For the Republicans

The primary season of 2016 revealed that the Republicans were a very fragile coalition of angry groups of people, united only by their hate and fear of Democrats- most notably of the black president Obama. The bigotry at the heart of the Republican political success of the last half-century threatens to be existential for the Republican Party facing big racial-demographic changes in the electorate.

The “basket of deplorables”- the bigots, xenophobes, homophobes, militarists and misanthropes- became united one last time with others desperate for change in support of the iconoclastic candidacy of Donald Trump. His infant presidency is immediately headed down in flames, will carry the Republican Party with him. What will emerge, after?

Trumps promise to “drain the swamp” was a big fat “alt-fact”. Those who voted for him thinking he was a “nationalist populist” fail to realize what a global capitalist he actually is. Just look at what he does, who he surrounds himself with, his first budget, his Obamacare rewrite…The elections of 2018 promise to be a bloodbath which threaten to lose it all to the Democratic Left.

It will soon become apparent to centrist Republicans they are like passengers on a sinking ship, needing to decide when and which way to jump. The New Libertarians want to be there with a lifeboat.

Traditional Republican strengths like religious and family values, “originalist” devotion to the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights interpreted to favor limited government, private property rights, strong defense, fair taxation, people working-providing for themselves and their families… are exemplified in centrist Libertarian political theory. Libertarians have their extremists, also- the “anarchists”- and the purpose of the New Libertarians is to reject extremism in all the parties in favor of consensus and centrism- and give the American people a new center around which to gather.

Liberty is a centrist idea- the extremes are all authoritarian, oppressive. Rather than let The People decide what they want for their government- they insist we follow their lead, accept their vision of what government is supposed to be- and submit to their authority. The internet gives us opportunity to fathom the “Will of the People” in a way never before possible, and give our candidates the opportunity to pledge to represent it. And, be held accountable.

Both major parties agree in private- no matter what they say in public- about the perpetual colonial wars, regressive taxation, police state/prison nation, and disregard for the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Why? To favor of a Plutocracy which makes their lives quite comfortable, much of which is international – the rule of Big Money and those with inherited Big Money. America supplies the Army for the Plutocracy- in over 80 nations, and the American People pay for it with their children’s future.

Although the Republicans and Democrats promote themselves as being “opposed”, in reality their opposition to each other is an illusion intended to “divide and conquer” the American electorate- and subvert the Constitutional purpose of elections. It’s purpose it to give The People representation in their government, not to strengthen the hold and privilege of some inherited “nobility”- like the king, lords and ladies of England – or whether it be racial, religious and economic as in America 250 years later. That’s why we had a revolution! That’s why they wrote the Constitution!

The strength of the American Dream is that it offers all people the opportunity to improve their lives and the lives of their children- and strengthen the nation. Plutocracy subverts that noble goal in favor of the perpetuation of their power- using regressive taxation, corrupt laws, distraction, coercion. They manipulate us with fear and foment resentment one of us for the other- to distract us from noticing our real oppressors, and maybe doing something about it- changing something.

In 2018 there will be a huge rearrangement of political power in America. We don’t want to see it be just another flip of the coin from one party to the other with no fundamental change. We think the American People will freely chose what’s best for themselves, and that will result in the best for everyone- not just a privileged few. That is the basis of the Libertarian model.