Bob Barr & the Upcoming Democratic Victory

H2O Man

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Sun Apr-06-08 05:19 PM
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Bob Barr & the Upcoming Democratic Victory

The announcement that former US Attorney and Representative Bob Barr is seeking the Libertarian Party’s nomination to run for President may be good for the democratic party. It goes beyond the possibility that Barr has the potential to take votes away from republican nominee John McCain, much in the manner of Henry Ross Perot in 1992. He might also focus attention on the issues relating to the federal government’s destruction of Constitutional protections.

It is important that democrats remain fully aware of how Bob Barr came to place such value as he does upon the Bill of Rights. He was a conservative, with rigid right-wing "values" that he was intent on imposing on other people. He was an advocate of harsh drug laws. He opposed abortion. He crusaded against same-sex marriage. And he was one of the leaders of the movement to impeach Bill Clinton.

Then in 1999, Hustler publisher Larry Flynt offered cash to anyone who could provide evidence of republican hypocrisy involving those who were attacking President Clinton. It turned out that in 1982, he made an exception to his moral stance against abortion, when his then-wife became pregnant. And in 1985, he refused to answer questions in his divorce hearing regarding his affair with his current third wife.

This was the genesis of Bob Barr’s rebirth as an advocate of privacy. I am not questioning his sincerity, because people do change. And he has raised a number of very important points about the federal government’s attacks on the Bill of Rights.

Before getting to those, I would add that while Bob Barr is now open-minded enough to engage in meaningful discussions with democrats and other progressives, he continues to break bread with Robert Bork, Tom DeLay, Trent Lott, and Oliver North. So, while Bob Barr today is an improvement on the Bob Barr who wanted a federal law to prevent people from practicing religions he opposed while they are in the US military, he still is not a progressive or liberal.

Where he offers us some advantages is in the ability to split republican-conservative support away from McCain, and by raising Constitutional issues in the fall election. He may be of particular value if there are debates involving McCain and Obama. He is opposed to the Patriot Act, and has spoken out against such things as the FBI questioning people that have been identified as "potential anti-war protesters."

He has also correctly identified the need to restore the Great Writ of habeas corpus, an Amendmend 1 protection that was trampled by both Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.

Barr is a talented debater, and his familiarity with Constitutional law would be evident against John McCain. I do not think there is any chance of him taking support away from our nominee. He would also be likely to raise issues that Barack Obama will be able to answer forcefully, regarding the need to respect the US Constitution, especially that Bill of Rights.

The more that the Constitution/Bill of Rights are brought up in the period before now and the November election, the more likely voters are going to see that it is being threatened by the federal government. Presidents from both parties have damaged it. Politicians in both parties have failed in their duty to protect it. I think it is important that a conservative voice like Barr brings this to the attention of republicans, so that they are less likely to buy into the Big Brother position that advocating for the Constitution is a sign of weakness.