Republicans, take notice

By The News Virginian Staff

Published: June 6, 2008

Having slipped beyond the walls of the establishment, Bob Barr resides now in its shadows, in a place known as the fringe, whose primary inhabitants are few and familiar, among them Ralph Nader and, long ago, Lyndon LaRouche. The ascendant Barack Obama will trail Barr in precisely one respect: the former will emerge from a convention in Denver with his party’s nomination. The latter has done so already. Those who failed to take notice can be forgiven, since Barr’s nomination came from the Libertarian Party, which is slightly lesser known than the Democratic, and the Fifth Beatle.
Obama, presumably, has paid little heed to Barr’s invisible presence. But John McCain, the presumed GOP nominee, should. Voters who select Barr, a former Republican congressman turned Libertarian presidential pretender, would figure to do so only by accident or while under the influence of hallucinogens. A third, more remote possibility must be acknowledged: Some votes could be cast for Barr as an expression of distaste for both Obama and McCain, and perhaps especially the latter.
Barr cannot be counted upon to nudge his party’s position in the presidential race from its ordinary place somewhere between obscurity and imperceptibility. The Libertarian Party picked up slightly less than 400,000 votes in 2004, which is remarkable primarily for the fact that anyone bothered to record the statistic. Republicans held an edge over Libertarians in that election of 61.6 million votes, and Democrats, a meager 58.6 million.
Still, Nader, the great spoiler who disdains the only form of consequence available to him, demonstrates the relevancy of third-party candidacies. Almost 2.9 million people voted for him in 2000, and of those, 97,488 were in Florida, where Democrat Al Gore lost to President Bush by 537 votes. Barr could have a similar impact on McCain, provided the latter is able to make a race of it with Obama.
Unlike Nader, Barr’s part could be larger than that of mere presidential dream stealer. A former Georgia congressman who marched dutifully with Newt Gingrich under the GOP banner during the 1994 Republican revolution, Barr might be part of another uprising, so far smaller in scale but one that could surpass the other in length and significance.
Propelled by increased angst among people of both major party persuasions over government’s widening reach in the form of higher taxes and spending, stealing away of liberties and siphoning of privacy rights, the Libertarian spirit is sweeping up adherents. The party expects to place 1,500 names on ballots nationwide by Election Day. Among those on the ballot last fall was Libertarian Arin Sime, who finished a distant third to state Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, and David Cox, D-Lexington.
Few Libertarian candidates will win in November, nor is there evidence that the party can become a politically viable alternative to the majors. But discounting the movement is particularly unadvisable for Republicans, some of whom appear steadily less capable of grasping the meaning of the anxious stirring within their base.
Many Libertarian ideals parallel those of classic conservatism. In addition to limited government, these include restrained use of military force and close adherence to the constitutional limits on the powers of the presidency. This is why Libertarians opposed intervention in Iraq, the Patriot Act and Bush’s heavy-handed use of executive power — all themes among some of the president’s staunchest opponents.
That one of the Republican Party’s fiercest warriors, especially during the impeachment of President Clinton, has defected to the Libertarian Party is partially representative of the political clout Barr lost in a bitter congressional primary fight after Georgia redistricting in 2002. But it also is an indicator that the moorings in the Republican wing of the establishment are looser than they once were. Further signs are evinced in the frail conservative support for McCain.
He and his party should take notice.