Why Republicans Just Don't Get Libertarians

Yahoo News ^ | March 16, 2012 | John A. Tures

[johnatures]

There is a chorus of calls for Ron Paul to get out of the race because "he's not a true Republican."

The Koch Brothers are trying to take over the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, and morph it into more of a conservative attack machine.

You'll hear people call the Libertarians "GOP lite."

Folks will accuse libertarians of siphoning votes unnecessarily from Republicans, helping to elect Democrats.

Is this just a case of semantics, or disgruntled Republicans joining up with a new party just to win a nomination that they couldn't capture within the GOP? Or is there a deep ideological difference between the two parties?

(see the article for more)

[fieldmarshaldj]

Oh noes ! The Koch Brothers !

[ReformationFan]

I think many folks do not know what the word “libertarian” actually means. For example, I remember hearing Bill Maher saying he was a “libertarian voting for Ralph Nader.” OK, libertarians for big government socialism :?

[JRandomFreeper]

Considering that Libertarians have no problem with abortion, I have a problem with them.

You have to delineate between the party and the philosophy.

I consider myself a small 'l' libertarian. And one of the basic principles is not initiating force against others.

Abortion is the ultimate force against the most vulnerable, and absolutely unacceptable.

/johnny

[jcon40]

‘Despite their irresponsibility in some other areas, libertarians are true fiscal conservatives. This isn’t something most GOP politicians can claim. ‘

THANK YOU

[Cringing Negativism Network]

I think Republicans get Libertarians just fine.

It’s upper-case L Libertarians, who don’t get that America is worth defending.

The LP is clueless about the real world.

Until that changes, Libertarians marginalize the entire concept of libertarianism.

Upper-case L Libertarians are to libertarianism, what RINOs are to the GOP:

The problem.

[Utmost Certainty]

I’m more of an anarcho-libertarian or market-anarchist, but vote R for practical purposes.

[TigersEye]

Exactly.

[DiogenesLamp]

Libertarians are “strict constructionists” of the Constitution. That is why they have many things in common with conservatives - other than “cultural conservatives” who want to impose their idea of religious morality as an official government standard.

The Republican Party was founded to abolish Slavery. This is one of those acts of "imposing their ideas of Religious Morality" on others. No doubt you disapprove of their success in so doing.

Roe v. Wade is cut from the same cloth as Dred Scott v. Sanford: Certain classes of people are property.

Libertarians are for protection of individual rights against the majority.

Unless those individuals are not considered persons. Then they have no rights.

[doc1019]

Justify as you might ... the acceptance of abortion is a plank in your parties philosophy.

[Lazlo in PA]

Because Libertarians are dope smoking F ups.

[hosepipe]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUs-DoeqI5U&feature=youtu.be

[andyk]

Considering that Libertarians have no problem with abortion

I don't know. I guess I consider myself most closely aligned with classical liberalism, and I am opposed to abortion. It's pretty easy to oppose it when you believe that life begins at conception, and that life possesses natural rights and that individual liberty must be secured.

But then again, I've always been a little annoyed at labels like this. I think it's much more constructive to avoid jumping to conclusions about someone's beliefs, and just ask them how they stand on a particular issue.

[JRandomFreeper]

Not my party, bucko, any more than Republicans are my party.

It's the philosophy that I'm discussing.

Some people have problems separating the two. Which is why the Republicans have RINOs.

/johnny

[doc1019]

“Bucko”, I have been called many things but “Bucko” ... LOL! Sounds like something from Happy Days. Love it. LMAO!

[Tailgunner Joe]

Actually the strict constructionist would point out that questions of public morality are reserved to the states by the tenth amendment. There are things in the Constitution which don't really comport with libertarianism. For example what is the libertarian justification for federally-run post offices? If it were up to libertarians we would not have the Constitution at all. We could have just kept the Articles of Confederation. The ratification of the Constitution greatly expanded the powers of the central government.

[llandres]

Silly questions - it has nothing to do with Republicans (after all, RuPaul is a Republican, right? /s)

It’s that RP/Libertarians are NOT Conservative.

[TheCause]

[fish hawk]

I call Libertarians broken clocks. They may be right on two subjects but wrong on the whole rest of the dial. Actually I call them something else but I can't say that here. Even that John Stossel that O’Reiley has on all the time is a total idiot jerk.

[wintertime]

Considering that Libertarians have no problem with abortion
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Wrong! For those Libertarians who **know** that life begins at conception, they have a problem with abortion. I was very active in my state’s Libertarian Party for many years. Nearly all the Libertarians with whom I associated opposed abortion because without life there cannot be liberty or the pursuit of happiness.

[Secret Agent Man]

No, we get them, we just don’t want them.