A Libertarian Moment in the GOP? Gov. Gary Johnson On the Politics of the 2012 Election

[yokosuberi]

"Highest ranking official" to speak up against the drug war? A representative Ron Paul is not lower ranked than a governor.

[MrTitiez]

RON PAUL 2012! 

[tazzmangotit]

Comments like"Governor Johnson was and is the highest ranking official to ever talk against the drug war... REALLY? come on man, get your facts strait. Ron Paul has been saying this for a long time. Saying things like that discredits you. Yes you have been talking out about it but your not alone and your definatly not the "highest ranking official" to come out against the war on drugs. Drop out and support Ron Paul, that would give you a ton of recognition for 2016

[tazzmangotit]

If he mentioned Ron Paul more he would get more recognition

[taetoe1]

he belongs in the cabinet, under Ron Paul, to be groomed for the future, but his time is not yet.

[KenMacMillan]

Ken Burns's prohibition has it's jabs at republicanism.

[Madfoot713]

@KenMacMillan Republicanism, as in the GOP? Fine. The GOP isn't exactly conservative anyway.

[KenMacMillan]

@Madfoot713 The prohibition era was before the modern neocon domination of the republican party. At the time republicans were more like Ron Paul. The point of my comment though was that he's attacking the republican form of government that America was founded on. If it were a standard documentary Burns would stick to the facts without his little jabs. If Johnson were to get the nomination I'd vote for him. Ron Paul gets it in the primaries though.

[Madfoot713]

@KenMacMillan Ok, gotcha. I haven't seen the documentary yet so I didn't really know where you were coming from.

[zvi303]

He sounds admirable. And if he runs, I will sit it out, although I think Obama is ruining the country. (If Paul runs, I will vote for Obama.)

[HHeadstoneCleaning]

Ride Gary Ride

[blackxred]

Good interview but volumes are unbalanced (and GR, I had to turn my volume way up to hear you).

[NoMoreBlatherDotCom]

On the upside, GaryJo would get liberals and libertarians the drugs they need at good prices.

On the downside, China would end up in effect colonizing part of the U.S. due to his other policy:

24ahead . com/s/gary-johnson

That page links to a post showing a brief chat I had with GaryJo on Twitter. Compare the types of questions I asked him to what Glenn Reynolds asked him.

Which is better for the U.S.? That candidates be asked weak questions, or that they be really pressed on their ideas?

[NoMoreBlatherDotCom]

A while back, Glenn Reynolds hid behind a fake name like a little girl and told me to "STFU". Remove the spaces around the dot:

24ahead . com/s/glenn-reynolds

(Note: by "fake name", I don't mean Instapundit.)

[mcoop221]

Wouldn't care if the Libertarians did win the Presidency. There are three branches of govt for a reason.

[TheEbonicslover]

@mcoop221 first of all there are already 4 branches of the government. Second, what does having a third party running for the seat have to do with the 3 branches of the government if we indeed had 3 branches?

[TheEbonicslover]

WTF? Johnson wants marijuana taxed? I thought he was for small government. Ron Paul is certainly the only way

[TheFederalistVoice]

I'm going to be brutally honest, Gary Johnson won't get the nomination, neither will Ron Paul. Their importance isn't winning the nomination, it'll winning one or two states, or having a strong showing (Ron Paul might accrue 15-20%) in the primaries. These two men are laying the groundworks for future libertarian-esque campaigns and have brought libertarianism from an outside ideology into the mainstream of American politics. That's their importance, bringing it to the mainstream.

[kylethebomber]

@TheFederalistVoice Rand Paul or Nikki Haley. One of those is going to be in a presidential primary in the future and they've got a fantastic chance of winning on a libertarian-lite platform.

[Mezey5]

@TheFederalistVoice Exactly, i really like their libertarian ideas but they won't get elected, they will force the GOP to become more libertarian, which is definitely a plus.

[TheFederalistVoice]

@Mezey5 I don't think they'll force the GOP to become more libertarian, over the social conservatives' dead body. I do believe men like Paul and Johnson will lead an influx of libertarians away from being Independents and becoming Republicans and becoming an integral part of the Republican coalition. I secretly, well, not so secretly, want the Moral Majority to be kicked out of the party, but I digress.

