Barrack Obama is an enigma to many who believe America is a great country.  Here is a man who was the son of an immigrant father from Africa and a broken family of average means.  Still, he was able to attend America’s finest schools and ultimately became president of the United States.  His Cinderella success conflicts with the President’s message that so often apologizes for America’s sins.

In trying to reconcile the conflict between Obama’s success and his Leftist views, I look to his past for answers.  Yet, little history has been publicized about the man’s past with the exception of the President’s own writings.  The so-called “independent press” has done little to research the man and his upbringing so we are forced to create conclusions based on information from less formidable sources.  Where are the interviews of his relatives?  Where are the interviews with classmates?  Where is the research as to whether he attended classes while in collage?  The questions are many, the answers are few.

An email is circulating with comments from fellow Columbia graduate, Wayne Allyn Root, who was also a Political Science major at the University and graduated during the same year as Obama.  I post the entire email below.  Root claims that neither he nor his classmates knew of Obama at Columbia.  Similar stories have gained traction because of the lack of follow-up by the press.  To study Root’s claim I went to the Left-leaning mediamattersaction.org for its fact checking.  Their response, posted below, answers few questions and in fact offers credibility to Root’s claims.  The following statements come from MediaMatters website:

• “If Obama’s classmates don’t remember him, it might be because he only attended Columbia for two years before graduating.  At Columbia, he lived off-campus.  He also spent most of his time studying.  ‘Mostly, my years at Columbia were an intense period of study,’ Obama told Columbia College Today in 2005.” This confirms Root’s contention that folks who attended Columbia do not recall Obama.
• “Moreover, one of Obama’s professors at Columbia remembers him well.  Michael Baron told the New York Times that he wrote Obama a recommendation for law school.” Finding one person at Columbia who remembers Obama shows he attended the University, but tells nothing about the man.
• “Finally, it should be noted that the source of this rumor is Wayne Allyn Root, who was the Libertarian nominee for Vice President.  …….. Root has political motivation to try to make Obama look bad.” This comment holds for any politician.  However, it does not refute the claim.

Mediamattersaction.org concludes by saying: “Hopefully, this will help clear up your concerns.”  I leave it to each reader to determine if this clears up anything.  But, for me it raises more questions.

There are many unanswered questions about Barrack Obama that should be known for any important public figure.  This void exists because the press has not asked the questions nor attempted to locate answers.  It also exists because the President’s handlers have kept many areas of the President’s background in the dark.  Because of this void it is left to the blog-o-sphere to make educated suppositions.  That is too bad for our democracy.  It does not meet the transparency the President promised during the campaign.

Original Email with Root’s Comments

From: XXXXXX@gmail.com

To:XXXXXX@hotmail.com

Subject: Fwd: Evidence of Obama’s past

Looking for evidence of Obama’s past, Fox News contacted 400 Columbia University students from the period when Obama claims to have been there, but none remembered him.

Wayne Allyn Root was, like Obama, a political science major at Columbia who also graduated in 1983. In 2008, Root says of Obama, “I don’t know a single person at Columbia that knew him, and they all know me.

I don’t have a classmate who ever knew Barack Obama at Columbia. Ever!  Nobody recalls him. I’m not exaggerating, I’m not kidding.” Root adds that he was also, like Obama, “Class of ‘83 political science, pre-law” and says, “You don’t get more exact or closer than that. Never met him in my life, don’t know anyone who ever met him.

At the class reunion, our 20th reunion five years ago, who was asked to be the speaker of the class? Me.

No one ever heard of Barack! And five years ago, nobody even knew who he was. The guy who writes the class notes, who’s kind of the, as we say in New York, the macha who knows everybody, has yet to find a person, a human who ever met him. Is that not strange?

It’s very strange..” Obama’s photograph does not appear in the school’s yearbook and Obama consistently declines requests to talk about his years at Columbia, provide school records, or provide the name of any former classmates or friends while at Columbia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Allyn_Root#column-one

NOTE: Root graduated as Valedictorian from his high school, Thornton-Donovan School, then graduated from Columbia University in 1983 as a Political Science major (in the same class as President Barack Obama WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN IN)

Pass to all your Email friends.

Fact Check from Mediamattersaction.org

Hey there, thanks for passing this along.

