Many historians and political experts argue that the Founding Fathers would be sickened by the 2016 Presidential election and the two-party political system.
“The Founding Fathers were vehemently against a national party (faction) system, especially a two-party model. The first three presidents – George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson- delivered strong cautionary worlds against the threat of political parties….,” writes 2016.presidential-candidates.org in an article about the history of third-party candidates.
An ABC News/Washington Post poll from June 26 showed evidence that third-party candidates may have a better chance in 2016 than in the past. Although the Electoral College makes it extremely difficult for third-parties to win the White House, they occasionally shift the election and make it into history textbooks. (i.e. Ross Perot’s Reform Party in 1992, which performed well in Kansas with almost 27% of the popular vote, but received no electoral votes.)
Below are three third-party presidential candidates most likely to be on the Missouri and Kansas ballots in the November election.
Johnson/Weld will be on the presidential ballot in all 50 states.
Libertarian Party:
Gary Johnson
(Former New Mexico Governor)
with
Bill Weld as V.P. nominee
(Former Massachusetts Governor)
https://johnsonweld.com/
Issues/platform:
Taxes-Eliminate tax subsidies, replace all income and payroll tax with single consumption tax.
Term limits-Johnson believes strongly that politicians should ‘run for office, spend a few years doing the job at hand, then return to private life’ to avoid politicians more concerned about ‘keeping their jobs than about doing what needs to be done.’
Jobs-Believes government regulations on private companies (‘job creators’) should not be used to manipulate their behavior and place ‘unnecessary burdens’ on these companies. He believes it will ‘free up capital and allow those who want and need to create jobs to do so.’ Also believes that income taxes on businesses should be eliminated in order to make the U.S. a global ‘job magnet’.
Personal Freedom-Government should be truly limited. Responsible adults should be able to marry whom they want, arm themselves if they want, make
their own decisions about their bodies as long as no harm is done to others. The national government should not be spying on citizens’ private communications, etc.
Foreign policy/national defense-Believes the rise of ISIS is linked to the instability created by the military and foreign policies of the last two administrations. Believes rather than
sending in more troops, the violent extremist groups should be isolated.
Immigration-The marketplace, not politics, should determine immigration. He advocates work visas to meet the demands of a robust marketplace. Aspiring
immigrants would undergo background check, pay taxes and provide proof of employment.
Criminal justice reform-Politicians have criminalized far too many aspects of people’s personal lives, Johnson believes, and now has one of the highest incarceration rates in the world. Supports the legalization of marijuana. Johnson and Weld do not support the legalization of other recreational drugs currently illegal and wants the focus shifted to drug rehabilitation instead of arrests and incarceration.
Environment– Johnson believes the market and economy should determine strategies to protect the environment. ‘Consumers,innovators and personal choices will ultimately bring about environmental restoration.’ He is against government’s efforts to regulate, tax and manipulate the marketplace in order to impact environmental change.
Education– The Federal Government should not be involved in education. He would eliminate the Department of Education and return control to the state and local levels. He opposes Common Core.
Abortion-Each woman must be allowed to make decisions about her own health and well-being and these decisions should not be dictated by government.
Stein is on the presidential ballot in 23 states. Her campaign considered Missouri and Kansas high-priority states, but still did not have enough signatures. Missouri’s petition deadline is July 29. Kansas’ petition deadline is August 1.
Green Party:
Dr. Jill Stein
http://www.jill2016.com/about
Issues/platform:
Climate– Enact an emergency Green New Deal to turn the tide on climate change
Jobs are a right– Create public employment for those who can’t find private employment, $15 federal minimum wage
End poverty-Establish guaranteed minimum income, free universal child care
Health Care-Establish ‘Medicare for All’
Education– Guarantee tuition-free public education from pre-school through university
Freedom & Equality-Supports equal pay, reproductive rights, ERA, protection from discrimination for LGBTQIA
Criminal Justice-End the war on drugs, legalize marijuana, treat substance abuse as a health problem not a criminal offense
Justice-Terminate unconstitutional surveillance and spying, close Guantanamo, abolish the death penalty.
Foreign policy– Cut military spending by at least 50% and close 700+ foreign military bases.
Housing– Impose an immediate moratorium on foreclosures and evictions.
Castle is on the ballot in Missouri and was working toward signature eligibility for Kansas.
Constitution Party:
Darrell Castle
(Tennessee attorney and former Marine)
with
Scott Bradley as V.P. nominee
(Utah)
http://castle2016.com/
Issues/platform:
Withdrawal from the United Nations– The ideas of America are not compatible with membership in the U.N. Castle says the U.N. is the world headquarters for the ‘church of unbelieving humanism.’ ‘The very existence of the U.N. is an affront to liberty and human dignity,’ Castle says.
Federal Reserve– Repeal the Federal Reserve Act and end the federal tampering of interest rates. The Federal Reserve would no longer exist to lend banks funds if they get themselves in trouble. The dollar would be exchangeable for a fixed quantity of gold and the U.S. Treasury would accept any major currency, including bitcoin to pay taxes.
Abortion– Castle calls himself the only pro-life candidate. He would veto and refuse to spend funding for Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers, allow states to determine their own abortion laws, work to convince Congress that the Supreme Court should have no jurisdiction in such matters.