[Shanockdotcom]

Gary Johnson's a great guy and normally I'd vote for him, but his campaign will only serve to take votes from Ron Paul, and that's why FOX news doesn't hate on him. Why is he running? His positions are so similar to RP that it's not worth mentioning, except that GJ wants a fair tax and RP doesn't. Again, I like GJ, but RP has been the man all along - last thing we need in 2012 is a split vote that lets Romney, Perry, or *shudder* Santorum get the nomination.

[Kreationz1979]

@Shanockdotcom Gary met with RP before announcing Ron ended then meeting. Gary announced before Ron did... now you tell me who's stealing the liberty vote? Gary said he would pick RP as VP and RP has shunned him. Raising his hand about a Pro-life VP litmus test and then failing to acknowledge him as the last debate and avoiding the question all together. Ron killed Gary's campaign not the other way around no matter how you spin it.

[TheEbonicslover]

@Kreationz1979 I spin it that Ron has never kissed anyone's ass. If he did just that what Johnson said it would look pathetic at least at this stage of the campaign. Besides as much as Johnson is the only one I could vote for if Ron wasn't running he still doesn't come close to Ron's standard.

[kylethebomber]

@TheEbonicslover "he still doesn't come close to Ron's standard"

I try not to argue about Gary vs RP (I love em both) but could you please explain to me in what way RP is more libertarian than Gary? In what way he would make a better president?  There is about a micrometer worth of difference between the two when it comes to the issues, especially the issues that matter.

[TheEbonicslover]

@kylethebomber I never wrote RP was more libertarian than Johnson. From general point of view on issues one can say there is not much difference however notice how everyone running (including Johnson) comes up with a specific plan and specific numbers on "how to fix" fix all the problems. Everyone except president Paul. Once you got someone else plan something for you someone will get fucked eventually. If the issue here is would I support Johnson if Ron wasn't running... I probably would.

[Kreationz1979]

@TheEbonicslover So are you saying Paul has no plan? Are you saying it's all philosophical? Johnson has a plan. Not only that it would be his budget he'd submit to congress. He has lead and governed as an executive. What has Paul ever accomplished? Can you name one bill that he has ever written that has passed?

[TheEbonicslover]

@Kreationz1979 Again your not reading carefully. I wrote Ron never talks about specific plans or numbers associated with them. The fact that most of his bills never got anywhere shows how criminal the government is. Isn't this obvious?

[Kreationz1979]

@TheEbonicslover Their meeting was before either campaign began.

[glennd7962]

Gary Johnson is the only candidate who's right on every issue. He's not only a small government, serious libertarian, but also sees the role of govt in protecting our environment.. Go Gary Johnson!!

[KingDingaLing090]

@glennd7962 How does a cap on man made CO2 protect our environment?

[bagzie]

The best thing Government can do for business and working class people is GET OUT OF THEIR FUCKING WAY!

[linwooddeaton]

who? lol

[XCritonX]

If he vetoed all spending bills for anything that was not mandated by the constitution the budget would be balanced. It would however be very hard since not even his own party would support it.

[xHippieHunter]

I like how all these idiots don't know what a neo-con is. you morons need to learn the actual meaning of this. It does not mean a conservative. Bush was a neo-con. No REAL conservative is a neo-con. A neo-con is someone wanting to have america be the world police so people like this moron TacticalCitySlicker calling this channel a neo-con channel should actually learn the definiton of neo-con and then kill them selves.

[TheEbonicslover]

@xHippieHunter you do agree though it is a kike loving channel don't you?

[xHippieHunter]

@TheEbonicslover really dude? you fucking trash go kill your self you damn racist you idiots make conservatives look bad.

[TechMeched]

All of you NeoCons make me sick

[kruegerhaus]

If you legalize pot you will be inviting the Mexican Mafia and other gangs into our government. That will be a VERY BAD thing.

[SumErgoMonstro]

@kruegerhaus Did ending Prohibition invite the Mob into our government? No.  It reduced the incidence of corrupt government officials on the take from the Mob, because they didn't need to pay cops protection money to keep their businesses open.

[TheEbonicslover]

@kruegerhaus LOL did you know brain is for thinking, not your ass?

[signalfire6]

@kruegerhaus That's what we have with ILL-legalization. Marijuana is just a weed, legalize it and the price drops down to the equivalent amount of tomatoes. You don't see turf wars over cucumbers, and if people can grow their own, it won't be coming over the border in any great amounts either. We also need to legalize the low-THC hemp plant. It has thousands of uses and could literally save our economy.