My first reaction to this email was that this is just another crazy Internet rumor.  I mean, if President Obama didn’t really go to Columbia, wouldn’t it have come out during the campaign? So I did a little research and here’s what I found.

If Obama’s classmates don’t remember him, it might be because he only attended Columbia for two years before graduating.  He transferred from Occidental College in California before his junior year.  At Columbia, he lived off-campus.  He also spent most of his time studying.  “Mostly, my years at Columbia were an intense period of study,” Obama told Columbia College Today in 2005. “When I transferred, I decided to buckle down and get serious. I spent a lot of time in the library. I didn’t socialize that much. I was like a monk.“  Read the whole thing here:http://www.college.columbia.edu/cct_archive/jan05/cover.php

Moreover, one of Obama’s professors at Columbia remembers him well.  Michael Baron told the New York Times that he wrote Obama a recommendation for law school.  (In the same interview, Baron inadvertently fueled another Internet rumor about Obama’s “fake thesis.”)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/30/us/politics/30obama.html?_r=1&pagewanted=2
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/oct/26/blog-posting/obamas-columbia-thesis-all-fiction-dreamed-blogger/

Finally, it should be noted that the source of this rumor is Wayne Allyn Root, who was the Libertarian nominee for Vice President.  He made similar claims in an interview with Reason magazine, saying that “maybe” Obama “was involved in some sort of black radical politics.” Clearly, Root has political motivation to try to make Obama look bad. http://reason.com/archives/2008/09/05/wayne-allyn-roots-million-doll/

Hopefully, this will help clear up your concerns.  If anybody sends you another email like this, make sure you get the facts before sending it to more people.  That way people won’t get all worked up over nothing.

Talk to you soon.

–Media Matters Action Network

You have probably heard of Wayne Allyn Root because he was the vice-presidential nominee in 2008 for the Libertarian Party. Or if you live in one of our country’s larger cities such as New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago, you have probably heard his radio talk show called W.A.R. And if you know who Mr. Root is, then you know that he has cutting edge ideas and philosophies that just may serve our country well.

As a libertarian, Mr. Root believes strongly in the liberties guaranteed in the United States Constitution, but believes that the government’s role should be extremely limited. If applied appropriately, the libertarian philosophy could provide our country a fresh approach to the problems we are facing.

Wayne Allyn Root has had a full and rich life full of an abundance of experiences. He has produced television series and is a television personality every year for his annual Wayne Allyn Root’s Winning Edge series. He has a production company named Cool Hand Root. He also had a long career in sports handicapping. Moreover, Mr. Root is a prolific author. Politics, however, is where he is finding his forte.

You may be asking yourself how a guy like Mr. Wayne Allyn Root became so diverse and successful in everything that he does. Well, you can bet that he probably has an extreme willingness and an innate sense of entrepreneurship. How would you like to take your life to new levels and begin achieving all of the things that you never thought possible?

To do this requires action on your part; merely thinking about greatness will never get you real greatness. If you want to become great in your professional life, perhaps it is time to catch some of the entrepreneurial spirit. There is a program by the name of CarbonCopyPRO that will help you to do this.

Austin Independence Day Tea Party.

TAKE BACK

AMERICA

 Tea Party

 Defiant in 1835—-Defiant in 2009

          Date:  July 4^th 2009

   Rally on the so. steps of the Capitol 

        Time: 2:00pm – 4:00pm

       BBQ: 4:30pm – 6:30pm

Take Back America Tea Party

Saturday, July 4, 2009 – Texas State Capitol

(Updated June 18, 2009) 

1:30 – 2:00      Rally Music

2:00 – 2:02      Stephen Kerr welcomes crowd & introduces Color Guard

2:02 – 2:05      Color Guard Kyle VFW

2:05 – 2:07      Pledges of Allegiance – Austin Smith

2:07 – 2:10      National Anthem by Burl Smith

2:10 – 2:12      Stephen Kerr introduces Brett Finley, Kelly Hoag & Don Crawford

2:12 – 2:15      Brett Finley “We the People” end with last line of “Soldier’s Prayer”

