it back then you were a true iconoclast. At least
Bob Barr has publicly denounced his vote and owned up to the mistake
rather than obfuscate with political rhetoric. Who better to spread the
liberty message than someone who echoed the voice of the majority of
Americans at that time, but then formed a new opinion as the Iraq war
moved forward year after year? The general public has taken this same
journey towards liberty along with Bob Barr. 3. Bob Barr Is/Was A Drug Warrior. Many Barr critics don’t seem to understand the difference between
‘was’ and ‘is’. Yes, Barr was a major leader supporting the war on
drugs in the 90’s. I wore day glow green, yellow, and orange shirts in
the 90’s. I realized the error of my ways and modified my wardrobe,
eventually. Why is it so unacceptable to some that Bob Barr has
realized the error of his drug warrior past? He openly and passionately
campaigns for the decriminalization of marijuana. He is active with the
Marijuana Policy Project and is endorsed by its founder Rob Kampia. If
Bob Barr’s drug war transformation is sincere enough for an activist
working every day to minimize the impact of cannabis why is it not good
enough for some? 2. Bob Barr is no Ron Paul. No one is Ron Paul except Ron Paul. No politician has the
unblemished 30+ year record fighting for liberty like him. It is unfair
and unwise to measure every candidate with the Ron Paul yard stick.
There is a plus side to Bob Barr not being another Ron Paul. Bob Barr
is trusted by conservatives who would never have considered voting for
Ron Paul. Bob Barr gives these voters an open window to climb through
into the liberty house. For example, radio and TV host Glenn Beck never
once said he would consider voting for Ron Paul even though he calls
himself a libertarian on some issues. Beck has said more than once that
he is considering voting for Barr. He even suggests Barr as a viable
option to his guests when the election topic comes up. What baffles me
is that Barr has the same foreign policy positions as Ron Paul yet the
reason Beck claims he could never vote for Paul is due to foreign
policy. Logical or not, Bob Barr could potentially bring in more
conservative votes than even Ron Paul himself. 1. Bob Barr voted for the Patriot Act. This is by far the most common criticism of Bob Barr, yet it is
thrown around as a black vs. white criticism when the truth lies in the
details. Bob Barr voted for the Patriot Act so he could put a sunset
clause in it to force it to expire every 5 years. This clause requires
that the Act pass a legislative vote to continue. If Barr did not vote
for the Patriot Act his sunset clause would likely not exist. It would
be permanent. It was going to pass with or without Barr’s vote so
Barr’s strategic decision was to vote for it so he could shape it by
adding the sunset provision. This is Bob Barr jumping on the grenade to
save liberty. He testified against the Patriot Act in 2005 when it came
up for renewal. He has spoken out against it in just about every
interview since its passage. Yes, Barr voted for the Patriot Act, but
there is more to the story than just the vote.
Profile
Photos
Comments