[oilhammer04]

If he were pro-life, I would consider voting for him.

[CountArtha]

@oilhammer04 He's pro-choice personally but he wants to overturn Roe v. Wade.

[oilhammer04]

@CountArtha, interesting.

[signalfire6]

@CountArtha That's incorrect. He's prochoice to the point of viability of the fetus, but against using federal dollars to pay for abortions. Get your facts straight, it's Ron Paul who wants to overturn Roe v. Wade.

[TheEbonicslover]

@oilhammer04 he is for the bitch's life not for the kid's. That's why we got a real president to put in the office and that is of course Ron.

[Shanockdotcom]

Hey, PJTV... the GOP used to define itself as the small government party. That's how it won elections (despite how the presidents later behaved), because that's what the people wanted. Ron Paul and Gary Johnson aren't a new phenomenon. They stand for what the the TRUE American conservative is supposed to be trying to conserve: liberty!

[NAGGERNUTZ]

This guy is as nutty as Ron Paul...and probably stands about as much chance of getting elected. Little to none.

[MarkQuinn2k7]

@NAGGERNUTZ You're a fucking cocksucker NAGGER. But you're right.

[NAGGERNUTZ]

@MarkQuinn2k7 - A cock has never passed my lips. I doubt if you can say the same. Thanks, I'm usually right.

[TheEbonicslover]

@NAGGERNUTZ damn it's gotta feel good to follow the leader, doesn't it? Is licking boots your specialty?

[NAGGERNUTZ]

@TheEbonicslover - It's better than licking assholes. Does it taste good?

[TheEbonicslover]

@NAGGERNUTZ bring yours for me to lick and you'll find out. After this treatment you will be licking my boots too.

[NAGGERNUTZ]

@TheEbonicslover - Oh no, you'd enjoy it too much. I'll stick with toilet paper.

[lordtiberius]

Gary Johnson and Ron Paul are stooges for George Soros.

[CountArtha]

@lordtiberius BWAHAHAHA!

[StopFear]

Ron Paul is better than this man

[sstomlewis]

officer bologna (aka the mace man) phone number 518-989-9051

[TacticalCitySlicker]

Kudos to Garry for having the balls to go on this NeoCon channel.

I'll definitely vote for this guy after Ron Paul's second term!

[wormer104]

@TacticalCitySlicker Well least you have a good imagination...

[superlucci]

@TacticalCitySlicker I like how people like you think calling somebody a Neo-Conservative is actually an insult.

Its simply a conservative who wishes to continue this war.

[Razlo5000]

I have never done drugs. I will never do drugs. That has nothing to do with it being illegal & everything to do with the fact its a stupid, idiotic thing to do.

I am in 100% agreement with Ron Paul on the matter of drugs. Legalize it. Legalize ALL of it. Weed, heroin, crack, whatever.

If you're childish, stupid & immature enough to abuse drugs in the first place, you'll get what you deserve.

[Fontzilla]

@Razlo5000 I understand your point and the Prohibition argument, but remember that drug use isn't always a victimless crime. My family was devastated by the drug use of one member. The rest of us in the family didn't choose to do "a stupid, idiotic thing", but suffered anyway.

[Razlo5000]

@Fontzilla

So long as people have free will, you will never create a victimless society. Alcoholism certainly isn't victimless but alcohol is legal. So if sniffing spray paint or drinking mouth wash (which I consider to be the same as drug abuse). To eliminate these things from society, you need to address the reasons people do shit like this. Poor upbringing, lack of education, poor standard of living, depression, gross irresponsibility...

Simply making it illegal doesn't solve anything .

[Fontzilla]

@Razlo5000 You're right. The real answer is to heal society, restore its moral compass. My brother didn't have a poor upbringing, lack of education, poor standard of living, or depression. He fell in with the wrong crowd, caved to peer pressure, and began his downward slide. And the fact that drugs are illegal kept many people I knew from doing them. It wasn't worth the risk. So it did stop at least some from going down that slippery slope.

[jkessler410]

@Fontzilla I don't believe that for a second, in fact I'd wager drugs being legal would make them hard to get for minors than they currently are, even in a small town red state America they were all around me my entire life, I could have done drugs any time I wanted to.. I never did, because I chose not to... and my choice was all mine the legality had nothing to do with it.