2:15 – 2:17      Burl Smith will sing

2:17  - 2:19      Kelly Hoag will speak about her military experience

2:19 – 2:22      Burl Smith will sing

2:22 – 2:24      Don Crawford w/The Eagle & Child Show on KLGO

2:24 – 2:25      Stephen Kerr introduces US Senator John Cornyn

2:25 –2:35       Senator Cornyn (speech 10 minutes)

2:35 – 2:36      Stephen Kerr introduces Texas Director Peggy Venable

2:36 – 2:38      Americans for Prosperity – Texas Director, Peggy Venable

2:38 – 2:39      Stephen Kerr introduces Wayne Allyn Root

2:39 – 2:46      Wayne Allyn Root Libertarian Vice Presidential Nominee 2008        (7 minute speech)

 2:46 – 2:48     Barry Walker Hays Co. ResistNet- Topic:  Independence & Secession from England

2:48 – 2:50      Emily Adams, teenager – Topic: Founding Fathers/Original Meaning & Timelessness of Constitution  

2:50 – 2:52      Michael Barre with TCRLC

2:52 – 2:54       Bill Crowley – USAF retired Capt. Neurosurgeon Topic: Socialized Healthcare

2:54 – 2:56      Robert Karasch – Topic: contrast of taxes in Boston Tea Party to now

2:56 – 2:57      Stephen Kerr introduces Governor Rick Perry

2:57 – 3:12      Governor Rick Perry (15 minute speech)

3:12 – 3:14      Jason Moore KWEL’s Captain Watchdog – Topic: taxes on small business

3:14 – 3:16      Ken Brewer – Topic: Natural Rights & Taxation  

3:16 – 3:18      Alan Daves retired minister – Topic:  Tyranny

3:18 – 3:20      Stephen Kerr introduces US Representative Louie Gohmert

3:20 – 3:32      Representative Louie Gohmert (12 minute speech)

3:32 – 3:34      David Ives Highland Lakes Tea Party Organizer

3:34 – 3:36      Paul Davis from Campaign for Liberty (former Marine Desert Storm)

3:36 – 3:38      Heather Liggett/Laurie Bartlett Topic:  Stand Tall read the Preamble—what you can do to be involved….

3:38 – 3:40      Stephen Kerr introduces State Representative Wayne Christian

3:40 – 3:45      Representative Wayne Christian  (5 minute speech)

3:45 – 3:47      Lou Ann Anderson Americans for Prosperity policy expert

3:47 – 3:49      Robin Armstrong with RPT: Topic next steps to get involved

3:49 – 3:51      Jon Roland – Constitutional Expert

3:51 – 3:53       David Zuniga reads AmericaAgain demand letter

3:53 – 3:55      Stephen Kerr introduces children onto stage

3:55 – 3:58      Children sing first verse of “God Bless America”

3:58 – 4:01      All sing first verse of “God Bless America”

4:01 – 4:04      Color Guard Departs             

4:04 – 4:07      Stephen Kerr (Thank You & close)

(Details and ticket info for BBQ coming soon we are working thru the logistics)

Fireworks to follow @ dusk @ Lady Bird Lake 

 We are in need of your help….please click here if you can help. 

 What’s better on the 4th of July than taking pride in your country while listening to Local Residents speak about Our Constitution,  Stephen Kerr program director of 1370 will be our emcee. Local student Austin Smith will start us out with Our Pledge of Allegiance and  Texas Pledge followed by Brett Finley our opening speaker from Tomball. Burl Smith will sing our National Anthem and then Central Texas Residents Kelly Hoag, Don Crawford of “The Eagle & Child Show”, Barry Walker, Emily Adams, Robin Armstrong of RPT, Bill Crowley, Ken Brewer, David Ives, Alan Daves, Paul Davis (C4L), Jason Moore and Robert Karasch will take the stage to be heard along with Peggy Venable TX Director of Americans for Prosperity & Wayne Allyn Root of The Libertarian Party & State Rep. Wayne Christian. 

Campaign for Liberty, Libertarians, The 912 Project, ResistNet, Conservatives and Republicans will come together on the stage to tell Washington DC to re-read our constitution…… 

We are proud to have US Representative Louie Gohmert a true conservative speaking at our event.  of course we the people need to be heard by our politicians….but we also need to listen to them when they are fighting for us!  Follow all that up with eating some good ‘ole Texas BBQ with other like-minded Texans…. it just doesn’t get any better than that….oh wait it does stick around after the bbq to watch the annual fireworks @ Lady Bird Lake.
Take pride in your country this July 4th and help us celebrate and fight for our country….before it is too late!
Join us to become a vociferous force our politicians will no longer be able to ignore, deflect or silence!   

