03 July 2007

Third Party Politics

In a recent post, I mentioned that had the immigration bill passed the Senate, I would have resigned from the GOP. Well, it didn't pass, but it still left me with some things to think about. If not the GOP,what options are there?

1.) Not voting - This is simply not an option for me. I'm a lot like Hank Hill. If I didn't vote, I wouldn't get called for jury duty. That's a little extreme, but voting is the number one lesson taught (or should be) in civics.

2.) Vote Democrat - Again, this is not an option. All the Democrats save perhaps Bill Richardson, wouldn't even cross my radar as candidates go. All the candidates from Hillary on down to Mike Gravel all have socialist tendencies that would be unpalatable for a conservative voter like me. Richardson's biggest draw back is his call for revoking authorization for operations in Iraq. Simply put, this is an unconditional surrender to the jihadists. 

3.) Vote Libertarian - This presents some intriguing opportunities. In some ways, I'm closer to a libertarian than a conservative. However, government should play a very minimal role in the lives of its citizens beyond providing for the common welfare and defense. However, I disagree with the the stance on drug policies. This might be a viable alternative for me.

4.) Vote Constitution Party - I have had the opportunity to meet Howard Phillips at numerous functions when I lived in Washington, DC. I believe that the CP comes closest to matching my political views and general philosophy of government.  If pressed, I would say that the Constitution Party would be my first choice of alternatives to the GOP.

These are some of the questions that had crossed my mind in the wake of the shamnesty debate. For whatever it's worth, I'm not totally convinced by the results of ONE vote that the GOP or the Dems get it. Take this for what it's worth. The opinion of one man whose voice doesn't account for much.

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