Those Wacky Independents
The airwaves have been abuzz today about hapless non-partisan voters going to the polls in California today trying to vote in the Democratic Primary. For those playing the home game, Decline-to-State voters, so-called "Independents," are allowed to vote for candidates in either the Democratic Party or the American Independent party primary elections.
Two problems have arisen from this, mainly out of voter ignorance. One is unfortunate, the other laughably scary. The former is the nagging detail that those Decline-to-State voters who do choose to vote for a candidate in one of those two parties must not only enter the party's specific voting booth but also must fill out another bubble on the ballot saying they are doing so; otherwise their vote is scratched.
It is the latter that makes me laugh and cry at the same time. Many people, wanting to be "Independent" voters, register as an American Independent. What this means is that they are in fact registering as members of arguably the most conservative minor political party in the country. Since I would argue many of these Decline-to-State voters are intending to vote for a Democrat, it is all the sillier when this happens because in fact the AIP is so far to the right. Consider this: the party's first presidential nominee was George C. Wallace, the segregationist former governor of Alabama.
Here are some selections from the American Independent Party's platform, as found on their website:
"The American Independent Party speaks for individual freedom."
This sounds lovely, until you keep reading.
"We oppose governmental policies which tend to break up families, and legislation which attempts to sanction, legitimize, or legalize same sex unions as marriages. We oppose state-recognized homosexual "civil unions" as an alternative to traditional marriage."
"We oppose the promotion by Planned Parenthood, and other pro-abortion groups of so-called "safe sex" through the public school system, including the distribution of condoms, and condom classes.... Nor are the schools an appropriate forum for presentation, or propagandizing, of the homosexual life style. We further oppose legislation that would mandate any K-12 school (private, parochial, public, or home school) to teach/council students on sexual orientation."
Individual freedom, therefore, if you are a straight, celibate person.
"We shall steadfastly oppose Federal legislation permitting the Federal bureaucracy to tell businessmen whom they must hire or fire..."
"We affirm our belief that all men are created equal in the eyes of God, and therefore, should be evaluated on their individual merits."
Translation: no quotas, retirement laws, tenure rules, etc. And we're all born equal but the AIP apparently would like to be the ones deciding what constitutes "merit." You can screw up your God-given equality by doing something stupid like becoming gay or similar, which of course is the result of those pesky public schools presenting and propagandizing the homosexual lifestyle.
"Get rid of the Federal income tax, and restore a tariff based revenue system."
Remind you of Huckabee?
"We support the reinstatement of anti-abortion laws, which laws, by their very nature, protect the lives of those innocents least able to defend themselves."
I suppose this speaks for itself.
"The American Independent Party supports reinstatement in the public schools of the teaching of creation."
Not even intelligent design. A truly intelligent designer would have designed political independents smart enough not to register for the party called "Independent."
Happy Super Tuesday everyone!
Two problems have arisen from this, mainly out of voter ignorance. One is unfortunate, the other laughably scary. The former is the nagging detail that those Decline-to-State voters who do choose to vote for a candidate in one of those two parties must not only enter the party's specific voting booth but also must fill out another bubble on the ballot saying they are doing so; otherwise their vote is scratched.
It is the latter that makes me laugh and cry at the same time. Many people, wanting to be "Independent" voters, register as an American Independent. What this means is that they are in fact registering as members of arguably the most conservative minor political party in the country. Since I would argue many of these Decline-to-State voters are intending to vote for a Democrat, it is all the sillier when this happens because in fact the AIP is so far to the right. Consider this: the party's first presidential nominee was George C. Wallace, the segregationist former governor of Alabama.
Here are some selections from the American Independent Party's platform, as found on their website:
"The American Independent Party speaks for individual freedom."
This sounds lovely, until you keep reading.
"We oppose governmental policies which tend to break up families, and legislation which attempts to sanction, legitimize, or legalize same sex unions as marriages. We oppose state-recognized homosexual "civil unions" as an alternative to traditional marriage."
"We oppose the promotion by Planned Parenthood, and other pro-abortion groups of so-called "safe sex" through the public school system, including the distribution of condoms, and condom classes.... Nor are the schools an appropriate forum for presentation, or propagandizing, of the homosexual life style. We further oppose legislation that would mandate any K-12 school (private, parochial, public, or home school) to teach/council students on sexual orientation."
Individual freedom, therefore, if you are a straight, celibate person.
"We shall steadfastly oppose Federal legislation permitting the Federal bureaucracy to tell businessmen whom they must hire or fire..."
"We affirm our belief that all men are created equal in the eyes of God, and therefore, should be evaluated on their individual merits."
Translation: no quotas, retirement laws, tenure rules, etc. And we're all born equal but the AIP apparently would like to be the ones deciding what constitutes "merit." You can screw up your God-given equality by doing something stupid like becoming gay or similar, which of course is the result of those pesky public schools presenting and propagandizing the homosexual lifestyle.
"Get rid of the Federal income tax, and restore a tariff based revenue system."
Remind you of Huckabee?
"We support the reinstatement of anti-abortion laws, which laws, by their very nature, protect the lives of those innocents least able to defend themselves."
I suppose this speaks for itself.
"The American Independent Party supports reinstatement in the public schools of the teaching of creation."
Not even intelligent design. A truly intelligent designer would have designed political independents smart enough not to register for the party called "Independent."
Happy Super Tuesday everyone!