Ruwart’s In
After some weeks of rumours and speculation, it seems that libertarian author and activist Mary J. Ruwart is officially in the running for the LP presidential nod. Ruwart is most well known as the author of Healing Our World, considered by many to be among the best primers on libertarian thought written for a broader audience.
Until and unless Bob Barr jumps in, Ruwart’s long history, deep relationships, and nearly universal positives within the party make her almost immediately the presumed front runner.
I have mixed feelings. Though Ruwart, like the LP itself, remains far to my right on many economic issues, I personally like her very much, and think that — generally speaking — she would make an excellent candidate, especially as one who can communicate and find common ground with the left.
BUT — I don’t think this is the year. Well, if Hillary manages to steal the Democratic nomination, then maybe. But the LP has zero chance of gaining any traction on the left against the Obama movement. To be certain, there are issues like the war, and the war on drugs, where she can take a principled purist stand against Obama’s pragmatic positioning — but those lefties radical enough to stick to their hardcore positions will have little reason to pick Ruwart over the Greens.
No, as much as I despise the idea and wouldn’t support it myself, this is the year that the LP needs to exploit the gaping fault lines still open on the right. Ideally with Ron Paul, but since he doesn’t seem interested, his surrogate Bob Barr is probably the ticket. Again I wouldn’t support that campaign, but it does seem to be the right strategy for them this year. And if it helps Obama win, all the better. (Now whether this is a good strategy for the long term health of the LP and its principles is another debate, but I’m going to leave that discussion off the table for now.)
Though again a Hillary upset would dramatically change the equation. I certainly would support Ruwart over Hillary, and disenfranchised Obama supporters, especially among the independent left, would be prime territory for a Ruwart campaign to mine. Now, can we put Kubby in as veep?