We are pleased to have

Americans for Prosperity

Gryphon Utilities

Precision Screen Graphics

Alexander Tent Rentals of Austin

Hickory Street Bar & Grill

as Sponsors/Donors for our event!

  Look for our Group “Texas Tea Party HQ”   

Logo tee’s and donations can be made via our new

website http://www.austinreteaparty.com

While we’re trying to get all this info from the federal reserve by the hardest, maybe we should consider sticking to the Constitution for coining our money. The founding fathers warned us about the “central banks” long ago, because they had dealt with them back then and knew what would happen. Remember, “those who fail to from learn history are doomed to repeat it.”

The Constitution gives Congress the power to “coin” money….not to delegate it to  “private banks”, i.e. federal reserve.

Article 1 Section 8

….To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;…….

Fed Would Be Shut Down If It Were Audited, Expert Says

The Federal Reserve’s balance sheet is so out of whack that the central bank would be shut down if subjected to a conventional audit, Jim Grant, editor of Grant’s Interest Rate Observer, told CNBC.

With $45 billion in capital and $2.1 trillion in assets, the central bank would not withstand the scrutiny normally afforded other institutions, Grant said in a live interview.

“If the Fed examiners were set upon the Fed’s own documents—unlabeled documents—to pass judgment on the Fed’s capacity to survive the difficulties it faces in credit, it would shut this institution down,” he said. “The Fed is undercapitalized in a way that Citicorp is undercapitalized.”

Grant said he would support legislation currently making its way through Congress calling for an audit of the Fed.

Moreover, he criticized the way the Fed has managed the financial crisis, saying the central bank’s target rate should not be around zero.

“I think zero is the wrong rate for almost any economy,” Grant said, adding the Fed has “embarked on a vast experiment in moral hazard. Interest rates are the traffic signals in a market economy, and everything’s green. … You have to wonder whether these interest rates are the right clearing rate or rather they are the imposition of a central bank.”

Amid a disparity between analysts predicting there will be no rate hikes soon and the fed funds futures indicating tightening by the end of the year, Grant said he thinks the Fed indeed will begin raising rates as inflation creeps into the picture.

Fed funds futures have fully priced in as much as a half-point rise in the target rate from its current range of zero to 0.25 percent.

“If the hairs on the back of your neck stand up when there’s too much unanimity of opinion, then one begins to worry about this,” he said. “The Fed proverbially has been late.”

CNBC.com

Fed Unveils Lending Details After Lawmaker Pressure

The Federal Reserve unveiled its most detailed picture yet of its record $1 trillion expansion of credit, as Chairman Ben S. Bernanke responds to congressional pressure for greater transparency from the central bank.

For the first time, the Fed announced details on the number of borrowers and the ratings of securities pledged as collateral for loans. The data come in a new monthly report released by the central bank today in Washington.

Officials still stopped short of identifying the firms, a measure called for by some lawmakers and the subject of freedom-of-information requests and lawsuits.(Which I might add, the federal reserve it not bound to because it isn’t federal…..it’s private.)

Fed officials believe naming companies would undermine the central bank’s efforts to stabilize the economy, a senior Fed official said at a press briefing today.

Congressional Votes

The Fed’s effort at greater transparency in its emergency lending programs is a response to an April 2 nonbinding budget amendment sponsored by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, and the panel’s ranking Republican, Alabama Senator Richard Shelby, Bernanke said. That proposal passed 96-2.

The Fed didn’t mention the tougher measure, also nonbinding, sponsored by Sanders, which passed 59-39 on the same day. Bloomberg News filed a lawsuit against the Fed in November seeking the names of borrowers.

Sanders, in a statement last month, threatened to pass the measure again “in a stronger form” if Bernanke failed to accept it. Bernanke told Sanders in February that identifying borrowers would be “counterproductive” and result in “severe adverse consequences for the economy.”