[Fontzilla]

@jkessler410 You're welcome to believe whatever you want to believe, but I did know more than one person that didn't go down that path because they were illegal. I'm glad you didn't; you're better for it. But I disagree that it would be harder for minors to get drugs. Alcohol is legal for adults, but kids still have no problems getting it.

[Razlo5000]

@Font

That exact same scenario played out with a person in my life as well. Difference was, when they started hanging with the wrong crowd, my family intervened & explained to them that these people are poisonous. That person so respected & cherished their parents advise that they ceased contact with those people immediately. Today, that person is living a healthy, fulfilling life.

The threat of doing something illegal means little to me. I refuse to masturbate your brain.

[Fontzilla]

@Razlo5000 Do you really think my parents stood by and did nothing for my brother? They did everything from trying the caring approach, to the tough love of letting him sit in jail, and everything in between. The fact that I and my other siblings avoided that trap is a testament to my parents and our upbringing. Our story did finally have a happy ending, but it took my brother doing serious prison time and hitting rock bottom first.

[Razlo5000]

@Fontzilla

Look man, whatever happens in your own personal life is insignificant. No matter what we do on a societal level to address this problem, there will always be a handful of helpless people out there with whom you can do nothing with or for.

Your brother's story only proves making drugs illegal doesn't solve anything.

Maybe sending your brother to rehab instead or letting him hit rock bottom sooner than later would have worked out better? Who knows.

But this isn't a criminal issue.

[KingDingaLing090]

@Razlo5000 People do it because it is fun and it feels good. You can stop over analyzing now. Thank me later.

[Razlo5000]

@KingDinga

No, I think I'll thank you now for proving a point I made earlier:

"No matter what we do on a societal level to address this problem, there will always be a handful of helpless people out there with whom you can do nothing with or for."

I really don't care what you choose to do with your life so long as you leave me out of it. Your fate is not my concern. What is happening here dope-head, is that responsible & MATURE people are deciding to quit bankrolling your mental masturbation.

[KingDingaLing090]

@Razlo5000 How so? And um.. what does this have to do with me?

[Razlo5000]

@NoKingDinga

"Um" think about it & fuck off troll.

[KingDingaLing090]

@Razlo5000 I said how so? I already thought about it.

[Razlo5000]

@NoKingDinga

You already thought about it but you still don't get it?

You under analyzed it then.

[KingDingaLing090]

@Razlo5000 Right it is my fault you don't make any sense and can't support your stupid statement... yeah okaaaay.

Later stooge.

[cuprumcaput]

@Razlo5000 Finally someone addressing the Real problem in America.............Mouthwash!­......

[zvi303]

@Razlo5000 No, but it would be a lot worse if it were legal.

[Madfoot713]

@zvi303 not really no

[Razlo5000]

@zvi303

So?

What a bunch of petulant irresponsible people do with their lives is none of my business. So long as I am not bankrolling their stupidity, their fate is not my concern.

As much as I abhor the detestable concept of mental masturbation that is doing drugs, I do not have the right to dictate to others what they can or cannot do. You also can't penalize the majority of people because of the gross irresponsibility of a few. Again, alcohol is legal even though some morons drink & drive.

[Madfoot713]

@Fontzilla >"My family was devastated by the drug use of one member."

Do you really think putting your family member in a cage would have helped, though?

[Fontzilla]

@Madfoot713 It would have spared the rest of the family a lot of heartache, sleepless nights, and stolen family heirlooms. And considering it was doing hard time in prison finally turned him around, it was definitely the answer.

[Madfoot713]

@Fontzilla And you think that solution should be applied to everyone?

I read yesterday that Steve Jobs dropped acid once when he was younger, and he considered it a life-changing moment. Not just a positive experience: he said it was one of the defining moments of his life, and he understood things about himself that not even his wife knew because of it.

Imagine how different the world would be if we turned Steve Jobs into a felon.

[Bravo21]

We need a return to personal liberty, and less government intervention in our lives...in All areas of our lives.

[jag10]

Johnson is the only candidate, other than the man who will remain nameless, that had/has an approval rating above 60%.

[StateExempt]

The more I hear about this guy and Paul the more I think there might be hope for the future after all.