Keep in mind that the Republican party was once a third party until it unseated the Whigs.
Hmmm....the Libertarian Party is the largest 3rd party. Bob Barr is currently polling 6% and double digits in some states. I believe if more people looked at our platform they would find that they actually have more in common with us than the party they are currently loyal to...
Anonymous
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The timing isn't right yet, but it is probably moving that way since the Republican Party is now controlled by those who are only interested in trying to make Christians out of everyone and start a lot of useless wars.
The Republicans, instead of taxing us, want to borrow from China until the interest on the national debt exceeds the gross national product. So either our children and grandchildren will get the bill or the US will default on its national debt.
The Democrats, on the other hand, want both high taxes and high deficits to fund unlimited cradle-to-the-grave welfare that will make working for a living seem like an anachronism.
Welfare or warfare?
A Libertarian vote is a step in the right direction. Maybe someday.
Expat Mike
Is it time for a party with libertarian ideals to make a splash and move in as a legitimate party? Yes. The ideas of personal freedom and decentralized government make for a good platform to battle the "central control" parties.
However, is it time for the party calling itself the Libertarian Party to do it? No. As another answer mentioned, despite the name, the Libertarian Party has in recent years just become a more pro-federalist version of the Republican Party. Look at this election. I think John McCain actually values libertarian ideals than Bob Barr. Barr authored the bill that set the whole "marriage is one man and one woman" deal. He f***in' WROTE the thing. How is that representative of personal freedom? The current Libertarian Party is not living up to its manifesto.
Bryan
We have not yet become fed up enough for that drastic a change. Couple this with the absolute Republican fear of an Obama Presidency and I would say the answer is no. I would expect the third parties to garner somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-25 percent of the vote across the board with Libertarians benefiting the most from general party dissatisfaction.
Liberal
Sorry. It's not going to happen. In fact, I know several Libertarians who have switched back to the Republican Party. Six per cent is hardly a mandate and Barr is too far to the radical right to be seriously considered by even the right wing of the Republican party.
chuck_junior
With the number of Libertarians currently, they couldn't unseat the Green Party.