Read entire article at Bloomberg.com

One of the questions every home-schooling parent hears is, “What about extra-curricular activities?” OK, even with six kids, I’m still five kids short of a varsity football squad, but my 16-year-old twins sons, for example, are excellent swimmers who just completed YMCA lifeguard certification.

Lots of home-schooled kids not only compete in sports, they excel. The Las Vegas Review-Journal just featured one such athlete, 17-year-old Dakota Root:

“Every time you fence, you have to keep changing your game,” Dakota said. “You can’t just rely on your skills. You have to rely on growing within the bout. You don’t do that in most other sports.”
Dakota has been in the sport only four years, but she is considering attending college at Ivy League fencing powerhouses such as Harvard and Columbia as well as Duke, Northwestern and Notre Dame. There appears to be reciprocal interest. . . .
She has achieved scores of 2,240 on the Scholastic Achievement Test (Dakota still hopes to break 2,300) and 31 on the American College Test. . . .
Last November she traveled to Germany and Austria for 16-and-under World Cup tournaments. Dakota fenced especially well in Germany, making the fourth round of pool play.
Showing that performance was no fluke, Dakota in April won under-19 epee at the Pacific Coast Championships in Long Beach, Calif. She was second in the senior epee, which was open to all ages.
That’s a head-turning rise through the ranks for a relative newcomer. It’s also a rise that could continue, perhaps even to the Olympic Games, with 2016 as the likely target. . . .

UPDATE: Hey, Wayne’s not the only home-schooling dad who can brag on his kids. And remember, I’m an expert.

 Socialism in the United States?

His name is Wayne Allyn . 

Wayne Allyn Root

BMOC Wayne Allyn Root says, “I don’t know a single person at Columbia that knows him, and they all know me.  I don’t have a classmate who ever knew Barack Obama at Columbia.  Ever! … Nobody recalls him.  I’m not exaggerating, I’m not kidding.

Root graduated as Valedictorian from his high school, then graduated from Columbia University in 1983 as a Political Science major

Root: ….. “here’s the story that I think the press should be digging up, I really mean this, about Barack Obama. When George Bush annoyed everyone the first thing they went to was how dumb he was, and they said how bad he did in Yale, and blah blah blah, he got a C average. Then they found his C average was better than Al Gore’s average, and it was better than John Kerry’s average!”

____________________________

Who is Obama? I don’t know but a would like to know.

Don’t you?

The Libertarian National Committee will have its meeting today in San Diego today and tomorrow. Much of the business today, as I gather, will be on the resolution of discipline for Angela Keaton.

The live feed broadcast will be airing at 7:30 a.m. PST (10:30 a.m. EST) here and on my Let Liberty Ring blog.

Eric Dondero, the collectivistic and vile Republican sycophant who has been undermining the liberty movement for years with his idiotic moronic claims (such as one stating he’s the “real libertarian” and Yours Truly is not) and who has been cloaking himself as an advocate of liberty under the rubric of libertarianism, interviewed Wayne Allyn Root for his uninspiring statist-pretending-to-be-a-libertarian blog Libertarian Republican.

Here’s the interview in its entirety:

EXCLUSIVE!

Editor’s Note – We appreciate Wayne Root taking the time to grant this interview to Libertarian Republican.

 

ERIC: Wayne, how you feeling these days, now that we’re 3 weeks out from the election? Tan, rested and ready for your next big adventure?

WAYNE: Not tan, not rested, but I’m ALWAYS ready for my next adventure. I’m not like any other politician you’ve ever met. They campaign hard for 4 months, then take a 2 week Caribbean vacation after the election to recover. What a bunch of wimps. I never took one day off after the election. I flew home from Atlanta on Nov 5th…and prepared my sports TV and radio shows the rest of the day…then got up at 5 AM the following day to write my book…then spent all day in a TV studio filming my sports TV show.

I work 24/7 every day and year of my life. I’m a business owner and CEO and TV producer and TV host and author and business speaker and father of 4 young children. My days never end. I’m a workhorse- and I like it that way. Rest is for wimps. That’s why I believe I’d make a great President. America needs a 24/7 President who thrives on stress and doesn’t need vacations, rest or golf. I’m your man!

ERIC: Ballot Access News is reporting that the near final vote total for the Libertarian ticket of Bob Barr and Wayne Root, is 520,000. Though, it could still go higher by a few thousand. Are you satisfied with that number, and is it what you had expected?

