“libertarianism” on The Daily Caller

American conservatives like to disparage Canada as a land of socialized medicine and pacifism, but they would do well to watch the political happenings in our neighbor to the north, where last week hardball politics derailed a burgeoning libertarian revolution. (more)

“As a civil libertarian … I don’t want a police state. I want a reason to do something.” That was Arizona S.B. 1070 author Russell Pearce Tuesday at a Senate hearing on the controversial immigration law. When former Obama adviser Van Jones called libertarians “anti-immigrant bigots” earlier this month, libertarians were confused, but when individuals like Pearce — who has endorsed a white supremacist for Mesa City Council — claim the title, Jones’ mistake becomes more sensible. But to be clear, nothing about S.B. 1070 can be misconstrued as “civil libertarian.” (more)

The political coalition on the left is based on a culture of victimhood. The basic premise of modern liberalism is that America is a melting pot of oppressed groups. Women, gays, Muslims, African-Americans, Latinos, immigrants and the poor are all victims. The 99% is victimized by the 1% — and of course the 1% is made up exclusively of straight white Christian males. Worse than simply being victims, members of the “oppressed” groups are powerless victims, unable to change their miserable lot in life without the help of a big, benevolent government. (more)

Creative people working in the liberty movement often have a hard time getting their ideas funded. Let’s face it: much of the movement is controlled by big donors and small committees of stewards. These committees have good intentions, but sometimes they distribute their largess like charitable Keynesians. And in 1960s fashion, it’s often a game of “who you know.” (more)

Mitt Romney won the Virginia primary on Super Tuesday with 60% of the vote to Ron Paul’s 40%. But according to exit polls, only 35% of Virginia women voted for Paul, compared to 45% of the state’s men. (more)

Purists would strongly disagree, but the average conservative voter and the average libertarian voter are sometimes difficult to distinguish. Both believe in limited government and free markets. Both revere the Constitution. In fact, polls of Republican voters almost always lump conservatives and libertarians together, making it difficult to gauge the number of libertarians in the party. (more)

Rick Santorum had a somewhat super Tuesday on February 7th. He won all three Republican presidential primaries, thereby reviving a campaign that had failed to follow up on his victory in Iowa. Santorum could become the sole alternative to Romney for the Republican nomination. If that happens, he could become the GOP nominee in 2012. Should libertarians vote for him? (more)

Two narratives, both wrong, have emerged from the latest round in the cage match otherwise known as the race for the Republican nomination. Influential voices on both sides predict ruin for one team of combatants and triumph for the other. (more)

This week, Sen. Jim DeMint offered some advice to the Republican Party: “The debate in the Republican Party needs to be between libertarians and conservatives. … There’s no longer room for moderates and liberals because we don’t have any money to spend, so I don’t want to be debating with anyone who wants to grow government.” (more)

A lot of libertarians are getting awfully excited about Ron Paul these days, especially after his strong showing in the New Hampshire primaries. As a libertarian myself, I am sometimes tempted to share in this excitement. But it is a temptation, I believe, that I and others with libertarian sympathies ought to resist. And no, it’s not because of those newsletters. (more)

Adherence to constitutional principles. REALLY cutting government spending. Getting government out of our personal lives and into preserving our liberties. Avoiding foreign entanglements we can’t afford. (more)

When Rick Santorum’s nephew endorsed Ron Paul in an op-ed in The Daily Caller this week, he wrote: “If you want another big government politician who supports the status quo to run our country, you should vote for my uncle Rick Santorum.” Santorum respectfully and lovingly dismissed his young nephew’s endorsement. The senator said his nephew was just “going through a phase,” and later added: “I am a Reagan conservative. I am not a libertarian. And the people who are calling me a big government guy are libertarians.” (more)

“Do you support the Occupy protests?” people often ask me. As a libertarian, my answer to that question is long, complex and inconclusive. I’m critical of a lot of the Occupiers’ economic demands, but I’m very proud of how strong the decentralized structure of this movement has become, even if only as a populist showing-of-teeth. (more)

It looks like the lack of sound religion reporting is going to be a real liability this campaign season. Recent weeks have shown that writers on the left are almost wholly ignorant of religion, and writers on the right are unwilling to dismantle the toxic confusion of God and politics lest they suppress the all-important faith vote. (more)

I am a bleeding heart libertarian. Like libertarians in general, I believe in free markets, private property, strong civil liberties and limited government. But unlike standard libertarians, and like progressives, I believe in social justice. I believe, in other words, that the legitimacy of political and economic institutions depends on their being justifiable to all persons who are subject to them, including, and perhaps especially including, the poor and vulnerable. (more)

Everybody knows that libertarians are greedy capitalists who favor the maximization of profit above all else. “Taxation is theft!” they cry, but the exploitation of the working classes fails to elicit any similar moral outrage. Libertarians, everybody knows, care about the rich to the utter neglect of the poor and vulnerable. (more)

I’m an advocate of separating church and state, not because I necessarily worry the latter might suppress the former, but because I want to protect the integrity of the church and related institutions in the face of federal encroachment. Unfortunately, the buzz phrase “separation of church and state” has degenerated into a leftist talking point. This is in large part thanks to groups like the ACLU and various Supreme Court decisions — especially Everson v. Board of Education, which mandated a “wall of separation” between all church and government relations (despite prior state-level involvement), policed by the federal government. (more)

Americans owe Ron Paul a huge debt of gratitude. Four years ago, while Republican candidates for president were talking positively about trillion-dollar adventures in the Middle East, the congressman from Texas built his candidacy for the White House on the principles of sound fiscal management and military restraint. Thanks to his passion, his drive, and his supporters, these principles are now back in vogue. (more)

Over the past half century, the presidential nominating process has slowly evolved to serve two purposes for candidates — to vet their potential electability…and sell stuff. The possibility of Donald Trump using the season finale of The Apprentice to make a big presidential announcement highlights this phenomenon. (more)

“Independence is the recognition of the fact that yours is the responsibility of judgment and nothing can help you escape it.” — Ayn Rand (more)