The Simi Valley Republican presidential debate of May 3 did not cover any matters concerning voting rights or election law, except that each of the 10 presidential candidates was asked about changing the U.S. Constitution to let foreign-born citizens run for President. Rudy Giuliani and Mike Huckabee said “yes”, and John McCain said he is undecided. The others said “no.”
Ron Paul did not utter the word “libertarian”, yet the press coverage of the debate consistently described him with that adjective. The Boston Globe said he is a “fiery libertarian”; Newsweek says he is a “Libertarian Republican”; National Review Online mentioned his “non-interventionist libertarian position”; Bloomberg.com says Paul “echoed the libertarian themes on warrantless searches and foreign policy”; the New York Sun said Paul is a “pure libertarian”; the Long Island Press said Paul is “a one-time Libertarian Party presidential nominee”; the Brazosport Facts (a newspaper in Paul’s district) referred to his “libertarian views”; the Ventura County Star called him “a libertarian who voted against the Iraq war at the outset.” It is almost as though the Libertarian Party was represented in the debate, at least for those voters who are reading the press on May 4.