WAYNE: It’s the second highest in LP history. It blows away 2004…and it beats Ron Paul in 1988 by a country mile…as well as both Harry Browne efforts. It’s kind of hard for LP radicals to spin it badly.

Having said that, I am personally VERY disappointed- because I aim for the stars. I’ll say it again- I’m a different kind of politician. I’m actually honest. I tell you exactly what is on my mind. I expected over 1,000,000 votes. We should have gotten there. But the biased liberal media turned Obama into a national obsession- thereby creating a need for Republicans and conservatives to do ANYTHING to stop him. Barr/Root lost a million (or two) votes because of this Obama-mania.

Barr/Root had as high as 6% in the national polls in August- the same number as Ross Perot when he was invited into the Presidential debates. He ended up with 19 million votes. Put us in the debates and the same thing happens to Barr/Root.

But I built the foundation I said I’d build. A vice presidential candidate can’t win an election by himself- but I sure tried. I came through with flying colors. No LP V.P. ever worked harder or longer. I was a one-man media army- getting more coverage than all other LP V.P.’s in history combined and certainly more than all other third party VP’s in this election combined…and probably more than any LP Presidential candidate other than Bob Barr himself. A third party VP is usually as lonely as a Maytag repairman. I turned that image on it’s head.

I built my base and I’m perfectly positioned for 2012. Things are going to change big-time in 2012. A third party candidate has to be BIGGER THAN LIFE: loud, colorful, charismatic, dynamic and in-your-face controversial. I will be all that- and more. What I accomplished as V.P. should serve notice for what I can do at the top of the ticket. And please remember, I did all this without any money or staff from Barr campaign. Literally none. I was a one-man army. There’s no doubt we’ll make history in 2012.

I’m now a regular on FOX News, nationally syndicated “The Mancow show,” nationally syndicated “The Jerry Doyle Show,” and KABC’s “Al Rantel Show” in Los Angeles (one of the biggest radio stations in USA). I’m also a regular guest on “Break the Matrix” web TV- the home of Ron Paul fans and supporters. I have a major book coming out in May. No I’m not shy about my success- it’s time for the LP to shout from the mountain tops. It’s time to get aggressive, pushy and loud. It’s time to seek our success without asking permission. It’s time to be relentless. We are going to break through in 2012.

ERIC: Could you contrast the Barr/Root performance in relation to past Libertarian Presidential campaigns, Ed Clark in 1980 for instance, or Ron Paul’s effort in 1988? And certainly Michael Badnarik’s campaign of 2004 which recieved 140,000 less votes than you and Bob?

I understand my job for 2012. Ed Clark got the highest vote total because he made a brilliant strategic choice- a billionaire as his V.P. I will spend the next 4 years searching for a billionaire running mate who can spend $20 MM to $50 MM on our LP ticket in 2012. I will campaign for 4 years across the country speaking to LP groups as well as mainstream voters. It’s only been 3 weeks since the election and I’m already booked to speak at LP state events across the USA. I just returned from a wealth conference in Naples, Florida where I was the keynote speaker of the event. Virtually the entire audience was Ron Paul fans and supporters. They played Ron Paul videos during the event. The financial experts who spoke were Ron Paul disciples. The good sign was virtually the entire audience wanted photos with me after my speech and all of them repeated the same words- “I love Ron Paul. But you just grabbed the mantle. You are the man to lead the freedom movement to victory. And we’ll help you in any way we can.” This will be fun! This is no longer your father’s LP.

ERIC: Tell us about your current media efforts. How is it that you’re still managing to get so much media attention from Fox News and nationally syndicated talk radio, and you’re no longer a candidate?

WAYNE: Rome wasn’t built in a day. I was just “discovered” in the waning days of the campaign. Remember a third party V.P. has a hard time getting the media’s attention. But all my work has paid off. I’m now a nonstop guest on FOX News. When FOX wants the Libertarian view on Obama, bailouts, stimulous packages, deficit spending- I’m now the face and voice of Libertarians everywhere. It’s quite a breakthrough. Can you imagine Harry Browne, or Ron Paul or any of our previous Presidential candidates becoming an in-demand regular (multiple appearances per WEEK) on national TV after the election? It’s just happened to your V.P.

