CNN’s Wolf Blitzer interviewed Ron Paul on October 4. The interview lasts 6 minutes and can be seen here. Ron Paul is the only prominent person who is running for the presidential nomination of the Democratic or Republican Parties, who has ever talked about U.S. policy that discriminates for two particular parties and against all others. That part of the interview is midway in the interview (at the 3 minutes, 9 seconds marker).
Ronald Reagan, while president, mentioned in a speech given in 1985 in the Soviet Union that the Libertarian Party and Socialist Party, among others, ran against him in 1984, and that this is proof that the U.S. is democratic. Gerald Ford, while president, expressed the belief in 1976 that the New York courts ought to permit independent presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy to be on the 1976 ballot. Calvin Coolidge, while president, expressed the belief in 1924 that Louisiana should permit independent Progressive candidate Robert La Follette to get on the ballot. Other than these 3 examples, it is believed that no sitting U.S. president in the 20th or 21st centuries has ever publicly expressed any support for the right of voters to vote for minor parties and independent candidates.
It is widely reported in books on depression-era politics that Franklin D. Roosevelt urged Minnesota Democrats in 1934 and 1936 to withdraw their statewide candidates and back the Farmer-Labor Party ticket. FDR endorsed Sen. Robert LaFollette Jr for re-election on the Progressive ticket in 1934 and maybe 1940.
FDR is also credited with encouraging the NY Democratic organization to circulate petitions to put the American Labor Party on the ballot. All three of these parties backed Roosevelt for President, so this may not count…
In 1980, Reagan also stepped up and said including independent John Anderson in the debates was fine with him. Carter backed down.
Interestingly, the Libertarian Party (Ed Clark) had their best showing in 1980, running against a libertarian-leaning Republican (Reagan), in a year with a high profile independent (Anderson). To think they did that BEFORE the Internet made bypassing the mainstream media possible boggles the mind.
It also makes you wonder why third party candidates don’t do better now — it’s never been easier to organize and communicate that there’s an alternative.
The 1980 Libertarian showing was because the v-p candidate donated $3,000,000 to the campaign, and also because Clark was such a good candidate. With that money making nationwide TV ads possible, Clark was observed by millions and he came across as very appealing. Also it was a good year for a party that was advocating less foreign military involvement.
The solution is letting people vote for more than one candidate.
It’s called “approval voting” and all the technical societies have adopted it because it minimizes the “throwing your vote away” dilemma.
What guys like Ron Paul need to understand is that the two party system is a game theoretic consequence of forcing people to check only one candidate on their ballots. Fix the underlying problem.
the libertarians had a great song in 1980
“there’s a change coming over America” or something like that
Don’t know that much about the rules (laws) but when I am given two candidates, neither of which I would endorse at the point of a gun, much less the passive coercion of the two party system, I either, don’t vote, or I write in the candidate of my choice.
Reply to Cindy:
The Libertarian Party’s 1980 slogan/song was “It’s Time for a New Beginning.” It was also the name of his campaign book.
Unfortunately, at the 1980 Republican convention, Ronald Reagan announed his campaign slogan: “It’s Time for a New Beginning.” No ackowledgement.
James Bowery: … the two party system is a game theoretic consequence of forcing people to check only one candidate on their ballots.
An even more important cause of the two party system is single-member districts.
The solution is letting people vote for more than one candidate. It’s called “approval votingâ€
That might be one way. In my opinion, a much better way is instant runoff voting (IRV).
The Libertarian Party would have done even better in 1980 if it had been rational and had offered its presidential nomination to Senator Eugene J. McCarthy. The Senator gave the keynote address for the Libertarion Party Convention in 1977 (San Francisco). The speech was vintage McCarthy and wonderful. I know that because I was there.
This is the first I’ve heard of a connection between Eugene McCarthy and the Libertarians. McCarthy was funny, and I always enjoyed listening to him. He was, however, a socialist.
