Tuesday, October 29, 2013

The Importance of the Virginia Governor's Race for Libertarians

Following my post, Conspiracy Theory: Ron Paul Inc. Teams Up With the GOP Establishment, I received calls from a number of observers of the libertarian movement. One chided me for giving an impression in the post that Ron Paul Inc members were once libertarian and that they are just now slipping. He made a very strong case that the members of Ron Paul Inc are opportunists and were so even when they worked directly on the 2012 Ron Paul campaign. They hold no libertarian principles and use libertarianism as a tool to advance their power.

Two callers pointed out to me the curious fact that Ed Crane is backing the Libertarian Party candidate in the race, Robert Sarvis. WaPo reports:
Libertarian Robert Sarvis is getting some late financial help in his uphill fight for Virginia governor against better-funded foes Ken Cuccinelli II and Terry McAuliffe.

[Ed Crane's] Purple PAC — a group devoted to backing candidates who are “‘red’ when it comes to economic policy, ‘blue’ when it comes to social policy” — launched a six-figure television ad buy Thursday designed to boost Sarvis’s campaign by painting him as a more appealing choice than Cuccinelli (R) or McAuliffe (D).

Here's the Crane ad:


Both observers note that Crane is not ignorant of the fact that Sarvis is not gong to win. This ad buy will only help out the Democrat McAuliffe, by drawing votes away from Cuccinelli and into the  Sarvis corner. Some suspect that the Kochs have Cuccinelli in their pocket and that the Crane sponsorship of Sarvis is a way to get back at the Kochs, who booted him from the Cato Institute. In other words, backroom politics is running this race, not principle.

Indeed, there are no real libertarians among the three running, as I pointed out early on, Sarvis is far from a principled libertarian. This is not surprising, his "libertarian" thinking was molded inside the Beltway. He has a Master's in economics from George Mason University.

The pro-Cuccinelli operatives are sending out a negative email about Sarvis, identifying the various ways Sarvis leaks from libertarian principle. Curiously, though, the email is being sent out by Russ Moulton, a defense contractor!  Support of a candidate by a defense contractor should not be seen by a libertarian  as anywhere near a positive endorsement.

Bottom line: There are no strong libertarian candidates in this race, Sarvis appears to be a hardcore beltarian, Cuccinelli is simply a mainstream establishment Republican and McAuliffe is a typical establishment Democrat. There is nothing in this race that libertarians should be excited about. The only reason I have put it on the map, here at EPJ, is because Ron Paul, probably under pressure from Ron Paul Inc, has endorsed  Cuccinelli. It would be nice to see Cuccinelli lose, which would be a signal to the opportunists at Ron Paul Inc that Ron Paul followers are not going to follow Ron when he makes establishment endorsements.

The best thing for libertarians in Virginia to do in next week's vote is A. sit out this vote and every vote. B. Vote for Sarvis, he is not going to win, but votes going to him won't go to Cuccinelli and will signal that the Ron Paul movement is not buying into Ron Paul Inc.

14 comments:

  1. I'm a second year MA Student in Econ at GMU, not voting. Would that contradict molding here?

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    1. John, despite the hyperbole, Bob is just pointing out the futile nature (and insidious psychological effects "voting" has on the masses) of politics in general.

      Radical, fucked up, dangerous and uncontrollable (just being honest) destruction of the current system of incestuous military, banking, big biz and government that currently

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    2. Damn ipad.

      The "collapse" of the current system will be painful for even the most prepared- psychologically, monetarily, physically, etc.- it will not be pretty, but it is "baked into the cake". It might take 20 years, but it is far more likely to be within the next few years as the money gets worth less, the regulations inhibit new capital formation, the drain on old capital becomes more noticeable and our "allies" turn on us.

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    3. Rick, I agree and there are many here at GMU that do. I know Bob correctly attacks some of our professors, but I would say GMU is an ally rather than an enemy.

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  2. "[Ed Crane's] Purple PAC — a group devoted to backing candidates who are ‘red’ when it comes to economic policy, ‘blue’ when it comes to social policy”

    I know that Ed Crane has a reputation for sexually harassing subordinates but I didn't know he was a complete imbecile too. 'Red' economic policies means corporate subsidies, protection from competition, massive defense spending, fat cat bailouts, Federal Reserve social engineering, perpetual deficit spending and more out of control growth of government. 'Blue' social policies equate to taxpayer funded abortions, citizen disarmament, affirmative action and free speech suppression. What kind of libertarian would support any of that? The man is a complete intellectual and political fraud.

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    1. Anonymous: Pretty stupid cheap shot: You are citing the Washington Post's description of what is meant by the Pac by the color "purple". Obviously it is a mistake to fall into that error. It is also obvious that the purple people have concluded that Cuccinelli is not worth cheering for, even given the awful McAuliffe. (Read Rothbard for the distinction between actually voting and who one instinctively pulls for on election night.)

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  3. "... probably under pressure from Ron Paul Inc." Umm Kay. Perhaps you could pressure him into buying a fog machine.

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  4. Bob,
    Typically I would agree with you especially on the economic front. The kicker in this election is gun control. McAuliffe wants to institute NY style gun control in VA. How successful he'll be will depend of the makeup of the house and senate. Also Cuccinelli has shown some willingness in opposing federal encroachment. Both are probably crony capitalists but if the SHTF during the next 4 years, we'd have a greater chance of pulling out of it with a states rights governor. We'll see Tuesday.

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  5. I must have misunderstood something. I have been actively looking for an Austrian home from which to earn my masters in Economics. I was under the stark impression that George Mason was as close as it gets. Where else can one go?

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    1. Want to take this one, Bob?

      Just take the Mises lectures online and pick a school you like for your degree. Spend your time as an honest inquisitor of your (Keynesian) teachers, pointing out their flaws (especially when they are egregious and obvious) but "bowing down" to their superior knowledge when they foam at the mouth.

      Your fellow class mates will be impressed by your knowledge, and your ability to give the teacher enough rope to hang himself.

      By the end of a 4 year term, hundreds of students will look at "mainstream" economics as utter bullshit, all due to your influence.

      Just remember- open revolt, and direct challenge of the teacher will NOT work out. I learned that the hard way. Think HONEY, not VINEGAR!

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    2. You're correct, Mr. Freeman. I have the same plans.

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  6. Ron Paul was never against endorsing lesser of two evils in small races such as these. I'm pretty sure he has done this before.

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  7. It's somewhat amusing that one should vote as an anti-Cuccinelli vote, yet if one were to use the ridiculous anti-McAuliffe argument for voting for Cuccinelli, these same people would raise holy hell. If the choice is between Sarvis and shunning the process, I vote for the latter.

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  8. Infighting. Great way to ruin any movement. Yawn.

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