The case for Republicans to crossover and join the Libertarian Party

Year after year people complain that we need a stronger third Party and year after year those same people cast their ballots for the same tired Parties that they have always supported, knowing that their expectations will be dashed and feeling as if their vote still does not count. So why do these voters continue on the same tired road to nowhere?
I'm going to focus on the Republican Party because we all know that Democrats have already walked down that path to nowhere with blinders on and no way to reverse course, so instead of making this an exercise in futility lets actually try to open some peoples eyes.
The Libertarian Party occupies that area in the middle and a tad to the right on the balance of power between the Democrats on the left and the Republicans on the right. This also happens to be where the majority of the country resides on most issues when they are asked where they stand in the political spectrum.
The first excuse people will give is that they feel that their vote will be wasted when voting for a third Party. To start off, a vote is never wasted if one takes time to become informed and register their opinions by that very vote. Having said that I want to back track to this last election and use the idea of a wasted vote as an example.
Republicans were angered and put off by the fact that their candidate for President was in essence a liberal Republican who had been enticed on occasion to actually changing his political affiliation. Considering the states that actually kick off the election cycle in the primaries and their Liberal slant is it any wonder Senator McCain became that nominee? Those liberal states created the snowball and the mainstream media built it up as "the" choice. Once the snowball gained momentum very few voters in the following states decided to go against the grain. Once McCain became the nominee most conservatives were left without a Party and angered by the outcome.
Now throw into the equation the cult of personality and the hype of Barack Obama onto the opposite side of that coin. There was an excitement in the Democratic Party based on flat slogans such as "Change" and Change we can believe in" and "Yes we can" chants that captured the minds of those who were less informed but would settle for the 15 second sound bite. It was a tidal wave you could see coming from afar, even back when Hillary was politically drowning in it. You could see early on that McCain was out matched and out gunned from the beginning. The mainstream media later said that it was McCain's choice of Governor Palin that cost him the votes but if anything it was because of Governor Palin that he received as many votes as he did.
With that little set up being made let's really put this out in the open, most of us knew deep down that McCain was not going to win this election. He has always been too liberal and looking back over the last eight years you can see how the Republican politicians in Washington shattered and cracked the Republican brand name with bloated spending and a move to further socialist agendas such as the No Child Left Behind policy and the Drugs for Seniors legislation. The Republicans broke the trust of the constituents and really is it any wonder they felt betrayed and didn't turn out to vote?
Instead of staying at home or putting forth a vote for a candidate that we all felt was going to lose the election would it not have made more sense to use that same vote as a vote to establish the Libertarian Party as that third Party contender that everyone so desperately wants but fails to bring forth? That vote would have made a statement to the current establishment that there is a choice and that there is a place where real principles and ideals can still flourish. That vote for the Libertarian Party would be a signal to the political class that the people of this country still have a voice and we intend to use it. This is not an indictment of Republicans for voting for McCain, many Libertarians crossed over to vote defensively even knowing there was little hope for McCain.
When you look at the state of our country in the hands of either the Democrats or the Republicans you will see that neither has been a good steward of the position and neither one follows or tries to uphold the foundation from which we as a country were built, namely the Constitution. A very big part of the problem stems from the fact that the American population does not understand how the government should work or how it was set up to work. The Republicans and Democrats have twisted the meaning of our government in so many ways that the American people believe what has been pushed upon them is how it was meant to be.
The Federal government was set up to provide defense for the 50 states under it. The federal government was set up to provide for infrastructure – IE: Roads, bridges defined as pertaining to the federal highway system, negotiations between foreign bodies, railway for private industry to use and pay off.
The Federal government was not set up to provide healthcare, funds for medical research, retirement choices, subsidies for farmers, or any of these other issues that can be labeled under a personal agenda from a group of people.
The American people have no idea what States Rights are or how they have been lost and engulfed by what amounts to the imperial Federal government. If people are not educated in the nature of what the government should be then they will never be able to vote on that premise.
So what are other reasons that Republicans decide not to vote Libertarian?
Republicans are quick to call out Democrats for being the "give me, give me" crowd but fail to see that they are the very same way. Republicans like to define themselves by their moral compass and then feel that the rest of us should be forced into that same system of beliefs for the betterment of the country as a whole. How is this so much different than Democrats who feel that they can force you to give up money you earn to give to others for the betterment of the country as a whole? Both thought processes are incorrect in sitting with our foundation that this country is made up of individuals who have their right to their own life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. Just as the government should not be used to force me into giving up my hard earned money so to neither should the government be used to force me into a belief system of another groups choosing. The answer to both of these examples is very easy but not to the greedy. For the Democrats in this example it would be charity and individuals in the community coming together of their own free will to help those in need or those who are making less and can't get by. For the Republicans the answer to this example is in bringing free willing individuals together through church and also community. No force is needed to accomplish either goal, and no one who does not comply needs to be forced to do so. Live and let live. A simple concept but neither Republicans or Democrats can subscribe to it because they both insist on making others do what they want to be done or how they think it should be done.
Democrats are incensed when federal funding is cut off for stem cell research but the simple fact of the matter is that the Federal government has no place in funding that research or any other that does not fall under it's mandates set by the Founding Fathers. Republicans on the other hand are up in arms when the abortion issue comes up but just the same, it is not a Federal issue and should not be decided in Federal courts. The abortion issue should be decided and regulated in each individual state according to states rights. One state could make it illegal in that particular state but the individual person would still have the freedom and free will to go to a state where it is not illegal. On that note the Federal government should not be paying for this procedure for private citizens as it is not a role they should even be involved in.
If Republicans and Democrats want a government that works for everyone then they need to ask themselves a very simple question before trying to force their agenda. Does this agenda/policy impede on the rights of the individual in that persons life or liberty? The right for the pursuit of happiness is just that, the right to pursue it. It does not mean that you will be happy or the government should make you happy, it only means you have the right to pursue a state of happiness for yourself.
As a Libertarian there may be things I don't like about something but I know by principle that it is not in the best interest of this country or to the individual to legislate against it. As a Libertarian I am not going to be offended to the point of legislating against the offense if it is not hurting anyone. As an individual you have the right not to participate, watch, or be involved in things that others are consensually involved in or with and that is not doing damage to someone adversely or to their property. Why should you care then if it does not really affect you? What gives you the right to use the force of government?
As of right now it is Republicans who are disenfranchised from their Party and while the political class fights from the inside to see whether they will go farther left or farther right, both sides fail and miss the point. The Republican Party is a broken brand than now has a deep split down the middle. Independents and Fiscal Responsibility Republicans will never venture to the far right where religious indoctrination takes place and the religious base is not enough to carry an election on the national scale. As far as compassionate conservatives who are liberal in nature, they might as well join the Democratic Party because the vast majority of Republicans will never stray as far left as John McCain has.
The offer I put forth to you is to join the Libertarian Party where you can have a vote for people who believe in principles and will defend the Constitution of the United States of America. An organization that believes in bringing back states Rights and returning the Federal Government to the role it was meant to follow. An organization that understands individual rights and the need to protect those very same rights. An organization that believes in true fiscal responsibility and a smaller government where importance is once again based in the states and the local communities. An organization that believes in true tax reform that is fair and equal to everyone such as the FairTax which will also take the power out of Washington's hands. An Organization where your voice can finally be heard.
Join the Libertarian Party and let's get to work in truly making this country better.

-Jason Falter
It is through the individual that we can create a working community with respect and liberty.

http://www.lp.org/