I couldn’t help admiring a man who, in the midst of a presidential campaign, would take a day off to sit under a tree and read poetry. Besides, McCarthy almost single-handedly drove that a**hole Lyndon Johnson out of the presidency.
In addressing the Rainbow Coaltion during his last presidential campaign (1992), McCarthy said that people whose income was above a certain amount should give the ‘excess’ to the government. He said that if they didn’t give it voluntarily, “We should take it from them.”
I liked what McCarthy said about campaign finance. He noted that the government had great influence over the way that government officials are chosen.
I always wondered whether McCarthy would have run for a third term in the U. S. Senate in 1970 if Hubert Humphrey had not entered the race.
Lex says “It also makes you wonder why third party candidates don’t do better now — it’s never been easier to organize and communicate that there’s an alternative.”
Yes and look how the ‘alternative’ is labled and packaged.
The Libertarians have done a near wonderful job on ichronography. But even they drop the ball on the 1776 Fort Mountrie flag [L I B E R T Y] and Don Lake’s 1990 21st Century Peace Symbol [of a three bladed electricity generator wind mill/ fan]!
The United States Constitution Party [nee the United States Taxpayers Party, and various state American Imdependent Party/ ies] has the Eagle and the Eagle Head as logos. Hmmmmm, kinda like that lovable institution, the U. S. Post Office. Kinda like ‘standing out by blending in…..’
This decades long stoke of pure stupidity is matched by the Veterans Party splinters, and the reform movement factions. Infact, the ‘Action Group’ of the ‘so called’ reform party has a Roman Empire Eagle which is exactly like the bird taken by Bunito Muscelli in 1921 as the ancient ‘fasci’ and the modern Fascist!
And the Green Party? No personal icons and the SUN FLOWER as featured symbol! [We are no longer in Kansas, every one!] Just stupid!
Look at Nader. [Before he was past shelf date!] ‘Declare your Independence????’ Oh please….. Folks would have killed for a NADER’S RAIDERS tee shirt or button. But the lawyers from the Nader effort, whom could not seem to get their guy on the California ballot, despite seasoned advice from Citizens For A Better Veterans Home and other 2003 sucessful historial Dump Davis veteran types, were ‘too smart by half’.
Teddy Roosevelt is the only 20th Century president to be carved on Mount Rushmore. He won a Nobel Prize, WHILE IN OFFICE, a century ago. He is the only president to earn the Congressional Medal of Honor! AND HE IS BEST KNOWN INDEPENDENT/ MAVERICK ever!
The Reformers, Greens, U. S. Constitution Party, VETS Party, Unity08, GOOOH, COIP and others should be jostling in line for usage of the L I B E R T Y Flag, the Wind Mill Peace Sign, Bull Moose, Theodore Roosevelt, 1912 Bull Moose running mate California Governor Hyman W. Johnson, Mount Rushmore, The Theodore Bear plush toy and [in James Gilchrist’s case] the Minute Man.
The silence is under whelming, so is the ‘intelligence’!
Maybe, as dumb as the Republicrats and Democans are, other efforts and alternatives just are not smart enough to compete with the establishment’s steer manure!
To Steve Rankin;
Senator Eugene J. McCarthy was not a socialist. There were always a lot of socialist people, like me, who worked very hard in his campaigns due to the fact that he was such a fantastic and wonderful person. In politics, sometimes the personal is the political, as the radical feminists of the 70’s and 80’s used to say.
To my good friend, Don Lake;
When people do not take your suggestions after you have promoted them for long periods of time, it is time to move on to something else.
I never thought of icons as being quite necessary in the political realm, especially symbols of aggression or “phallacies” Look, we’re running against one party that symbolizes itself with a large non-native animal that many in its ranks would probably be as likely to want to shoot as to identify with . . .
and the other party is an ass!
I’ve always thought of the Greens’ Sunflower as refreshing and opposed the idea of having to adopt an animal symbol to be a “legitimate party.”
Useful points. will definitely visit soon:)