Every day I open my Facebook app, but recently I’ve noticed something new among the photos of people’s dogs and children, memes my friends have shared, anniversary and birthday posts, and GoFundMe links. Every day I see at least three or four posts from my friends discrediting Donald Trump, the republican candidate for the 2016 Presidential Election, and at least three or four posts bashing Hillary Clinton, the democratic candidate. But something I see even more is posts where people are complaining about their options, or are just honestly confused about who to vote for.
In the United States of America, we are so set on splitting ourselves into two political parties. Some people feel that they have to stick with their party, even if they don’t like the party’s chosen candidate. If they don’t like either candidate, they vote based on what party they identify with. The media supports this trend by only broadcasting campaign commercials for the Democratic and Republican candidates. There is always a broadcasted Republican National Convention, as well as a broadcasted Democratic National Convention. Earlier this year, regular primetime TV was interrupted for a democratic debate, as well as a republican debate. News and the media rarely inform voters about third party candidates.
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I’ve spent my whole life feeling like I had to categorize myself as a Democrat or Republican, mainly because media, society, and most of the people I know made me feel this way.I’m not really one to write or post anything political; it’s not really my style. And, if I’m being completely honest, I don’t really follow politics that closely. I don’t watch or read the news as often as I should, so keep that in mind if you decide to continue to read this. This election is different though. This is the first presidential election I will get to vote in. I’ve been trying to keep up more with the news on the candidates so I can make an informed choice when I vote. I know people have said what I’m about to say time and time again, and I may be beating a dead horse here. Even though I’ve identified as a Democrat since I was old enough to understand what that meant, I still ask myself the same question over and over again: when did politics become more about the political parties and less about the issues?
I’ve heard plenty of people say that they don’t want to vote for either Clinton or Trump. I’ve heard many people say that they will not vote at all. I personally believe that it is or duty as Americans to vote in the election. The problem with people who don’t want to vote at all is that the party system has allowed them to believe that Trump and Clinton are their only options. But I have good news, this is not true at all. There is a third party candidate. His name is Gary Johnson, and he is running as the candidate for the Libertarian Party. You may have never heard about him; he doesn’t have nationally broadcasted campaign commercials, debates or party conventions.
For those of you who have never heard of the third option, Johnson served as the governor of New Mexico from 1995-2003. He was elected as a Republican. However, he considers himself a “classical liberal.” The definition of classical liberalism is an ideology that advocates basic individual freedom, freedom of market economy and democracy under the rule of law. However, he values practicality highest of all. He says he makes decisions using a cost/benefit analysis instead of strict ideology. Johnson cannot easily be categorized into our main political parties, nor does he try to adhere to a specific party. Libertarian may be his party, but in my opinion, it’s not like the GOP or Democratic Party which seem to have a set of beliefs that party members mostly adhere to. The Libertarian party is united more by a general belief in freedom and democracy, and does not outline a specific set of beliefs. Instead, in accordance with the freedom of the party, supporters of the party are free to choose where they stand on specific social, economic, governmental and international issues.
Let’s rewind for a minute back to New Mexico in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Johnson’s achievements include balancing New Mexico’s budget and leaving them with a surplus. He did this by decreasing government spending and the overall size of the New Mexico government. He was credited with improving the New Mexico school system. Although he cut overall government spending, he increased public education spending by nearly a third and advocated for school vouchers, which are government funded scholarships for students who can’t afford to attend private school. He fought for the legalization of marijuana in New Mexico, viewing drug addiction as a medical issue rather than a criminal issue. Johnson believes that money could be saved if less of it was spent on the large percentage of crimes that are drug related. As governor of a border state, Johnson gained a lot of experience with immigration policies and knows that building a border wall “will only result in taller ladders.”
If elected president of the United States, Johnson wants to eliminate income tax, which could in turn eliminate the IRS along with other governmental agencies. This would in turn eliminate corporate tax, which Johnson believes would allow corporations to hire more employees, creating millions of jobs. When it comes to the size of government, Johnson is not as set on decreasing overall size as most would expect considering his Libertarian status. As mentioned before, Johnson does advocate a free market economy. He hopes to balance the budget by cutting spending, which would include reducing military spending as well as cutting spending on Medicare and Medicaid. When it comes to assistance programs, Johnson wants to help those that are truly in need. He wants to give grants to the states to deal with their own entitlement programs in ways that they see fit. He is still interested in the legalization of marijuana in order to decrease government spending and border violence. When it comes to the federal government, he is an advocate for term limits.
Although Johnson seems to fit our traditional idea of a Republican when it comes to economy and government spending, his ideas on social issues may surprise many. In fact, he says his views on social issues best match up with those of Bernie Sanders. When it comes to abortion, he believes the woman has the right to make the choice. Johnson believes that the government needs to get out of marriage entirely, and he supports gay marriage. And speaking of gay rights, Johnson believes it is time for the end of the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy. When it comes to religion, he values religious freedom, and believes that people should not be discriminated against because of their religion. He is an advocate for the separation between church and state. Johnson believes in the freedoms granted by the Constitution, which also means he supports the second amendment, the right to bear arms. When it comes to individual liberties, Johnson believes the government should not control people’s freedom to make their own choices.
So, here is my disclaimer: I’m not trying to convince anybody to vote for Gary Johnson in the 2016 Presidential Election. I wrote this article to tell my Facebook friends (and hopefully my friends’ Facebook friends) that they have another option. You don’t have to just vote for your party because you dislike both of the main party candidates. I urge anyone who reads this to vote for the candidate whose ideology, focuses, and personal beliefs best align with your own. Remember that the issues are more important than the party when it comes to politics. So, on election day, take a page out of Gary Johnson’s book, and exercise your own freedom, using practical, cost/benefit analysis to vote for the candidate that is best for you and the rest of the United States.