ERIC: Can we expect maybe a regular commentator position for you on Fox, perhaps Fox Business, or maybe even your own show?

WAYNE: We’ll see. That would certainly be the breakthrough the LP so desperately needs. I’m having many discussions at this moment- with a national radio network for a nationally syndicated radio talk show called “Root for America”…and one of the producers of “The Apprentice” called me after seeing me on FOX to talk about building a reality show around me. This is how you move the LP into position to compete on a level playing field with the GOP and Democrats. If I become a Libertarian version of Sean Hannity or Rush Limbaugh with millions of fans…it’s a whole new world for the LP in 2012.

ERIC: When is the book scheduled for release? Where can your fans pick up a copy?

WAYNE: It’s titled:

The Conscience of a Libertarian:
Empowering the Citizen Revolution with God, Guns, Gambling, School Choice and Tax Cuts

It will be released in May of 2009 by John Wiley & Sons–one of the world’s biggest publishers. It will be available everywhere- from Barnes & Noble and Borders to Amazon.com.

ERIC: What’s next for Wayne Root politically? There’s a Senate seat in Nevada up in 2010. Any thoughts of running for that?

WAYNE: Lots of thoughts- no decisions at this time. I’ve been too busy writing my book and speaking across the country. Opportunity is knocking- I have plenty of time to choose wisely with my political advisors and strategists. We’re not rushing into anything.

ERIC: Thank you for your time.

WAYNE: Thank you Eric for helping to spread the word.

Over at Huffington Post, Lee Stranahan suggests- with a lot of support in the comment thread- that Ron Paul republicans or libertarians take over the crippled GOP.

But look how things have changed. McCain’s psuedo-maverick-ism tore the Republicans a gaping new one after they collectively rejected Ron Paul; the only candidate with ideas for real, actual change…such as ending the Iraq War.

The beauty of the current GOP anarchy is that it may present the perfect chance for the anarachists to take over the establishment. Or the anarcho-capitalists or limited government small L libertarians and or whatever y’all can agree on. (And good luck on that — agreement isn’t what libertarians do well.)

The party is ripe for the taking. Ripe, I say!

It’s a fun read so get on over there and witness a little rare libertarian love but don’t expect any libertarians to actively participate in taking over the GOP. If we’re lucky as a party, all the LP reformers might now go home to work within their own party. Hopefully they do it before the LP gets sucked into assuming debt for a campaign that barely mentioned the L word.

Originally published October 23, 2008.

As the days until November 4th fly past us with increasing speed, we’re watching Senators Obama and McCain campaign in swing states with renewed vigor. We’ve flocked to our televisions for three presidential debates between the two nominees, and one for their running mates. It’s impossible to go anywhere and not see one of these four names, and when one is mentioned, the other three are sure to follow.

What you don’t see are the names Bob Barr and Wayne Allyn Root. Despite his constant presence in presidential elections, you don’t really see Ralph Nader either, or his running mate Matt Gonzales. You certainly don’t see the names Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente. But in most states, the Libertarian, Independent and Green candidates will be on the ballot. What’s more, choices from all three representations will be interspersed among selections for federal and state congressional positions.

So, for all those undecided voters out there: If neither Obama nor McCain appeals to you, perhaps one of those other tickets does. But with them looms the dread of the “wasted vote.”

We all know the concept of the wasted vote. I lived in Texas during the 2004 election, and although I wasn’t old enough to vote at the time, it wouldn’t have mattered anyway – one blue vote in a sea of red. Similarly during this race, Illinois’s allegiance to Obama has never been questioned.

We stress our civic duty as an opportunity for the people to shape their governments. Our vote is our voice. Therefore, people should vote for whomever they believe to be the best candidate for the job – so we say, anyway. It’s difficult to deny the reality that the United States is often mired by fanatically bipartisan political representation. To vote for a politician unaffiliated with either major party, in most cases, means voting for someone who doesn’t stand a chance at actually winning office. In this sense, it becomes easy to believe that a vote for someone other than a Republican or a Democrat is also a wasted one. How can we help but feel disillusioned about the power of our beliefs?

In a presidential election, this may all be of debatable consequence depending upon how you view the Electoral College. Federal and state congressional elections are a different matter when it comes to the impact of the popular vote, but the wasted vote concept still applies. The dilemma: Do you vote for someone who really represents your beliefs but who likely won’t win, or do you bite the bullet and vote for a major-party person who you don’t completely support because they are a “realistic choice”?

If you’re diametrically opposed to the other major-party candidate, this question is crucial. If you vote for the third-party candidate you really want, you’re obviously subtracting a vote from the candidate you despise. However, if the race is tight, you’re also taking a vote from the tolerable major-party contender that could actually win the position.

This whole conundrum plays directly into the way the media frames elections as sporting events. If we have to consider whether to vote “strategically,” our attention over time ceases to focus on the policy goals of candidates (aside from trendy central issues, for which candidates will provide no detailed, step-by-step solutions). Their potential for victory becomes most important, trailed by our tolerance of said candidates – a short-sighted goal in an increasingly short-sighted bipartisan political system.

To everyone willing to cast their ballot toward people they wholeheartedly support, I admire you. Unfortunately, I find myself thinking back to Ralph Nader. If his status as a write-in on the New Hampshire primary ballot in 1992 is included, his 2008 candidacy will be his fifth. I cannot imagine how jaded one can become spending years backing a person who will never end up in the White House.

Perhaps this is the reason for voter apathy. At some point, we cannot stand to feel let down anymore. Like being unable to turn away from a car accident, we cannot help but be overwhelmed by the constant concern that we have wasted our vote, our hopes and our time. But after mailing my absentee ballot this week, I find myself unable to give up my youthful idealism that every vote counts for something.

Chelsea is a senior in English and music and after voting, can’t stand to wait another 12 days for results.

I’ve posted two entries already about going out there and voting in order for your voice to be heard. I know that when I blog politically, I normally back up the person I’m going to vote for, but these entries are just telling you to vote. I don’t care who you’re voting for, as long as you vote. With special thanks to blogger Kimchi, I now have a list and I’ll link each person running for president so you can make your choice. 

1. Ralph Nader/Matt Gonzalez- Independent (but with affiliations with various small parties around the country, i.e. Peace & Freedom Party)
2. Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente – Green Party
3. Bob Barr/Wayne Allyn Root – Libertarian Party
4. Chuck Baldwin/Darrell Castle – Constitution party
5. Barack Obama/Joe Biden – Democrat
6. Alan Keyes/Brian Rohrbough – America’s Independent Party
7. Brian Moore/Stewart Alexander – Socialist Party (USA)
8. Gloria La Riva/Eugene Puryear – party for Socialism & Liberation
9. John McCain/Sarah Palin – Republican

I’ve really taken an interest in this guy. He’s my second favourite vice-presidential candidate after the woman who went to UAlbany (Albany plug!). Root’s Wikipedia page speaks for itself really, but if you’re looking for a Veep who’s a bit of an idiot and tends to put his foot in it a lot, then Root’s your guy.. He recently said that he was of the opinion that Obama only got into Columbia because he was black! The two candidates were both in the same Political Science class in the Ivy League university, and it does sound to me as though Root may be a teensy weensy bit resentful of Obama, and the fact that he has the best story to tell at their next class reunion, whatever happens on the fourth of November. Not that the Libertarians don’t stand a stonkin’ good chance, or anything! I’m just saying.. So anyway, WAR is definitely one to watch, but get watching quickly — the latest rumour is that Bob Barr (the Libertarian presidential candidate) is considering giving him the push.. Possibly because what he said about Obama might be kind of racist. I can understand where he’s coming from, but come on, Bob! Look at that hair.. How can you not love him? He’s like a politically incorrect Mitt Romney!

Yeah, so my real reasons for liking him weren’t long coming to the surface..

Given all the recent drama, I don’t think so, but according to a letter posted by the Bob Barr Campaign, the Libertarian presidential candidate has asked Rep. Ron Paul, former Republican presidential candidate, to replace Wayne Allyn Root as his running mate for VP.

And according to the article, Root has said, “I am willing to sacrifice anything to advance the cause of liberty, freedom, smaller government and to enable the American taxpayer to keep more of their own money and property. Understanding Dr. Ron Paul’s reputation and name recognition in the freedom movement, I am willing to step aside as Libertarian vice presidential candidate if he would be willing to take my place.”